Local Public Libraries Awarded Over $30k in State Grants

(Garden City, NY) — State Senator Kevin Thomas (D-Levittown) today announced that the Nassau Library System and individual public libraries in Nassau County have been awarded state library construction grants.

The construction grants help libraries and library systems make renovations and upgrades, update electrical wiring to accommodate computer technology, renovate facilities to provide wheelchair accessible entrances and become fully accessible to persons with disabilities, and provide community meeting rooms.

Thomas announced the following grants to area libraries:

• Farmingdale Public Library - $12,198 to support the Reading Garden Pavilion Project, which will provide usable outdoor space for the library to offer services to the public protected from the elements.
• Hicksville Free Public Library - $4,925 to install safety glass on library furniture and facilities.
• Nassau Library System - $8,528 to improve safety and efficiency of uninterruptible power supplies at NLS headquarters. 
• Plainedge Public Library - $4,999 to install screening devices to help prevent the spread of illness. 

Thomas said the grants are awarded through the state’s Library Construction Grant Program, which is distributing $14 million in capital funds from the 2020-21 state budget for this year’s awards to libraries throughout New York. 

“Our public libraries are an essential resource, and they are in urgent need of renovation and upgrading to meet the increasing needs of the children, adults, and families they serve every day,” said Senator Thomas.  “Now more than ever, we need to invest in our public libraries and ensure they have the resources they need to continue providing critical services to Long Islanders. I am pleased to have helped secure these funds, which are not just investments in our libraries, but investments in our communities.”

A complete list of funded projects is available on the State Library’s website, nysl.nysed.gov.