Forest Park Branch: “Gun violence, equality: The raw concerns of Springfield’s youth” (WWLP)

Outside the Forest Park Library are dozens of lawn signs with the raw concerns of Springfield’s youth.

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – They can’t vote yet, but Springfield’s youth has a good handle on what issues face their community and their country.

Outside the Forest Park Library are dozens of lawn signs that look like the ones you typically see during election season. If you look closer, however, you’ll see the raw concerns of Springfield’s youth: gun violence, racism, and sexual harassment.

The project was spearheaded by Forest Park Library’s supervisor Alex Remy and allowed Springfield middle and high schoolers to fill in what they wanted ‘Freedom From’ and ‘Freedom For.’ It was inspired by a similar project at Waltham Public Library.

Click through for article and picture gallery.

Springfield Central Library Renovations Completed (WAMC)

A major renovation project has been completed at one of the most historically significant and heavily used public buildings in the city of Springfield, Massachusetts.

A major renovation project has been completed at one of the most historically significant and heavily used public buildings in the city of Springfield, Massachusetts.

The $4 million project at the Central Library on State Street included replacing the entire flat roof and gutter system and substituting the crumbling terracotta cornices and lion head ornaments with molded plaster.  The front marble stairs were reconstructed and in the rear of the building a new access ramp was put in.

All the work has resulted in the building becoming more accessible and safe for library patrons and protecting its collections from any possible damage, according to Molly Fogarty, Director of the Springfield City Library.

Read more and listen to the radio version – click here.

Springfield Central Library Celebrates Completion of $4 Million Renovation Project

The Springfield City Library hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony today at the Central Library located at 220 State Street to celebrate the completion of a $4 million renovation and historic restoration project.

10/09/2019 – The Springfield City Library hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony today at the Central Library located at 220 State Street  to celebrate the completion of a $4 million renovation and historic restoration project.  The ceremony featured a number of speakers including Mayor Domenic J. Sarno, Helen Caulton-Harris, Health and Human Services Commissioner, Stephen Cary, Chair of the Springfield Library Commission, Peter Garvey, Director of Capital Asset and Kay Simpson, President of the Springfield Museums.

Mayor Domenic J. Sarno stated, “This is my administration’s continued efforts to improve the physical plan of our municipal buildings.  This effort will also enhance accessibility and the welcoming experience to our Andrew Carnegie Central Library and Quadrangle Museum complex.”

Library Director Molly Fogarty expressed her enthusiasm. “The Central Library is an information and cultural resource for the entire city and is one of Springfield’s most historically significant and heavily used public buildings. The completed renovations provide increased accessibility and enhance the experience for more than 400,000 visitors every year and for generations of visitors.”

The Central Library was built in 1912 and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.  It is among four Springfield libraries and 17,00 around the United States that were funded in part by donations from philanthropist Andrew Carnegie in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Read more at the city website – click here

 

 

Springfield Central Library unveils new ramp and plaza (WWLP)

Improved access to a historical library branch in downtown Springfield.

SPRINGFIELD, Mass (WWLP) – Improved access to a historical library branch in downtown Springfield.

Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno and City Library Director Molly Fogarty cut the ribbon, unveiling the new ramp and plaza at the library Wednesday morning.

A disabled Springfield woman was also invited to help open the newly upgraded entrance-way.

A proud moment for Goldie Clark, who loves coming to the Springfield Central library branch several times a week from her home on nearby Chestnut Street.

Read more – click here.

Springfield Central Library unveils new ramp and plaza

 

City of Springfield Preliminary Election September 10

City of Springfield Preliminary Election is Sept 10 – this affects some library locations.

The City of Springfield’s Preliminary Election is Tuesday, September 10. The following library locations will be affected:

  • Forest Park Branch – Closed for library patrons, available only for voting
  • Mason Square Branch – Library open regular hours (1 pm – 5 pm), Community Room used for voting
  • Library Express at Pine Point – Closed for library patrons (per normal Tuesday schedule), available only for voting

To learn more about the election, and to find your polling location, please click here for the City Elections Website.

‘Amazing’: Springfield commissioners tour East Forest Park Library branch (MassLive.com)

MassLive.com featured the new East Forest Park Branch construction – check out the amazing photos and video!

Click the link to read the entire article with more photos and video! https://www.masslive.com/news/2019/08/amazing-springfield-commissioners-tour-east-forest-park-library-branch.html

The new East Forest Park library is being described as one large welcome mat as it will soon welcome residents and visitors to wide open spaces, high ceilings, wall-sized windows and state-of-the-art technology.

That was the message Tuesday as members of the Springfield Library Commission were taken on a tour of the library under construction on Surrey Road, adjacent to Mary Dryden School. Construction is scheduled to be completed in October and the library should be equipped, furnished and ready to open by early December, officials said.

All five commission members said they loved what they saw.

“At the new East Forest Park Library, you’re going to see what a 21st century library really looks like,” said Stephen Cary, commission chairman. “With connections through technology that get people to podcasts, videos, and even the ability to make television.”

East Forest Park construction photo

Springfield children clock over 500,000 summer reading minutes… so far

MassLive highlights Springfield kids’ summer reading totals so far – join our Summer Reading Club to contribute!

From the article at MassLive:

So far this summer, Springfield children have read 27,919 times at 20 minutes a session, amounting to 558,380 minutes of page-turning as part of the Springfield Reads to Build a Better World summer reading project. The results were announced at an assembly Tuesday at Central High School.

“We’re more than halfway there, and we have a few weeks left of the summer,” said Goren-Watts, a principal planner and manager of data, education and municipal technology at the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission. “We need you all to keep reading, tell all your friends to keep reading.”

Springfield Reads to Build a Better World started in 2017. It is made up of 13 summer reading programs throughout the city along with the city’s summer schools.

 

Women@Work: a City-Wide Collaborative

Women@Work: Influence and Impact is a city of Springfield-wide collaborative of programs, exhibitions, and gatherings celebrating the power of women.

Women@Work highlights women’s achievements in visual and performing arts, science and literature,
and community-building and social outreach.

At the hub of this collaborative is a major exhibition at the Springfield Museums
exploring artist Isabel Bishop’s work, which depicts ordinary women in an extraordinary
way. Isabel Bishop’s Working Women: Defying Convention explores how Bishop
not only defined herself as a unique, independent, and unconventional artist, but also
how she changed how artists perceive and portray women.

Bishop’s work and her subject matter prompted Museum Director Kay Simpson and her
team to think about broadening the examination of women and their work and to involve
community partners from the arts and culture, area colleges, the media, social services
and businesses led by women.

Simpson convened a group of stakeholders and the idea blossomed into a year-long
calendar of exhibits and events highlighting the work women have done and do today.
Please join us to celebrate the influence and impact of Women@Work.

Click here to view the Women@Work events calendar.

Special thanks to TSM Design for the Women@Work logo.

CONSTRUCTION PROGRESS MEANS NEW ENTRANCE FOR CENTRAL LIBRARY

Central Library visitors will enter through Quadrangle door starting December 12.

Visitors to the Springfield City Library’s Central Library should enter through the door facing the Springfield Museums, starting December 12. Doors on State Street will not reopen until the next construction phase is complete. The Library’s newly constructed ramp means that pedestrians and wheelchair and stroller users alike can enter the building on the Quadrangle side. Museums staff welcome library visitors to park in their lots on Edwards Street. Accessible parking for vehicles displaying a license plate or placard is in a small lot between the George Walter Vincent Smith and Springfield Science museums; enter through the State Street driveway.

The new ramp is part of a renovation of the historic Central Library which opened in 1912. The City of Springfield is funding the project, with supplementary grant funding from the Massachusetts Cultural Council through its Cultural Facilities Fund. Besides the ramp construction, ongoing improvements include remediation of water leaks, replacement of a worn roof, and restoration of cornices lining the roof profile. The next step dismantles and restores the marble staircase on the State Street side of the building, necessitating the closure of the surrounding doors for public safety.

The Central Library, located at 220 State Street, is the headquarters for Springfield’s nine-location system. It remains open its regular schedule during construction: Mondays and Wednesdays, 12 to 8; Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, 9 to 5; and Sundays, 12 to 5. The Massachusetts Cultural Council is a state agency.

Founded in 1857, the Springfield City Library provides nearly 5000 educational and recreational programs per year. To learn more, visit www.springfieldlibrary.org.

Central Library Plaza Construction Update

New artist renderings of the plaza are available for public viewing.

March 2018 –

The Central Library is currently undergoing renovation, repairs, and construction. Part of the project includes tearing down the old, unsafe entrance ramp at the northwest library entrance (facing the Springfield Museums). The old ramp will be replaced by a new accessible ramp, stairs, and plaza connecting to the Smith Museum. Construction is expected to be completed in August 2018.

Click on images for enlarged views.