Sep 29, 2015 3 min read

Council Member Lander And Brooklyn Public Library Announce Online Room Reservation Program At Park Slope Branch

Council Member Brad Lander, BPL President Linda Johnson, Branch Manager Stephanie Brueckel, Christopher Franceschelli, co-head of the Friends of Park Slope Library — Council Member Brad Lander, BPL president Linda Johnson, branch manager Stephanie Brueckel, and Christopher Franceschelli, co-head of the Friends of Park Slope Library, in the new meeting room. (Photo by Donny Levit / Park Slope Stoop)

A wifi-enabled private meeting room that you can reserve online and use for free.

That’s what City Council Member Brad Lander came to speak about when he sat down in that very room at the Park Slope Branch of the Brooklyn Public Library (431 6th Avenue at 9th Street).

Lander announced the new room alongside Brooklyn Public Library president Linda Johnson, Park Slope Library branch manager Stephanie Brueckel, as well as Christopher Franceschelli and other members of the Friends of Park Slope Library.

Lander credited the Friends of Park Slope Library, calling them “community stewards who really stepped up.” The friends group is responsible for renovating and furnishing the room.

Meeting room at the Park Slope Library — The meeting room. (Photo by Kristina Peterson/Friends of Park Slope Library)

“Our neighborhood public libraries are more in-demand than ever. As civic spaces to read, learn, imagine, create, debate, meet, and perform, they are fundamental to our local democracy,” says Lander.

The meeting room may be reserved by community groups and neighbors for a variety of uses.

“We’re making it simple for patrons, entrepreneurs and community organizations to access professional spaces for their meetings and events — first in the Central Library’s Information Commons, and now in two heavily-trafficked branches,” BPL president Johnson explains.

In order for neighbors and members of the community to reserve the meeting room, the Park Slope branch will now use the online reservation system that was first piloted at the Information Commons space at the Central Library.

Library patrons can reserve the meeting room by logging in with their library cards at bklynlibrary.org/rooms.

Photography at Park Slope Library's meeting room — Photography in the Park Slope Library’s meeting room. Period of boy “reading” to younger brother. (Copyright and courtesy of Brooklyn Collection/Brooklyn Public Library)

Mounted on the walls of the meeting space are various prints, photographs, and newspaper clippings courtesy of the Brooklyn Collection/Brooklyn Public Library and the Brooklyn Eagle.

“As neighbors who’ve joined together to bring our branch and our community closer, we’re really happy to have set up this beautiful room and be able to provide just one more reason to visit and use this wonderful library,” said Franceschelli, who is co-president of the Friends of Park Slope Library.

In addition to the meeting room, plans for a “StoryGarden,” — a community garden/story theater — are in the works for the library’s outdoor space on the 9th Street side of the building.

Garden/Story theater plans for the Park Slope Library — Preliminary StoryGarden plans for the Park Slope Library (courtesy of Friends of Park Slope Library)

“The project was originally envisioned by Friends of Park Slope Library and supported both by BPL and Council Member Brad Lander’s office. The $250,000 necessary to realize the StoryGarden was raised half through monies voted for in the 2015 Participatory Budgeting process, with the balance secured by Councilman Lander’s out of the fiscal 2016 NYC budget,” explains Franceschelli. “The planning for actual construction begins later this week, with the possibility of the final design evolving considerably during this process.”