Marleen Nienhuis advocating on behalf of the South End Library

The Trustees of the Boston Public Library (BPL) will meet for one of their four scheduled annual public events on Tuesday, November 17, at 8:30 AM where they, and the BPL executives they oversee, give updates to Bostonians about how they are navigating the pandemic, capital building projects, the latest news in the system’s collections, and policy and financial matters. This time, an item on the agenda, linked here, will be approving the naming of the Community Room in the South End Library, “The Marleen Nienhuis Community Room,” after the founder of the Friends of the South End Library (FOSEL). Marleen stepped away from her work with the organization in September after 14 years.

The vote request was preceded by a Resolution of the Boston City Council approved unanimously by its library-loving councillors; a recommendation by Boston Mayor Marty Walsh (whose passionate support of Boston’s public libraries has revitalized its buildings and programs); and, most importantly, a full-throated endorsement by the board of the Friends of the South End Library, now headed by Yvette Jarreau. Details of the materials posted are linked here.

Other items on the Trustees’ agenda include a progress report on the BPL’s racial equity work, updates on current usage and statistics, a review of the upcoming operating and capital budgets, and the status of various library renovation projects in the pandemic-choked pipeline, including the one for the full rebuilding of the South End Library, for which a Programming Study is scheduled to begin in 2021.

To participate via ZOOM, click here.