The Queens Library at Elmhurst has become so busy that there are plans to tear it down and replace it with an expanded structure. Above is a rendering of the proposed replacement, by Marpillero Pollak Architects. I find it pretty hideous, especially a proposed protuberance facing Broadway. Elmhurst residents seemed to share these sentiments at a meeting where the plans were unveiled.
More importantly, this a Carnegie Library:
"The original library is one of 1,689 free public libraries built in the country between 1883 and 1929 through funds provided by philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. Each boasts a distinct architectural style that was based on the community it was in." The Elmhurst Library was designed in a Georgia Revival style.
Jeff Kroessler of the Historic Districts Council summed it up this way:
"If there is money to replace this branch, there is surely money to hire a talented architect to design a sensitive expansion. There are more than a few such examples in the city, from the Metropolitan Museum of Art to the Hearst Building to, yes, the public library on 42nd Street. Rather than looking to the expedient solution of demolition and new construction, the Queens Library must commit to the preservation and expansion of the Elmhurst library."
Above, a photo from 1927. —QC
· Carnegie Library Set For Crap Pile [Queens Crap]
· The new ugly library in Elmhurst [Queens Crap]
· Expanded Elmhurst Library on the books [Daily News]
· Plans For New Library Revealed In Elmhurst [Queens Chronicle]
· New Elmhurst Library Plans Leave Neighbors Cold [Queens Gazette]
· Library, rare trees facing final chapter [Daily News]
· Save the Elmhurst Public Library! [Historic Districts Council Newsstand]