On July 13, New Yorkers got their first glimpse of The New York Public Library’s totally-renovated central circulating branch The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library (SNFL), as a portion of the branch’s first floor opened for limited grab-and-go service.
The transformed branch on 40th Street and Fifth Avenue—the Library’s largest circulating branch formerly known as Mid-Manhattan Library and now named for the Stavros Niarchos Foundation because of its generous support—was originally scheduled to open in full to the public on May 15, 2020, but that grand opening is delayed indefinitely as New York City copes with COVID-19.
The new library will eventually offer the public hundreds of thousands of books, spaces for programs and classes, the only free, public rooftop space in the City, new, expansive areas dedicated to children and teens, the Pasculano Learning Center offering career services, English language and literacy classes, media and technology training, and a multimedia studio, and a world-class Business Center featuring the staff, programs, and circulating collections formerly offered at the Science, Industry and Business Library (SIBL) at 188 Madison Avenue.
The Library was designed by architect Francine Houben of Mecanoo with Beyer Blinder Belle, and funded by the City and with a generous gift from The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) in line with SNF’s long standing and extensive commitment to the NYPL and libraries worldwide.