After Weeks Of Protest Central Queens Library Slated To Reopen

KEW GARDENS HILLS, QUEENS — Last month, a group of neighbors gathered in front of the Kew Gardens Hills library. But, the card-carrying library members weren’t there to browse for a book or use a computer, instead, they were there in protest.

“This is a community that reads. This is a community that honors reading and learning and we really miss the library,” said Ethyl Haber, president of the Friends of Kew Gardens Hills Library, the group that gathered to protest the library’s closure, which has been in effect since October of last year, according to the Queens Chronicle.

Now, after a 50-person demonstration and a petition that’s gathered over 1,000 signatures, Haber’s demand has been met: the Kew Gardens Hills library is slated to open on July 12, according to library officials.

The library is one of a dozen Queens branches reopening next month after staying shuttered in recent months, even as other locations across the borough reopened.

The Queens Public Library (QPL) closed its entire 63-branch system last year when COVID-19 hit New York.

Starting last July, some locations reopened for grab-and-go service, followed by the addition of browsing and computer use at more than a dozen branches earlier this spring.

Throughout that time the Kew Gardens Hills library remained closed for official library purposes, since it was operating as a temporary COVID-19 testing site.

High levels of demand at the testing site prompted the city to keep it open through June 30, but locals, including Haber, say that the block-long lines have now vanished.

A library spokesperson told the Queens Chronicle that the QPL did not extend the testing site agreement past June 30.

When the Kew Garden Hills library reopens on July 12 it will be nearly a pre-pandemic normal.

Visitors can browse and sit in the library for as long as they like, computers are available for one-hour reservations, and hours are extended, according to a QPL news release. Also, starting this summer the library is working to “gradually” restore some indoor public programs and classes.

Masks will only be required for people who are not fully vaccinated — fully vaccinated staff and library-goers do not have to wear masks.

While the library has been “committed to supporting the City’s efforts to combat the spread of COVID-19” the spokesperson said “we know many of our customers want the branch to reopen as soon as possible and we are also eager to serve the public at the branch again.”