The Washington Heights community has had a public library since 1868. The current New York Public Library branch at 1000 St. Nicholas Avenue opened in 1914: an original Carnegie library designed by Carrère and Hastings. The beloved four-story, brick structure—almost fully-renovated in 2014— currently offers space for adults, children, and teens, as well as an auditorium and program spaces. In 2016, the final piece of the historic building’s transformation was complete when the long vacant top floor—formerly an apartment for the branch’s custodian and his family—was transformed into a state-of-the-art teen center.

Join NYPL Young Adult Librarian Renee Scott and Andrew Berman Architects to explore that new teen center and the renovated branch, an accessible and flexible space within the grand shell of a century old Carnegie Library that allows for individuals, families, and small groups to each find their place within the open plan.

This experience is offered during OHNY Weekend as a part of Radical Knowledge: Libraries as Community Catalysts, an ongoing program examining how libraries serve as both vibrant learning institutions and centers for their communities, providing physical and virtual spaces to enrich civic life, expand economic opportunity, and improve the quality of place and quality of life for New Yorkers.