New Point Lookout library branch to open this weekend

Fate of West End branch remains unclear amid debate among trustees

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The Long Beach Public Library is holding a kickoff celebration this Saturday for its new satellite branch in Point Lookout.

The new branch, at 26B Lido Blvd., is a brand new facility that allows the library branch to run more programs and accommodate rising circulation, said Library Board Trustee Warren Vegh. The celebration will begin at 10 a.m. at the new space.

“I think this is one of the library’s better achievements,” Vegh said.

Vegh said that, as the lease on the old building expired, the board took the opportunity to explore its options and look for a new space that would suit the community’s needs. The library is the building’s first tenant, and Vegh said that the branch had a soft opening a few weeks ago. The feedback from community, he said, has been positive.

The celebration will not only mark the opening of the new space, but it will also highlight a grant that the library secured to help cover some of the costs associated with the new building. Winthrop-University Hospital, along with EcoMedia and CBS, awarded the library a $70,000 grant to cover the costs of installing energy efficient lighting. Vegh said that the organizations wanted to give the grant to a group that provides a community service — and one that was affected by Hurricane Sandy. The grant money will also cover projects in the main branch.

“The grant deferred a large amount of the money that we would’ve had to put forth,” Vegh sad.

At Saturday’s ceremony, the Friends of the Library organization will also announce its fundraising project for the Point Lookout branch. They will be selling commemorative bricks that will line the walkway leading up to the facility. The bricks will cost $100 each, and Vegh said that the library is looking to raise $20,000 to help offset the costs of setting up the new branch. Those costs currently total about $33,000, with $8,000 being covered by the grant, according to the library’s March director’s report.

But not everyone on the library board is thrilled about the new project. Board President Kathleen Dwyer, who emphasized that she was not speaking on behalf of the board, said that she was frustrated to see this particular project pursued, while the West End remains without a library branch.

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