Brooklyn Public Library Lending Free Laptops While Brighton Branch Closes

The Brooklyn Public Library is lending free laptops to library cardholders while the Brighton Beach branch closes for a $1.5 million renovation, City Councilman Chaim Deutsch announced Wednesday.

Library patrons can go to the Shorefront Jewish Community Council, located on the fourth floor at 128 Brighton Beach Avenue, on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, between 11am and 4pm, to receive their laptop.

The Brighton Beach Library closed in January for an overhaul of the branch’s heating and cooling system. The Brooklyn Public Library also told us they also plan to bring in new furniture, tables, and other materials before the branch reopens in the fall.

The library already had some plans in place to accommodate residents, including stationing a bookmobile outside the building on on Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 11am to 4pm. The library also encouraged seniors and other eligible residents to access materials through the Books-to-Go program or apply for the Books-by-Mail service.

However, Deutsch called a meeting soon after the branch closed to hear from residents about how they would be impacted and come up with ideas to make the closure less inconvenient.

“Although our library can certainly use the much needed upgrades, the Brighton Beach library branch is unique, because of the extraordinarily high number of seniors who reside in our community,” Deutsch said in a press release. “For some of these seniors, the Brighton Beach library is their only resource for books, computers, and internet access.”

The councilman has since partnered with nearby senior centers to offer programming in Brighton Beach. The JASA Senior Alliance Center, located at Corbin Place and Brighton Beach Avenue, has made a social room with TV access available to seniors from 9am to 3pm.

For information about activities at local branches, visit the Brooklyn Public Library’s website.