Another Casualty of the Library Closings

You know that old Monty Python routine about the parrot, the one where shopkeeper Michael Palin claims, "'He's not dead. He's only resting."? Well you might say the same thing about Moshe Safdie's addition to Philadelphia's Free Library - first presented to the public in 2003.

The other day, I called Sandra Horrocks, the library's vice president for communications and development, to find out the status of the $175 million project in light of the Nutter Administration's plan to shutter 11 library branches. (Read my column on the system's downsizing here). Back in in April, when I wrote a column on the opening of a new cafe in the original Trumbauer building, project director Linda E. Johnson promised the library would absolutely, definitely break ground in December '08. But, not surprisingly given the branch cuts, Horrock says that the start date was postponed again by the library board on December 3- this time indefinitely.

She wouldn't go so far as to say the project is dead. "It's not over," she insisted. "We hope it will go forward. We were going to go to ground breaking this month. We had permits….But for economic reasons, and what’s happening with branches, the consensus was that it was inappropriate." She said the library board will reassess the postponement quarterly.

Sigh. The expansion and renovation of Philadelphia's central library on the Parkway is just as important to the future of the city as preserving the 11 branches. Library officials dreamed of creating a 21st Century information hub to serve a wide cross-section of city residents, especially those who don't have access to computers, the Internet and other information technology. They envisioned the modernized building as a kind of intellectual rec center where teens could hang out in comfy chairs (Not the Monty Python kind), young readers could sprawl on a carpet to read a book and adults could linger over a book with a latte in hand.

Safdie, who designed the much-praised Salt Lake City Library, was selected to design the expansion back in 2003 after a competition that was hailed then as a new model for handing out important civic commissions. He reworked the building several times as construction costs spiraled. But there's been virtually no work done since 2006, insiders say. "I'd say this project is dead," one person involved with the project told me. "No one wants to admit. It's more like "Dead Man Walking."

And in related news, the Preservation Alliance this week called on Mayor Nutter to reconsider his plans to close the Carnegie legacy branches, which account for four of the 11 to be shut down. Director John Gallery said he was particularly concerned about the fate of the historic four, especially if the city puts them up for sale or leaves them vacant for a long period. Meanwhile, at least one of the libraries, Holmesburg, isn't even owned by the city.