AWESOME FINAL SUMMER CONCERT ON 9/11/24!

Pat Loomis & Friends gave us a rousing final concert with a selection of jazz from each of the previous four concerts.  The night was beautiful, the park was full of neighborhood folks enjoying the sounds, and a few active kids were doing their versions of happy dances.

 FOSEL is planning on hosting summer concerts in 2025 as BPL and the City progress through the new building development process.  Currently, we are in the design phase of this project which will likely continue into early 2025.  The construction phase follows and requires detailed construction drawings and a bidding process to interested companies.  We expect we will be able to hold concerts next summer, but that could be precluded by site preparation in anticipation of construction. 

Great music from Pat Loomis & Friends

Great music from Pat Loomis & Friends last night in South End Library Park with picnickers, tots dancing, dogs, lots of our neighbors, and some out of town friends!  Plan to come or when you hear the music start, join us on August 14 at 6:30pm for our next one!  

 For more awesome sounds, come out on August 14, August 28, and September 11. Concerts begin at 6:30, seats are first-come, first-served or bring your own.  It’s a wonderful time -- to connect with your neighbors, enjoy a summer evening, and hear marvelous music.

First Concert of the Season

If you weren’t at the South End Library Park Wednesday night for Pat Loomis + Friends, you missed some great music!  Pat dedicated the concert to the late, great David Sanborn, a six-time Grammy winner, who played with such greats as David Bowie, Stevie Wonder, James Taylor, and many more, including Pat himself.  The night was warm, the crowd was happy, and we dodged the rain.

 For more awesome sounds, come out on July 31st, August 14, August 28, and September 11. Concerts begin at 6:30, seats are first-come, first-served or bring your own.  It’s a wonderful time -- to connect with your neighbors, enjoy a summer evening, and hear marvelous music.

Video of 3rd COMMUNITY MEETING

Click the image to watch a video of the meeting including the discussion after the presentation.

Click here to see a slideshow of the presentation for in depth study and please leave comments at https://www.bpl.org/south-end-project/

New Library Feedback

Awesome Music in Library Park!

FOSEL was once again able to present our exciting summer Jazz & Blues concerts in Library Park this July /August.

FOSEL is so grateful to once again be able to enjoy live music with friends and neighbors in South End Library Park.

July 26th, August 2nd, and August 16th were beautiful, warm and breezy evenings, perfect for Pat Loomis and Friends’ Jazz & Blues concerts in the Park. When the music started, the Park filled with happy listeners singing along and clapping. This year Pat was featured with several bands offering up a wonderful mix of jazz and blues pieces that pleased everyone—seated, standing, or lining the fences.

International Strings performing in Library Park

On July 26th Pat Loomis and Friends played music from their recent album, It’s About Time; on August 2nd Pat played with Zeke Martin and the Oracle; and on August 16th, he played with Sarah Seminski and Friends.

FOSEL’s August 30th concert featured International Strings for the first time. The group included a talented, polyglot vocalist who sang in French, Spanish, Italian and English.  The violinist was a terrific showman, very animated and able to switch between a violin (that was blue and electric!) and a banjo in a single beat. The audience was happy and relaxed and loved the show.

Thanks to all who made these music-filled evenings so delightful!

Awesome Music in Library Park!

FOSEL was once again able to present our exciting summer Jazz & Blues concerts in Library Park this August.

August 3rd and 17th were beautiful evenings, breezy and perfect for Pat Loomis and Friends’ Jazz & Blues concerts in the Park. When the music started, the Park filled up with happy listeners singing along and clapping. On both evenings the band offered up a wonderful mix of jazz and blues pieces that pleased everyone—seated, standing or lining the fence on all three sides.

FOSEL’s final concert this summer featured songs from Loomis’ upcoming album with Pat on alto saxophone, Antonio Loomis on guitar, Adonis Martin on keyboard, Daniel Day on bass, Zeke Martin on drums and vocalist Sarah Seminski singing.

It was so wonderful to once again enjoy live music with friends and neighbors in South End Library Park. Thanks to all who made the evenings so delightful!

Volunteers Wanted to Help Prepare Library Park for Summer Concerts

FOSEL is excited to once again be able to present our summer Jazz & Blues concerts in Library Park this August.  FOSEL President Yvette Jarreau, with the help of Chris Fagg, has been hard at work getting the Park ready, weeding, pruning and cleaning the garden.  They have made good progress but there is more to do. 

FOSEL invites all interested friends and neighbors to come to the Park and lend a hand, spend some time outdoors with other volunteers, and ensure the Park is looking its best for the upcoming concerts.  

If you are interested, please contact us at info@friendsofsouthendlibrary.org.

FOSEL Delights Neighborhood Children with First Ever Book Giveaway

2020 has been a difficult year for all, and with limits on gatherings in place, FOSEL was unable to lighten the mood with its annual Holiday Party.  Instead, we aimed to spread a little much-needed cheer by making gifts of books to neighborhood children.  Despite a gray and rainy day on Saturday, December 12th, the event opened with a line of parents and their children, masked and socially distanced, waiting to be the first recipients of the Library’s gift books. Tables with new, carefully selected titles, organized according to age, were set up in Library Park and children were invited to choose their favorites to take home in brightly colored book bags emblazoned with the FOSEL logo.  A handful of chocolate kisses were tossed in with each bag, adding a touch more sweetness to the treat of reading.  

Among the books on offer were classics for the very young, including board book versions of Corduroy, Pete’s a Pizza, The Snowy Day and Snowmen at Night, and popular picture books for 4-10 year-olds including Library Lion, Strega Nona, and A Bad Case of Stripes.  Also available was artist/activist Faith Ringgold’s beautifully illustrated Tar Beach, loved by adults as well as children. For slightly older kids, there were two chapter books, Ricky Ricotta’s Mighty Robot and The Unicorn Rescue Society’s The Creature of the Pines (described as “the perfect fit for newly independent readers”).  And for kids who prefer to read in Spanish, the program offered No dejes Que La Paloma Conduzca el Autobus by beloved children’s book author and former Sesame Street writer Mo Willems, and Un Caso Grave de Rayas.

Tracey Bolotnick, FOSEL board member and one of the organizers of the program, notes that the gifting of books to children living in the South End is a first for our Library.  “It’s been a tough year for our community. An event like this brings us together, gives us something we can all joyfully anticipate, and promotes reading to boot.”

Regretfully, the planned second weekend of the Holiday Book Giveaway had to be cancelled due to Boston’s intensified Covid restrictions, but FOSEL is committed to distributing the remaining books to neighborhood kids and plans to partner with the Boston Public Schools to do so.  The librarians will hold back a portion of the remaining gift books to hand out to families who come by the Library while supplies last.  

All images courtesy of Hermine Muskat

FOSEL Planted Another 3,000 Spring Bulbs in Library Park, Aiming for Colorful Blazes of Flowers that Bloom in Timed Sequence

FOSEL assistant Chris Fagg, Library Park regular Reggie, and volunteer Walter Newman planting spring bulbs in Library Park

At the end of October, a small group of Library Park aficionados chased away the pandemic and election-season blues by taking planting tools and 3,000 recently delivered ‘harbingers of spring’ to Library Park. Buffeted by cold weather, rain, high winds and three inches of the season’s first snow, they raked the leaves, removed the fallen branches, dug holes and planted until the last bulb was covered.

Hokus Crocus will spring into flower in early March 2021

Spanish Bluebells will be the ‘blue finale’ in June 2021

Big Up tulip blend will pop in May and June 2021

As in previous years, the choice of tulips, daffodils, grape hyacinths, crocuses and Spanish Bluebells was made based on a timed sequence of anticipated blooms, so that from March through June something will be in flower. Expect the blue-hued Hokus Crocus and Grape Hyacinth Muscari Latifolium, along with daffodil selections Gold Shoulder and Spring Loaded, to usher in the Spring in March and April, followed by two kinds of tulips - Big Ups and Twin Peeks - in April and May. More tulips -- Angeliques and French Blends -- will bloom in May and June, together with more blues and purples -- Grape Hyacinth Blend and Spanish Bluebells -- in June. Charm Offensive, Cheerfulness and other bulbs in the Spring Loaded daffodil blend will join the tulips in May and June.

Charm Offensive daffodils are scheduled to flower in May and June 2021

The final 500 bulbs were in the ground…

The new tradition of planting thousands of spring bulbs in Library Park began in the fall of 2018, when FOSEL learned that City funding for the Park’s re-design would exclude plantings. Rather than leave the Park’s garden with nothing to show for the makeover but a thin layer of brown mulch where plants used to be, FOSEL brought in the first load of 3,000 bulbs that fall and watched them bloom profusely in the spring of 2019. During that 2019 summer, with the help of South End State Reps., Jon Santiago and Aaron Michlewitz, FOSEL secured $25,000 for soil improvement, perennials, an irrigation system and new low-level interior fencing as well as exterior fence repair.

Another 3,000 bulbs were ordered and placed in the ground in the fall of 2019, which in 2020 provided much appreciated visual relief from the gloom of the pandemic that forced many South Enders to stay close to their homes. Subsequent Park improvements necessitated temporary removal of all plantings from the soil, including the bulbs. But the now-completed October project to replace them will ensure that the Park again comes alive with color and cheer in the Spring of 2021 and offers all passers a respite from the bleak, winter-beaten city streets.

Kimberly Crucioli Succeeds South End Liaison to the Mayor's Office, Faisa Sharif, Who Was Promoted to Deputy Director of Neighborhood Services, October 26

Faisa Sharif will be transitioning out of her role as Mayor Walsh’s liaison to Bay Village and the South End, and will become the new Deputy Director in the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services. Mayor Walsh has appointed Kimberly Crucioli to step into liaison the role effective Monday, October 26th.

Faisa Sharif

Faisa had the following to say about her departure: It has been an incredible three years working with neighbors, civic groups, businesses and institutions on issues large and small. We may not have had time to accomplish every single thing before us but I’m proud of the collaboration and progress we made. I learned so much from all of you about our neighborhoods and your advocacy has personally benefited me as a resident of the South End. I never took that for granted.

Many thanks to Faisa for all of her work with FOSEL and the South End Library and a warm welcome to Kimberly!

Library Park's Long-awaited Renovation Has Been Completed, Pandemic or Not, with Funding from City and State, and Private Donations

In June and July, with the City still in a lockdown except for permitted construction work, Blade of Grass landscapers and Henry Hafenrichter, a local fencing contractor, completed the multi-year renovation of Library Park. Three years ago, the Parks Department agreed to redesign the park, rather than just repair what was broken (which was just about everything). The most important change, neighbors said in a local meeting about various proposed plans, was that the park offer an open plan, visible from all corners, with a variety of seating arrangements and a welcoming feel.

After the redesign, no money was left for landscaping the park but a $25,000 earmark from the State, requested by the then-newly sworn-in South End State Rep. Jon Santiago, and supported by our other State Rep., Aaron Michlewitz, came through in January 2020. That allowed FOSEL to contract with landscapers and fencing contractor, get approval from South End Landmark Dictrict Commission, and overcome the additional hurdles of Covid-19 permits in time to spend the State’s money before June 30, the end of their fiscal year. If it had not been spent by that time, the State would have taken back the earmark. Fancy footwork, assisted by knowledgeable employees of the BPL, helped to make it all happen in time. Additional renovation costs were covered by capital funds FOSEL had raised in 2017-18.

Library Park will only look better as the plantings settle in over the next year or two. They include Veronica, Echinacea, Buddlea, Amsonia, Liatris, Rudbekcia, Carex, Ginger, Ferns, Woodland Phlox, Hosts and Hydrangeas. The butterfly garden along Tremont Street has already shown its lovely colors. A timed drip-irrigation system was installed as well, to help the plants survive the latest drought. And FOSEL’s board has approved additional funding for another round of spring bulbs to make the spring 2021 habit of Library Park as beautiful as it was before. We’re culling the catalogues now, will order in the bulbs in the next week and plant in late fall.

Chances are, when abloom again, we and the park will live in better days.

BPL Trustees Vote to Change the Name of “Dudley Library” to “Roxbury Library” When It Reopens This Summer, Disappointing Supporters of the "Nubian" Moniker for the Renovated $17.2 Million Branch

The $17.2 million project to renovate the 27,000 square-foot Roxbury Library is located in Nubian Square, and due to reopen in the next few months.

The BPL Board of Trustees in their Annual Meeting on May 26, voted 7 to 4 to change the name of the Dudley Library to the Roxbury Library, after a heated but civil debate among the Mayoral appointees that sidelined the other proposed moniker: Nubian Library, championed by the Nubian Square Coalition. The vote follows earlier successful efforts by the Coalition to replace the names of Dudley Square, where the library is located, with Nubian Square, and the Dudley MBTA Bus Station’s, which is to be renamed Nubian Station.

The BPL’s Board of Trustees held its Annual Meeting on May 26, the first via ZOOM

Last year’s non-binding City ballot question about the proposed name change for Dudley Square was solidly defeated citywide, but within the precincts surrounding Dudley Square it passed with about the same lopsided numbers as it was defeated elsewhere. This is why Mayor Marty Walsh decided the local vote would ‘weigh heavily’ in the final decision. Thomas Dudley, a prominent Puritan politician and governor of the Bay State in the mid 1600s when slavery was officially sanctioned, left no trace of having owned slaves himself.

Trustee Linda Dorcena Forry, a former legislator, supported the name Roxbury Library

Trustee Chair of the Board Bob Gallery also supported the change to Roxbury Library

The vote to resolve what name Dudley Branch should have was to some extent forced by the impending reopening of the 27,000 square-foot branch library, renovated after decades of neglect at a cost of $17.2 million. A desire to settle the signage question in time for the reopening began the discussion, although BPL president David Leonard made it clear it was not determinative. And while the non-binding ballot question did establish strong support for changing the name of the square where the branch was located, it did not survey the specific question of whether the branch library should be called the Nubian Library, as well.

The Friends of Dudley Branch, who for decades lobbied and advocated to improve the branch library, favored calling it the Roxbury Branch, as did the Roxbury Historical Society. Some of the trustees supporting the Roxbury name said the branch would not just serve the largely African-American community living close to the library, but a much larger one surrounding it. Trustee Evelyn Arana-Ortiz pointed out that Roxbury was once largely German and Irish before it became African American, and is now increasingly seeing the growth of a very diverse demographic that includes a sizable Latino population. “Nubian Library doesn’t represent fully the history of Roxbury,” she commented.

FOSEL's "South End Writes" Program, Now Featured Remotely via ZOOM, Offers FREE Copies of the Speakers' Books from a "Little Free Library" Box on West Newton Street

The Little Free Library Box on West Newton Street brings free copies of books by authors hosted on its South End Writes via ZOOM speaker program

Now that libraries are closed, bookstores more difficult to access and navigate, and the South End Writes author program has become a ZOOM event, FOSEL is making a small number of copies of the featured writers’ books available for free on a first-come/first-serve basis from a Little Free Library box installed in the front yard of 160 West Newton Street.

Separately, the Boston Public Library (BPL) has started a program to deliver new books for children and adults, purchased from local booksellers to vulnerable populations in Boston. The goal of the privately funded BPL initiative, called Books for Boston, is to distribute 5,000 books. Several thousand have been delivered through partner organizations, including Healthcare for the Homeless, the Pine Street Inn and the Women’s Lunch Place, among others.

FOSEL’s initiative uses money from its South End Writes budget previously reserved for refreshments and flowers for its live events. As such, in the last week, copies of Laura Zigman’s Separation Anxiety (hosted by SEW on April 14) and Barbara Shapiro’s The Collector’s Apprentice (May 26) were placed in the library box. Ashley Molesso’ and Chessie Needham’s The Gay Agenda: A Modern Queer History and Handbook, will be next (June 9), followed by copies of the widely praised novelist Carter Sickel’s The Prettiest Star and The Evening Hour (June 23). Martin Espada’s poetry collection, Vivas to Those Who Have Failed, will be made available after that (July 14) as well as an anthology of 93 poets edited by the celebrated poet, What Saves Us: Poems of Empathy and Outrage.

FOSEL RECOMMENDS: A Resource List from All Over the World for Keeping Kids and Young Adults Engaged While Home

The virtual Everywhere Book Fest on May 1 and May 2 will feature kid-lit authors, books and readings

FOSEL RECOMMENDATIONS FOR KEEPING KIDS ENGAGED WHILE HOME 

Compiled by Tracey Bolotnick

We know that many South End families rely on the library not only as a source of reading material for kids, but also as center of educational activity and community connection.  Although libraries across the Commonwealth, including the South End library, are closed for now, there are many great options out there for keeping kids connected to books and learning while staying safe at home.  We all look forward to the day when we can safely convene again in our beautifully renovated library.  Until then, here is a list of some recommended online alternatives for keeping kids engaged:  

 BOOKS AND READING

Thumbs-Up Books recommends picture books for children

Boston Public Library Online Resources.  It is still possible to borrow books and other resources from the Library even while it is closed by visiting:   https://www.bpl.org/stream-and-download/.    You can download or stream eBooks, audiobooks, magazines, newspapers, movies, and more.  (Contact Anne Smart at asmart@bpl.org, (339) 203-0997 or Matt Krug mkrug@bpl.org for help using the library’s online services.)  

A Korean interface from the International Children’s Digital Library

International Children’s Digital Library.  A free and easily searchable source of online access to books from around the world in multiple languages for kids ages 3 to 13:  http://en.childrenslibrary.org/

Author Hosted Readings and Activities.  Browsing You Tube or the web for live or recorded readings of your favorite children’s book authors will pull up loads of options.  Here are some favorites:    

 Grace Lin, an illustrator and author of middle-grade novels and picture books, is posting readings and drawing tutorials from her books on her You Tube channel:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIQet5ij4zAuR_QGOQ1vAxQ.    

A children’s book in Farsi from the International Children’s Digital Library

 Oliver Jeffers, author of The Day the Crayons Quit and many other much beloved picture books is doing a daily live reading and posting the recordings on his web site:  https://www.oliverjeffers.com/books#/abookaday/

Story Time from Space.  On this site astronauts read children’s books in space (!) from the International Space Station: https://storytimefromspace.com/

Audible Stories.  Audiobooks for kids in six languages, free during the pandemic:  https://stories.audible.com/discovery

BPL Recommended Online Story Times and Do-It-Yourself Story Times: http://guides.bpl.org/c.php?g=1012154&p=7331668 http://guides.bpl.org/remote_resources_for_families/diy_storytimes

Games and Puzzles from the TATE Kids UK website

Everywhere Book Fest.  In response to the dozens of canceled books festivals, three young adult writers decided to start the Everywhere Book Fest, “a virtual gathering of kid-lit authors, books and readers that will bring the book festival experience to everyone” on May 1st and 2nd:  https://everywherebookfest.com  

ABC Mouse.  A digital education site for kids ages 2-8 with stories, games, and puzzles.  This is a paid service but offers a 30-day free trial: https://www.abcmouse.com/abt/homepage?8a08850bc2=T1240128372.1585770828.7485&cjevent=805ea6cb745211ea8328002d0a240613

BPL’s Booklists.  Book recommendations for different ages from the BPL: http://guides.bpl.org/c.php?g=1012154&p=7331685

Thumbs Up Books.  A resource for parents of young children looking for picture book recommendations:  https://thumbsupbooks.weebly.com/

Live footage from all over the world on Explore Live Cams website

 SCIENCE AND ARTS & CRAFTS

Tate Kids.  A dedicated kids’ website from the Tate Galleries in the UK with an assortment of art-themed games and quizzes: https://www.tate.org.uk/kids/games-quizzes.

BPL Crafts and Games List.  Links to a variety of crafts and games for kids from the BPL:  http://guides.bpl.org/c.php?g=1012154&p=7331687

Draw Everyday with JJK.  Jarrett J. Krosoczka, author of the Lunch Lady books, hosts a basic illustration lesson every weekday at 2pm:   https://www.youtube.com/studiojjk

Mo Willems Doodling.  The popular picture book author of the Knuffle Bunny series and other picture books is hosting doodling sessions on You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmzjCPQv3y8&feature=emb_title

The ArtisTree Community Art Center.  Videos with ideas for how to stay creative while staying at home: https://www.youtube.com/user/artistreevt

The American Museum of Natural History’s site is chock full of videos and activities about our natural world.

 Ology.  A science website for kids from the American Museum of Natural History with videos, games, activities, etc. on a variety of subjects:  https://www.amnh.org/explore/ology

New England Aquarium:  Visit the aquarium from the comfort of home:  https://www.neaq.org/visit/at-home-events-and-activities/?fbclid=IwAR2Psh0apSlCIn7VbS6X0UfbjYD9z6E8Bry7-gq0-F7Y-2T1R0tO-M3CJTA

The San Diego Zoo.  A site for kids including behind-the-scenes videos and stories, as well as a variety of printable activities and online games:  https://kids.sandiegozoo.org/videos

Explore Live Cams.  Live footage of elephants in Africa, of Earth from the International Space Station, of oceans, birds, stars and much more:  https://explore.org/livecams

Ranger Rick Magazine.  A kids’ nature magazine that normally requires a paid subscription but is free for now with games, activities, information, and back issues:  https://rangerrick.org/stuck-indoors/

Farm Food 360.  Canadian farm and food tours—from raising pigs to making milk and cheese, and virtual egg farm field trips and egg-speriments from the American Egg Board:  virtual egg farm field trips /  https://www.farmfood360.ca/

Did you know that some Canadian family dairy farms allow their cows to decide when they would like to be milked? And why should they not have a say in it? Find out on Farm Food 360’s website.

Skype a Scientist.  A program that allows kids to request to speak to a scientist and then connects them for a Skype conversation:  https://www.skypeascientist.com/for-families.html

The Kid Should See This.  A website of interesting and educational videos on a host of subjects:   https://thekidshouldseethis.com/

Science Kids.  Facts, games, quizzes, experiments, and more on a variety of topics:  http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/

The story of ten influential works of architecture on Kids Kanopy

Architecture for Young Adults, An Exciting Introduction, featuring a Kanopy Film on Architecture.  A 57-minute film telling the stories of ten influential works of architecture:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DA8L9dvyp0

Kiwi Co. Innovation Factory.  A website with loads of art and science project ideas for kids of all ages:  https://www.kiwico.com/kids-at-home.  

The Trustees at Home.  Virtual events and activity ideas from the Trustees of Reservations while their properties are closed:  http://www.thetrustees.org/things-to-do/month/virtual.html

Kids/Kanopy Movies: Now, Kanopy offers children’s programming with Kanopy Kids. Parents can browse educational and engaging videos for children of all ages that promote positive social and emotional development and inspire creativity in young minds. We have partnered with Common Sense Media™ to provide developmentally appropriate age ratings for videos on Kanopy Kids. www.kanopy.com

February is the Month for Romance: The South End Library’s Parkside Book Award Winner Display Features the 2018 and 2019 RITAs, Selected by the Romance Writers of America (RWA) in Different Categories

South End Library Reopens after Four Months, with Many Kudos to FOSEL for the Success of their Public/Private Partnership to Pay for the Renovations

The festive reopening of the South End library on February 18 brought elected and appointed officials who complimented FOSEL on its public/private partnership to pay for the library’s improvements. From left to right: State Rep. Jon Santiago, City Councilor Ed Flynn, FOSEL president Marleen Nienhuis, South End Forum chair Steve Fox, City Councilor Frank Baker, chair of the BPL board of trustees, Bob Gallery, BPL president, David Leonard.

(Above: Marleen Nienhuis, president of FOSEL, and David Leonard, president of the BPL)

Since October 2019, Southenders have torn their hair out about not knowing where to go for neighborhood meetings, yoga classes, children’s stories, computer access, income tax assistance, movies, books, DVDs, museum passes, reserved book pickups, newspapers, magazines, a trip to the public restroom, or simply a chat with their friendly librarian. But on Tuesday, February 18, the South End library finally reopened its doors after a four-month stretch when the library’s interior was ‘refreshed’ with new flooring, fresh paint, additional outlets, reupholstered seating and new furniture. The festive occasion brought numerous elected and appointed city officials to the branch, as well as FOSEL board members and many library supporters who finally had a place to go for library services. “This may not seem like a long period of time for a library to be closed,” said BPL president, David Leonard, “but when you count on your library for computer access and story time, it is a long time indeed.”

A variety of seating arrangements in the adult area at tables wired to recharge electronic devices

Leonard spoke to the excited crowd assembled in the adult reading room and lauded the Friends of the South End Library (FOSEL for the public/private partnership they put together to begin the renovation process at the long-neglected branch library. The cost of the ‘refresh’ was about $190,000,” he said. FOSEL wrote a check for part of the refresh of $50,000 from a fundraising campaign that raised $100,000 in a few months during 2017-18. Chair of the BPL board of trustees, Bob Gallery, echoed his appreciation for FOSEL’s public/private partnership, the first time a Boston library Friends group collected funds for capital renovation of a branch library.

The contributions by you, our generous donors, allowed us to write a check for $50,000 for the new furnishings that will benefit all South End library users. Thank you.

Comfortable seating near the parkside windows

The library now features light-blue and easy-to-clean new floors imported from the Netherlands; an attractive palette of blues on its diagonal walls; a fresh coat of paint throughout the first and second floors, new upholstery; a reconfigured space to allow for a variety of seating arrangements; electrically wiring inside high and reading tables; an attractive seating area for teens underneath the stairs; new upholstery and rugs in the Children’s Room; new electrical outlets throughout the space; a ceiling-mounted projector and slide-down screen in the Community Room; and much-improved signage. And, to the relief of many parents and caregivers, each of the two restrooms now offers a changing station. The space reconfiguration and furniture choices were recommended by FOSEL board member, architect Michelle Laboy, during a multi-year planning process that was combined with the quick and successful fundraising effort by FOSEL in the fall of 2017.

A small but separate area for teens and tweens with floor lamps and outlets to recharge electronic devices; panels divide the space from the adult computer area and can be used as a white board

A row of adult computers is now separated from the teen and children’s space with colorful panels

The refreshed Children’s Space features new rugs and upholstery, and new computer tables (below)

The heavily used banquette near the library’s entrance on the right was reupholstered and outfitted with new electrical outlets new the floor.

The ‘refresh’ originally began as an effort by FOSEL to jumpstart a major renovation of the dilapidated branch, which was not scheduled for any improvements, et alone an expansion, until 2025 due to an enormous backlog of many other sub-standard library buildings in the 24-branch BPL system. The FOSEL proposal called for a multi-phased renovation that would combine public and private funds for a new South End facility. The Friends raised $100,000, of which $50,000 was added to a 2017 City budget allocation of $132,000 for the First Phase of the project. But happily, the Walsh Administration decided two years ago to completely renovate and expand the size of the South End library after all, beginning with a Programming Study in FY 2020. As a result, the First Phase face lift became a “refresh” to last for the next three to five years, while the multi-million-dollar ‘Big Reno’ is being planned in an upcoming process of community meetings, demographic fact-finding, and design studies that will start sometime this year.

Librarian Matt Krug is thrilled with his standing desk near a parkside window.

Mayor Walsh’s Administration has made a major investment in the Boston Pubic Library system which, according to his South End spokesperson, Faisa Sharif, is a reflection of his dedication to making neighborhood public spaces accessible to all. Since he took office six years ago, more than $82 million was spent on the Central Library’s Johnson Building, now an attractive bustling hub that features a WGBH studio, the popular Newsfeed cafe, and a BPL Gift Shop. The almost $16 million renovation of the Central Library’s Rare Books and Manuscripts Department, to open to the public next year, will make it into an internationally recognized state-of-the-art facility of historical and art treasures. In addition, the BPL is in the process of looking for an architect to renovate the stately McKim building which adjoins the Johnson Building on Copley Plaza.

Among the BPL’s branch renovations, Jamaica Plain got a $10 million new facility a few years ago. The Adams Street branch, at $19 million, will be ready by 2021 and the $15 million Dudley Library renovation (perhaps Nubia library in the future?) is scheduled to reopen this spring. For the next five years, another $127 million is budgeted for several other library renovations, including the South End branch.

The current South end library improvements include a charming mural near the Children’s Room depicting a number of South End landmarks and cultural icons which FOSEL suggested the artist, Tony Capozzi, consider in his design, and he did. They include the BCA kiosk; Back Bay station; a row of bow-front brownstones; the Union United Methodist Church; a same-sex couple embracing; musical venues; planes flying over; and a number of cats, among other features. No dogs, regrettably. A similar mural is on he wall in the Chinatown branch, with its own iconic images.

he new Tony Capozzi mural in the South End library next to the Children’s Room, based on dozens of suggestions by FOSEL board members, each one of whom had their personal favorites.

On the 125th Anniversary of the completion of the BPL's McKim Building, President David Leonard Announces the Search is on for an Architect to Upgrade the 19th Century Masterpiece on Copley Place

The entrance to the McKim building on Copley Square

Reported by Yvette Jarreau

At the January 30 BPL Trustees meeting at the Central Library, BPL president, David Leonard announced he had sent out a Request for Proposal to find an architect to update the Copley Square McKim building. Tied at the hip to the beautifully renovated Johnson Building on Boylston Street, McKim was originally completed in 1895. Designed by Charles Follen McKim, the building had fallen into disrepair by the 1990s. A fundraising campaign by the BPL board of trustees at the time, which included library devotees William O. Taylor, publisher of the Boston Globe and William Bulger, president of the Massachusetts Senate, led to a partial restoration. But today, on the 125th anniversary of the McKim, another face lift is coming. While a firm amount of the expected cost has not yet been established, it is reasonable to assume it will not be less than the more than $80 million spent on the (very successful) renovation of the adjacent Johnson Building five years ago, according to sources within the BPL. Most, if not all, of the funding is at this point expected to come from private donations, according to City officials.

In his report to the trustees, Leonard pointed out that this anniversary year of the McKim the BPL is highlighting several civil rights achievements: the commemoration of the ratification of the 19th amendment, giving women the right to vote; hosting the post-conference venue of the NAACP Conference in July; and a number of Boston Pride events to celebrate equal rights victories of the LGBTQ community.  Reporting on the capital improvement projects now underway, Leonard noted the South End branch will reopen doors after the four-month closing for its ‘refresh,’ on February 18th. The Chinatown branch, closed due to a renovation of the China Trade building where it is located, may swing open its doors at the end of February or early March. And the long-awaited completion of the Dudley Branch is imminent, while great progress is being made with the expansion and renovations of the Adams Street and Roslindale branches.

The Bates reading room at the McKim building

BPL’s chief financial officer, Ellen Donaghey, highlighted key changes in the BPL budget from 2019, including increases in salaries and overtime related to collective bargaining and minimum wage increases; hiring into open management positions; and utilities cost increases, some of which are related to the impending opening of the 27,000 square foot Dudley Branch. Donaghey explained several energy efficient programs are being put in place to reduce energy costs.  The BPL’s Finance and Audit Committee approved a vote to move $6 million to a global equity manager called Impax Asset Management, a diverse, socially engaged, environmentally conscious money manager.

Chief of Collections, Laura Irmscher, Director of Library Services, Michael Colford, and Chief of Communications, Lisa Pollack reported on current BPL library usage:

• A recent Gallup Poll showed that the largest chunk of leisure time was spent visiting the library, across all age ranges, with an average of 10.5 trips during 2019, almost one per month, and outpacing time spent attending the movies. 

• During 2019, of the more than 21 million items in the BPL collections, nine percent are checked out and taken home; 75 percent are non-circulating materials used for research in the library; and 16 percent are special collections such as rare books, maps, prints, photographs, etc.  

• The top five branches in check-out usage were Jamaica Plain, West Roxbury, East Boston, Brighton, and South Boston.  

• Book check-outs have remained stable at about 2.2 million from 2009 to 2019, but big increases  have occurred with downloading and streaming materials over that time span, with some decreased use in DVDs and CDs.

• BPL collections are “on the move” with 25 percent of the materials checked out at a branch coming from “elsewhere” in the BPL system. 

• DIGITAL SERVICES

  • The BPL offers several digital services:  Overdrive, Kanopy, RB (Recorded Books), and Hoopla, with almost 60 percent of usage in e-books, about 40 percent in audiobooks and the rest in music and video.  

  • In the past three years, digital circulation use has accelerated and will likely overtake physical use during the next year.  

  • The library has over 130 various online resources, across a wide range of subject areas which are accessible from home; the BPL is continuing to digitize BPL collections with focus on the most used.   

  • Reach in the last five years has increased about 23 percent system-wide.  Reach is defined as the usage of all library services including programs and attendance, visits, circulation, computer use and number of wireless sessions.

  • Computer and WIFI usage are changing as laptops and WIFI become more ubiquitous.

  • There is an upward trend in attendance at programs;  next steps will be analysis of what programs are most attended and and measurements of satisfaction with them. 

  •  Outreach is growing, activities like visiting schools, senior housing, providing services at other locations may become more important in our communities

  • Looking ahead the BPL will capitalize on digital growth, continue to make more collections available to more people, attempting to meet people where they are.  

DIGITAL COMMONWEALTH.ORG

• BPL manages this non-profit collaborative organization, founded in 2006, that provides resources and services to support the creation, management, and dissemination of cultural heritage materials held by Massachusetts libraries, museums, historical societies, and archives. It currently has more than 180 member institutions from across the state.

• Digital Commonwealth provides access to thousands of images, documents, and sound recordings that have been digitized by member institutions so that they may be available to researchers, students, and the general public.

WEB SERVICES

• The BPL website and catalog are integrated now and it is possible track usage behavior.  

• About 20 percent of the activity is related to “search” and one’s “account”

• 35 percent of sessions begin with search

• 42 percent come from mobile or tablet platforms rather than desktops

• Coming soon:  analyses of flow or paths within the site, event analyses, event registrations; all are opportunities for effective marketing of information and events.

 NEW BUSINESS

Ellen Duncan introduced members of the 2020 BPL Boston Marathon Team, a group of fifteen people.  Their fundraising goal this year is $112K; last year they received $135K.  More information can be found at this link here.

 PUBLIC COMMENT

(the members of the public at the BPL trustees meeting can sign up for public comment at the end of the public session. below, some of the comments:)

QUESTIONS/COMMENTS: 

• If a particular item is requested several times, does it get priority for digitization?  Yes.

• Is tracking on the website specific to individuals or is it anonymous?  It is anonymous.

• Trustees Meetings should be posted on the front page of the website when the date is nearing making it is easier to find.  Draft minutes should be connected to the meeting agenda so that people can see them easily.

THE NEXT BPL TRUSTEES MEETING WILL BE HELD ON THURSDAY, MARCH 26 AT 4:00 PM AT THE WEST ROXBURY BRANCH, 1961 CENTRE STREET, WEST ROXBURY. THE PUBLIC IS CORDIALLY INVITED. FOR ADDITIONAL TRUSTEES MEETINGS, CLICK HERE.

At the November BPL Trustees Meeting, More Good News for Boston Libraries Including, at Last, a Gift Shop

Reported by Yvette Jarreau and Marleen Nienhuis

BPL mugs with images of either the McKim or the Johnson Building now for sale in the Central Library’s gift shop next to the Newsfeed Cafe

 At the November 19 Boston Public Library Trustees meeting, BPL president David Leonard and his team continued to paint a cheerful picture of a public library solidly on the upswing. A new focus on staff development, community engagement and a review of its decade-old mission is going hand-in-hand with a good financial picture and major capital improvement projects across the entire system. Last but not least, after many years of comments by many suggesting a gift shop for the Central Library to capitalize on reproductions of its rich collection for a new BPL funding stream, one has opened next to the Newsfeed Cafe. “We now have the ability to prioritize and can step back from the crisis work to focus on the library of the future,” Leonard said. 

 Capital investment and operational budget support for the BPL under Mayor Marty Walsh continues to be strong. Staff morale, a perennial problem at the BPL, likely got a great lift when, for the first time in many years, the BPL closed its doors to the public for a day this fall to have a three-hour all-staff meeting with some 492 library employees. “It was a great event,” Leonard said. They focused on better customer service, community engagement, staff development and diversity. A staff appreciation dinner followed, with awards for years of service for some, topped by a visit from Mayor Walsh himself, who showed the flag of support for the BPL and answered the audience’s questions. 

A BPL all-staff meeting in November included a visit by Mayor Marty Walsh

Leonard also proposed a “draft road map” to refresh the current BPL mission, based on the so-called Compass principles hammered out a decade ago by his predecessor, Amy Ryan, after a successful fight against the Menino Administration’s plan to close up to a third of the branches. Leonard’s proposal aims to both place the BPL more squarely in the life of the community, while still preserving today’s information and records as “the history of tomorrow.” “We don’t want to be an archive because there already is an archive in the city,” Leonard said, “but we do want to be engaged with the larger community.”

 The current BPL mission was based on recommendations from public comments at a number of local branch libraries in 2010, including the South End branch. The goal was to:

• Be user centered

• Be a community gathering place

• Focus on special collections

• Focus on children and teens

• Be a center of knowledge

• Focus on access and innovation

• Be sustainable

• Be fun.

 These principles are still relevant today, Leonard said told the Trustees. But his proposed “road map” places’ sustainable funding growth’ right at the top of his list, together the with system-wide improvements to buildings, spaces and infrastructure that have been underway. Improvement and enhancement of staff and organizational culture, long a sore point among library users, also is in the spot light. Being ‘ready for the unexpected’ may seem an odd point until one recalls that the 2015 Marathon bombings happened on the Central Library’s doorstep on Boylston Street: 

1. Facilitate sustainable funding growth

2. Systemwide improvements to buildings, spaces and infrastructure

3. Enhance collection management, acquisitions, and access supporting the community’s needs

4. Enhance services systemwide with special emphasis on youth services

5. Develop and implement a digital, technological and innovation plan 

6. Improve and enhance the staff and organizational culture with a focus on support, engagement, productivity and customer service 

7. Be ready for the unexpected.

Leonard said the plan is for his roadmap to be reviewed by division, department, and staff meetings, and, refreshingly, to establish a process of public engagement, yet to be defined.

An architect’s image of the Rare Books and Manuscript Department’s renovation at the Central Library which will reopen to the public in the fall of 2021

The Adams Street library, 13,000 square foot in size, will include a reading garden and re-open in 2021.

The new 27,000 square foot Dudley Library will reopen sometime in 2020

 An update by the BPL’s Major Projects Manager, Alison Ford, provided a glimpse of the “system wide improvements” mentioned in Leonard’s report. The BPL’s capital projects under the Walsh Administration have amounted to well over a hundred million dollars spent so far for improvements at the Central Library, tens of millions more at some of the branches, and a similar amount to be spent over the next five years at others. There’s the $17.2 million, 27,000 square foot Dudley Square library, due to be completed in 2020; the $15.7 million overhaul of the Central Library’s Rare Books and Manuscript Department; and the $19.2 million, 13,000 square foot Adams Street library, to re-open in 2021. Other construction projects and upgrades are in the hopper as well, to wit, the South End library’s current interior improvements, to be completed in February 2020. Ford presented a list of other library renovation plans which have yet to be prioritized, among them the program study in the current budget for a new and expanded South End library, as well as for those of Roslindale, Faneuil, Fields Corner, Uphams Corner, Chinatown, Lower Mills and South Boston branch libraries.

Browsing at the Central Library’s new Gift Shop, next to the Newsfeed Cafe

 Ellen Donaghey, BPL’s Chief Financial Officer, gave information about the new BPL Gift Shop, a venture enthusiastically supported by the Trustees and staff. It offers a variety of items for sale, including ornaments, note cards, BPL mugs, mittens, hats and teddy bears. Separately, Trustee Evelyn Arana-Ortiz, chair of the Finance and Audit Committee, reported that the overall performance YTD 2019 of BPL investments was “strong” but the plan is to make some investment changes as a hedge after ten years of a bull market.

 During the Public Comment section, a library patron complained that the BPL only offers single-user access to the Boston Globe and the Boston Herald as a result of their “pay wall.” This is because neither publication has agreed to offer the BPL a “library product,” as for example does the New York Times., the BPL staff said. The best remedy would be for library patrons to contact these newspapers and ask them to make the Globe and the Herald accessible to library users, they said. 

 The Trustees of the BPL, appointed by the Mayor of Boston for five-year terms, have their Annual Meeting in May and schedule regular meetings every other month, either at the Central Library or at branch libraries. All meetings are open to the public and provide interesting information about BPL developments to the community. Public comment is welcomed at the end of every meeting. 

 The next BPL trustees meetings are as follows:

Thursday, Jan 30, 2020, 3 pm, Central Library

Thursday, Mar 26, 4pm, West Roxbury Branch

Tuesday, May 12, 8:30am, Annual Meeting at Central Library. 

For further info about BPL Trustees, click here.