These NYC public libraries are back open 7 days a week, as part of the new city budget
Thanks to New York City's new $115.9 billion budget, 10 more public library branches across the five boroughs will now be open seven days a week. The move restores weekend access for readers, researchers and kids hunting down graphic novels, after a rollercoaster few years of cuts, closures and clawbacks.
The win comes thanks to a $32.7 million infusion for New York City's three public library systems—$30.7 million in operating support, plus $2 million earmarked specifically for expanding seven-day service. That means, instead of tiptoeing around limited weekend hours, book-loving New Yorkers can breathe easy and browse freely on Sundays again.
As Gothamist reported back in March, just 21 out of the city's 200-plus libraries offer seven-day access. This expansion, long championed by City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, will increase the number to 31, a small but significant step toward a more literate and equitable city. 'At a time when libraries across the country are under threat, New York City has once again safeguarded our vital institutions,' said the city's three library presidents, Linda Johnson (Brooklyn), Tony Marx (NYPL) and Dennis Walcott (Queens), in a joint statement.
The funding reverses a much-lamented 2023 decision by Mayor Eric Adams to slash $58 million from library budgets, which had ended Sunday service. After fierce public outcry and steadily rising attendance numbers (8 million visitors in 2024, up 10% year-over-year), the funding was restored in 2024, and now it's baselined. In plain terms: There will be no more annual 'will-they-won't-they' budget drama over basic library access.
Beyond libraries, the new budget includes sweeping investments: $70 million for immigration legal services, $125 million for preschool special education and $3 billion in capital funding to expand affordable housing. There's also a new Department of Sustainable Delivery to tame the city's e-bike chaos and a pilot for universal infant care.
But for many New Yorkers, this particular victory hits close to home—and bookshelf. Seven-day library access means more kids in reading rooms, more job seekers getting resume help and more seniors joining book clubs.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
a day ago
- BBC News
Former reptile pet shop to become pizza takeaway
Plans to convert a former reptile pet shop into a pizza takeaway have been which sold a range of animals from snakes to bearded dragons, opened on Scalford Drive in Peterborough in May 2022 and closed down in December for the new takeaway were approved by Peterborough City Council planners on applicant, Amiri, said it would provide a "high-quality food service" while minimising the impact on the surrounding environment and residents. Plans stated the takeaway would specialise in freshly prepared pizzas and would not serve fried foods or any items with high grease or odour emissions.A specialist pizza oven with an integrated catalytic converter will be used to minimise smoke, the application unit is located between a Chinese takeaway and a beauty new business must operate only between the hours of 11:00 and 23:00 from Monday to Thursday and Sundays, and between 11:00 and 23:30 on Fridays and decision document stated: "The local planning authority have worked with the applicant in a positive and proactive manner based on seeking solutions to problems arising in relation to dealing with the planning application."Amendments were discussed and agreed with the applicant to bring the proposal into compliance with policy, and the application can therefore be approved." This article was written by a trusted journalist and then edited for length and style with the help of AI, before being checked again by a BBC Journalist. It's part of a pilot. Follow Peterborough news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
BBC News
3 days ago
- BBC News
'New option' being explored for larger Nottingham boundary
A "new option" for an expanded boundary for Nottingham is being explored, a council leader has government announced last year it wanted to merge some local authorities in an attempt to streamline services, and three potential options for Nottinghamshire were published in Borough Council leader Milan Radulovic, however, told a public meeting on Tuesday that a fresh proposal was being looked into which would see the city of Nottingham combine with some of the surrounding suburbs rather than entire boroughs."I'm sure you're all aware of the city's new option which is an enlarged city taking in West Bridgford, Beeston, Hucknall, Arnold and Carlton," he said. The city council says these areas have not been officially proposed and no decisions have been made.A council spokesperson said: "Nottingham is a significantly under-bounded local authority, covering a population of 328,000 at the centre of a built-up area of well over 750,000 (and a wider county population of 1.17m)."We are responsible for delivering the services expected in a core city, but many of the people who work in the city, and use council services, currently live in the suburbs, meaning they can't vote in city elections, and pay council tax elsewhere. We need to address that imbalance through LGR."Government guidance states existing district boundaries should be considered the "building blocks" for proposals, but more complex boundary changes have not been ruled have also said any new authorities should have a population of 500,000 or more. City councillors have previously complained that the authority raises relatively little through council tax because about 80% of the city's properties are in bands A and Neghat Khan has previously endorsed the so-called "Nottingham +2" model, where the city would combine with any two of Broxtowe Borough Council, Gedling Borough Council, and Rushcliffe Borough BBC understands the latest suggestion to cut across existing boundaries was dubbed the "wiggly line option" at a recent source said it was "all about getting Band D properties into Nottingham".The government has set a deadline of 28 November for councils to submit final have been calls for the plans to be paused, however, and some councillors have suggested the proposals should be put to a local at the cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Radulovic said: "We seem to be in a difficult situation at the moment on forming any sort of consensus across Nottinghamshire".
Time Out
3 days ago
- Time Out
These NYC public libraries are back open 7 days a week, as part of the new city budget
No more standing outside your local library on a Sunday, wondering why the doors are locked. Thanks to New York City's new $115.9 billion budget, 10 more public library branches across the five boroughs will now be open seven days a week. The move restores weekend access for readers, researchers and kids hunting down graphic novels, after a rollercoaster few years of cuts, closures and clawbacks. The win comes thanks to a $32.7 million infusion for New York City's three public library systems—$30.7 million in operating support, plus $2 million earmarked specifically for expanding seven-day service. That means, instead of tiptoeing around limited weekend hours, book-loving New Yorkers can breathe easy and browse freely on Sundays again. As Gothamist reported back in March, just 21 out of the city's 200-plus libraries offer seven-day access. This expansion, long championed by City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, will increase the number to 31, a small but significant step toward a more literate and equitable city. 'At a time when libraries across the country are under threat, New York City has once again safeguarded our vital institutions,' said the city's three library presidents, Linda Johnson (Brooklyn), Tony Marx (NYPL) and Dennis Walcott (Queens), in a joint statement. The funding reverses a much-lamented 2023 decision by Mayor Eric Adams to slash $58 million from library budgets, which had ended Sunday service. After fierce public outcry and steadily rising attendance numbers (8 million visitors in 2024, up 10% year-over-year), the funding was restored in 2024, and now it's baselined. In plain terms: There will be no more annual 'will-they-won't-they' budget drama over basic library access. Beyond libraries, the new budget includes sweeping investments: $70 million for immigration legal services, $125 million for preschool special education and $3 billion in capital funding to expand affordable housing. There's also a new Department of Sustainable Delivery to tame the city's e-bike chaos and a pilot for universal infant care. But for many New Yorkers, this particular victory hits close to home—and bookshelf. Seven-day library access means more kids in reading rooms, more job seekers getting resume help and more seniors joining book clubs.
