Storefront will provide library services
Temporary access to meet summer needs

RED BANK - - Library services will become available again soon on Front Street.

Red Bank Mayor Pasquale Menna announced at the May 16 Borough Council meeting that storefront space on West Front Street will be leased to provide an office space to library staff.

The storefront at 102 W. Front St., is a few doors down from the Red Bank Public Library, at 84 W. Front St., which has been closed for renovations since October.

"We have a public building that people have a right to. We have an obligation to address that," said Menna later.

"The library will be fully connected to the storefront," Menna said. "Members of the staff will be able to receive the public."

There is no reading room in this space, but the public will now have access to the library's on-site holdings, as well as to thousands of books and other materials available through a consortium of some 20 independent local libraries, of which the library is a part, said library Director Deborah Griffin-Sadel.

For special requests, the library will resume inter-library loans, which access the holdings of libraries across the state and nationwide.

Griffin-Sadel said, "The new books are all here, the newer bestsellers, so people can get their beach reading." Griffin-Sadel also said that the library is in the midst of ordering books for local schools' summer reading lists.

When the library closed in October of last year, the staff had planned on leaving a portion of it open, in order to provide the services which the storefront is now making possible.

"Most of our books are in storage, but we kept some of the most popular books, DVDs, CDs, and audiobooks," Griffin-Sadel explained.

The best way to obtain books or other materials from the storefront library is to call and request items, although requests are not being accepted until the space is open.

"We're moving fast," said Griffin-Sadel. "We could be open as early as next week."

Card holders can view the holdings of the library at LMXAC.org/redbank.

"This is where people can check our catalog, the latest news about the library and our online databases, including the New York Times dating back to the 1850s and the Asbury Park Press back to 1999, as well as collections of articles [on various topics]," Griffin-Sadel said.

"We'll be moving library staff into this space, also. There are a couple of backrooms where cataloging can take place."

This frees up rooms so that contractors can work in them.

"Because we have special software and require a networked environment, we had to decide if we were going to schlep our entire network over there. The plan is to connect the space to the library."

Menna expressed gratitude to senior staff of Hovnanian Enterprises, owners of the storefront, for leasing the space at very low cost.

Borough attorney Thomas Hall said that the monthly rate for the space is $100 dollars, plus the cost of utilities.

Griffin-Sadel is optimistic that the library renovations will be complete by this fall. When the work is done, the building will be fully accessible, with a modern fire suppression system and new heating and air conditioning systems.

"When you're dealing with a building like this, built in the 1850s, with a modern addition built in 1968, it causes problems. A lot of the difficulty has been in trying to get the more modern part up to 21st century codes.

"When we are done, we'll be using more of the building. The public will have access to the second floor. The Children's Room is getting a thorough makeover."

When it is reopened, the Children's Room will be named for Avice Noblett, who worked for the library for 35 years. Noblett, who died in the 1990s, bequeathed $202,364 to the library.

- Sarah Klepner