Queens Public Library (QPL) held a ceremonial groundbreaking Friday afternoon to mark the start of a $14 million project that will transform and modernize Astoria Library.
The library, built in 1904 and located at 14-01 Astoria Blvd., is the oldest library in the QPL network and requires extensive renovations to bring it up to modern standards.
The project includes a complete renovation of the existing 8,400 square-foot facility in addition to the construction of an additional 1,100 square-foot space featuring an elevator and stairway connecting all floors of the building. At present, the building is not ADA-accessible, making it difficult for people with mobility issues or parents with stroller to access the library.
The library shuttered last month in anticipation of the major renovation, which is scheduled to be completed by spring 2029.
QPL President Dennis Walcott on Dec. 12 said the four-year closure is the “unfortunate reality” of the extent of the major renovation project, which aims to upgrade and modernize both the interior and exterior of the 121-year-old library.
The project also includes plans for a dedicated reading room, event and computer space, upgrades to the building’s fire detection system and the modernization of the building’s facade.
The renovated library will also feature a dedicated children’s space on the ground floor in addition to dedicated adult and teen spaces on the upper levels.
Walcott said QPL will make its Mobile Library available at the Astoria location once a week while the library closes for renovations, adding that it will be encouraging local residents to visit other locations in the borough.
The QPL President was joined at Friday’s groundbreaking by a slew of elected officials, including Council Member Tiffany Cabán, State Sen. Kristen Gonzalez, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards and former Council Member Costa Constantinides, who currently serves as president of the Variety Boys and Girls Club of Queens.
Eduardo del Valle, acting director of the New York City Department of Design and Construction (DDC), and Doug Lipari, executive director of the Mayor’s Office of Talent and Workplace Development, also joined Friday’s groundbreaking.
Walcott described the project as “extremely important” because it will allow the library to be accessible to the entire community.
“This being the oldest library in our Queens network… our goal is to make sure we upgrade the library so that it’s a 21st-century library,” Walcott said.
The renovated Astoria Library, built in 1904 through a philanthropic donation from Andrew Carnegie, will also retain features from its storied history, including two murals created by Long Island painter Max Spivak in 1938 through funding from the Works Progress Administration (WPA) during the Great Depression.
The murals have been removed from Astoria Library for restoration but will be included in the completed redesign.
Cabán, who described herself as a “community-building nerd,” described Friday’s groundbreaking as her “Super Bowl.”
“Libraries are magical places where we can connect, learn and find comfort in community,” Cabán said. “It certainly was my safe space growing up.
“They are life affirming institutions that make our community safer by providing critical services. Public libraries have to be protected and expanded.”
She said QPL has long been faced with budget cuts and described plans to renovate and expand Astoria Library as “beautiful.”
Richards, meanwhile, described public libraries as some of the most democratic institutions in the country because they open their doors to everyone regardless of their socioeconomic status.
“The walls of our libraries are open to everyone in this borough,” Richards said. “So our libraries must be protected and they must be preserved.”
Richards, who awarded $1.7 million in funding for the renovation, added that the Astoria location has needed extensive renovations for “quite some time.”
Gonzalez said Friday’s groundbreaking was a “great day” for Astoria, describing the library as a building that is “special” to people living in the neighborhood.
She described the renovation as a “labor of love” for Astoria that will allow QPL to welcome more people to the location than ever before while also preserving an important and free cultural space.
“Libraries are one of the few places that don’t (cost money) – that people can go and truly enjoy,” Gonzalez said.
Constantinides, who allocated around $9 million in funding for the renovation before leaving office in 2021, said the Astoria location does “amazing work” in the local community while also standing as one of the most historic buildings in the district.
“Think about the generations of residents who have used this library,” Constantinides said.
He added that the renovations helps to “right the wrongs” of systematic disinvestment in the Astoria community west of 21st Street, which he said dated back to infamous former Parks Commissioner Robert Moses.
Constantinides said the Astoria library had been inaccessible to individuals with disabilities or parents with young children throughout its 121-year history but said the major renovation project will transform the building into a 21st-century facility.
“We’re taking this historic library and helping to transform it for the future generations,” Constantinides said. “We’re allowing families to be able to seek the magic of the library their careers through job training and through having the ability to build their resume, or to be able to just escape into a book.”
