Work is underway on the new two-story Canarsie Library at 1580 Rockaway Parkway in Canarsie, Brooklyn. Developed by the Brooklyn Public Library and designed in a collaboration between Studio Joseph, Envoie Projects, Mercer Mass Timber, Plus Group, TYLin, and W Architecture, the structure will span 11,000 square feet, double the size of the previous facility. The building will also be one of New York City’s first buildings constructed from mass timber. Shawmut Design and Construction is serving as the general contractor for the project, which broke ground last Saturday at the property, and is located at the corner of Rockaway Parkway and Avenue J.
The new library will include a children’s reading area with stroller parking, a flexible community meeting room with a 50-person seating capacity, a teen-only space, a maker space equipped with a recording studio, and a landscaped outdoor terrace. Sustainable features will include on-site stormwater management and rooftop solar panels.
The street-level rendering above looks southwest along Rockaway Parkway, showing an International Style-inspired design utilizing a black metal-paneled framework surrounding floor-to-ceiling windows. The interior, pictured below, will feature soaring ceilings and exposed timber framing. Wood paneling will line many of the walls, furthering a naturalist aesthetic that contrasts with the industrial exterior.
The new Canarsie Library. Rendering courtesy of Studio Joseph.
The new Canarsie Library. Rendering courtesy of Studio Joseph.
The new Canarsie Library. Rendering courtesy of Studio Joseph.
The below Google Street View image shows the former one-story library, which was demolished to make way for its replacement.
The original Canarsie Library. Image via Google Maps.
Funding for the project is being allocated by Council Member Mercedes Narcisse, Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, the Office of the Mayor of New York, the New York State Legislature represented by Senator Roxanne Persaud and Assemblymember Jaime Williams, the New York State Education Department, the NYC Department of Citywide Administrative Services, and using proceeds from the redevelopment of Brooklyn Heights Library.
The nearest subway from the library is the L train at the Canarsie–Rockaway Parkway station to the northwest.
The new Canarsie Library is slated for completion in the summer of 2027, according to bklynlibrary.org.
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I love that the city is producing fantastic public buildings again (a process started under Bloomberg). However, we need to stop building single-use buildings on city property, full stop.
They could have added five, ten, 20 apts on top, produce some income for the library and help solve the city’s housing crisis.
I like the sentiment, but the goal of affordable housing isn’t income production, its to provide housing and typically requires a subsidy. If you want to both generate affordable housing, and produce income, the development needs to be a mix of market rate and affordable apartments.
A most definite improvement. Hopefully all that glass is triple glazed.