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Landmark Village library to be restored

By David Freedlander, amNewYork Staff Writer | dfreedlander@am-ny.com

August 22, 2007

Market Library on 6th Ave. and 10th St. in the West Village. (Photo by Jefferson Siegel / August 21, 2007)

The slow deterioration of the landmark Jefferson Market Library in Manhattan will be brought to a halt thanks to a $7 million restoration plan announced Tuesday.

The 130-year-old Victorian Gothic structure looks like a German castle stuck in the middle of Greenwich Village, but a report issued earlier this year found the building's red brickwork and sandstone to be slowly crumbling.

"For generations, the firewatcher's tower soaring over Sixth Avenue has fueled the literary imaginations of children and adults alike," Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer said.

"This library is something you'd expect to find at Hogwarts -- yet it's right here in that most magical of all lands, Greenwich Village."

The building, located off West 10th Street, was constructed in 1877 to serve as courthouse by the architects Frederick Clark Withers and Calvert Vaux. It became a women's prison in 1927 but lay abandoned for several years until being converted to a library in 1961.

The funding, which includes $2.7 million from the City Council and $2.2 million from the mayor's office will keep the library open six days a week instead of five.

"The programs offered by our public libraries help people further their careers and enrich their lives," said Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan), whose district includes the library.

"We cannot allow Jefferson Market Library to further deteriorate when New Yorkers have so much invested in this unique and essential resource."