The Free Library of Philadelphia location on 40th Street has been closed to the public for eight years. On Oct. 2, in a grand ribbon-cutting ceremony, the location will be reopened to the public in a newly renovated facility.
Until this summer, the library held a temporary residence on 40th and Walnut streets.
The temporary location has closed, and for weeks area residents only knew that the grand reopening of the library would happen later this fall. In a large flyering campaign that began Monday, the community finally found out about the impending opening.
The ribbon-cutting is to take place in a celebration Saturday, Oct. 2, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. "The invitation is to the Penn community as well as city residents," said Linda Carroll-Pitts, spokeswoman for the Free Library.
The Free Library program has 50 branches and three regional libraries, a central main library and one library for the blind in the Philadelphia area.
"If you live, work or own in Philadelphia, you are entitled to a [library] card," Carroll-Pitts said.
The new library, which is among the last of the 50 branches to reopen, will be a full-service library that will boast not only books, but DVDs, tapes and multimedia reference tools.
The renovated location is reminiscent of antique architecture, with a wood-raftered ceiling and painted murals in the portico, giving the library a more welcoming environment than many of the more sterile buildings created in recent years.
Penn has not yet decided what to do with the location that temporarily housed the library, and is currently evaluating potential uses for the site on the north side of Walnut Street.
"We are assessing current real estate needs on campus, including retail, office and academic/administrative space," Facilities and Real Estate Services spokesman Tony Sorrentino said. Although this means the building will remain vacant for the near future, Sorrentino said that it is not on the back burner.
"We are always working from a strategic retail master plan."
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