The Carnegie Library has sat dormant for 30 years after it was sold to the Kingston School District, since then it has deteriorated to the point that it is now estimated that this historical landmark will cost 3 million dollars to repair, this price will only go up as time goes on and more problems occur the time to act is now. Let's not let what happened to the "old post office" happen to The Carnegie Library.
A brief history on Carnegie Library's : Carnegie libraries are libraries which were built with money donated by Scottish-American businessman Andrew Carnegie. Over 2,500 Carnegie libraries were built, including public and university libraries. Carnegie earned the nickname Patron Saint of Libraries.
Of the 2,509 libraries funded between 1883 and 1929, 1,689 were built in the United States, 660 in Britain and Ireland, 156 in Canada, and others in Australia, New Zealand, the Caribbean, and Fiji. Very few towns that requested a grant and agreed to his terms were refused. When the last grant was made in 1919, there were 3,500 libraries in the United States, nearly half of them paid for by Carnegie.
In the early 20th century, a Carnegie library was the most imposing structure in hundreds of small American communities from Maine to California. Contrary to the belief of many people, most of the library buildings were unique, displaying a number of different Beaux-Arts and other architectural styles, including Italian Renaissance, Baroque, Classical Revival and Spanish Colonial. Each style was chosen by the community and was typically simple and formal, welcoming patrons to enter through a prominent doorway, nearly always accessed via a staircase.
Carnegie believed in giving to the "industrious and ambitious; not those who need everything done for them, but those who, being most anxious and able to help themselves, deserve and will be benefited by help from others.
The Carnegie Library is a historical landmark in the City of Kingston, and I think it is fair too say the community wants it restored, it has been the subject of two State of the City addresses by our Late mayor T.R. Gallo, In 2002 Mayor Sottile was exploring the possibility of the City taking it back and putting it on tax-rolls and in 2003 Assemblyman Kevin Cahill was able to secure a 250k grant to stabilize the building for the school district, so while everyone is able to agree The Carnegie Library building needs to be restored there are many ideas on what should be done with it. What do you think? I am looking for public input on what should be done with The Carnegie Library, please take a second and fill out your opinion in our poll and in the viewer comments section which will be presented to the Mayor and the School Board at a city wide meeting I am organizing early next month. Your input is very much appreciated.
3 comments:
The school distrct should use it to help ease over crowding at the high school. The biggest issue in the high school is the size of the cafeteria it is to small. Use it as a second cafeteria or move office space from the high school to expand the curent cafeteria. The current plan to buid a new high school is doomed and will never pass a budget vote. New ideas are needed now to improve the High school this can be the first.
I have been a proponent of the Library's restoration for many years. ...and while I can't disagree with you that the Library needs to be restored and put to good use, I cant help but wonder how hypocritical you are on this issue. Just weeks before you stood with City Dem's saying that its not the City's place to tell the School Board what it can and can not do regarding the High School. Now you are surveying people and will send its results to the Mayor and School Board. In this City the Mayor does not appoint the School Board. It would seem to me that, like the High School issue, using prior logic it is not the City's place to tell [or ask] what the School Board plans to with the Library.
This is a case were we have a building that is an historic landmark that has sat dormant for 30 years, I am simply looking for public input on what should be done. I am including the mayor and the city in this venture because some people have thought it might be benificial for the City of Kingston to buy the building from the district.. my main goal is to get that Library restored for the benifit of this community
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