
I saw Green’s presentation. Boy do I ever feel relieved. I am a senior citizen and Nancy said it was too confusing and difficult for people to find the stairs to go to second floor from the first floor and that it is too “dim” to read upstairs , so they need to redesign the first floor to put the staircase to the second floor right in your face when you walk into the library. And they need natural sunlight from a newly designed roof.
I thought I was getting Alzheimer’s disease and going blind. because I always get lost when I am trying to find the stairway and it is too dark for me to read.
The auditorium with tiered seats will seat about 250 she said. Now it seats about 150. Justin Timberlake still won’t come and perform.
Relax Nancy. Buy some new furniture if you have too, update the lighting fixtures if you have to, but they’re fine for me and really, Nanc, that auditorium has featured some top-notch talent, especially in classical music. It has a great stage and grand piano and the viewing from the floor is fine. And great acoustics. So be happy, I am.
From a long-time Ridgewood resident and library user.
Oh! please don’t cut the book shelf space. Most important part of the library!!
During her presentation, Ms. Greene stated that the library planned to “renovate within it existing footprint.” Then later she said that they would like to expand the building by “rounding off one corner.” So which is it Ms. Greene; are you expanding the building’s existing footprint or not?
And 10:53 which corner? The NE or SE there is a big difference.
If they round of the corner for the arts center that means rebuilding the who rear entrance that a big land grab in a flood zone.
The drawing showed the desired expansion in the northwest corner of the building, closest to Village Hall (north) and Maple Avenue (west). Patrons “can’t find” the stairs? Install a big neon sign with an arrow: STAIRS. That would save many dollars (a million?)–moving a stairway is a very big deal. We can live without a skylight. Improve the lighting, sure. The designs are a fantasy by a clueless library board. The building itself is hideous and in a flood hazard zone. It has had one expensive major alteration and that was enough. No, we don’t have to redo the library every 20 years. What happens to all the books on the mezzanine when that area becomes meeting rooms? “We don’t need no stinking books!” –Library Board. I miss Pease.
The book supply is woefully lacking at the library. I reserve two to three books a month via my computer. 100% of the time they come in from other libraries, even from as far away as Hoboken. I used to go to the library to get books but they never EVER have the books I want, which are not off-beat rare titles, believe me, just run-of-the-mill popular titles, many of them on the NY Times bestseller listing. I finally realized that the only way to do this was by inter-library loan. I feel like Nancy Greene must order no books at all, and just lets all the other libraries buy the books for the Ridgewood customers to borrow from them. Disgraceful.
Justin TImberlake isn’t coming?