Nyack Library Responds to Complaints

A this past summer spotlighted several residents' ire with the —particularly that it had become "too corporate," according to some.

Attendees were frank with trustees, noting that changes to the stacks and an industrial tone detracted from the reading room's atmosphere. And at this week's board meeting, library officials showed they're listening.

A sign on the checkout desk that read "customer service representatives" was removed, said library director James Mahoney, lessening the corporate feel.

This week's meeting yielded other changes, as well, altering the library's opening time on certain days. The motion to open the library at 11 a.m. instead of 10 a.m. on Mondays was passed unanimously by the board. The reason? To allow for full staff meetings on Monday mornings.

Board Members also continued discussing the possible hiring of additional custodial staff. These custodial members would be engaged in custodial work on a daily basis, but would also be sent for training at BOCES to also act as part-time security guards. This was controversial for some, as the custodians/security guards would be dressed as custodial workers and not authority figures. One board member suggested that these employees should be given some form of identification; no definite decision was made on this issue.

Recent water damage

The board discussed the effects that had on the Nyack Public Library, and noted there were no major damages. Mahoney was pleased that the Monday morning after Hurricane Irene, the library was packed and every outlet was being used by patrons who had lost power—the library director felt that the establishment served a public good that day.

The real problem for Nyack Library was the that dropped over seven inches of rain in under an hour. The precipitation caused damages throughout Nyack—and for the library, thousands of dollars in damages after a basement window leaked.

The library was able to go through their insurance and have the basement restored and checked for any additional mold or mildew post-storm.