Construction has broken ground on the Queens Public Library at Rego Park, located at 91–41 63rd Drive in Rego Park, Queens. Designed by Weiss/Manfredi and managed by the Department of Design and Construction (DDC) on behalf of Queens Public Library, the three-story, 18,000-square-foot facility will replace the existing one-story, 7,500-square-foot branch. The site is located at the corner of 63rd Drive and Austin Street.
A groundbreaking ceremony was held on December 9 in front of the current library.
The Queens Public Library at Rego Park groundbreaking ceremony on December 9. Photo credit: DDC/Matthew Lapiska
The rendering in the main photo looks southwest at the new structure from the intersection. The building will feature a distinctive massing with inward-sloping walls on both frontages. The façade will be composed of blue-green brick with interlocking L-shaped cutouts of floor-to-ceiling glass. Below is a street-level perspective looking southeast along Austin Street.
The new Queens Public Library at Rego Park. Designed by Wiess/ Manfredi.
The following two images preview the building’s sloping roof lines. A green roof is shown covering a significant portion of the building’s roof beside an angular glass curtain wall.
The new Queens Public Library at Rego Park. Designed by Wiess/ Manfredi.
The new Queens Public Library at Rego Park. Designed by Wiess/ Manfredi.
Additional interior renderings showcase the facility’s abundant natural lighting from its expansive windows. The exterior’s jade green masonry will cover portions of the inner walls, adorned by a modular brick artwork by Artist Katrin Sigurdardottir called The Forem. The design will use protruding contoured and standard bricks to create a 1,500-square-foot mural depicting Queens-native flora.
The new Queens Public Library at Rego Park. Designed by Wiess/ Manfredi.
A double-height atrium will house the main reading and writing area. Windows on the cantilevered second level will overlook the reading desks and provide views outside over the surrounding neighborhood.
The new Queens Public Library at Rego Park. Designed by Wiess/ Manfredi.
The new Queens Public Library at Rego Park. Designed by Wiess/ Manfredi.
A multi-purpose room and a dedicated teen reading area will be located in the cellar level. The ground floor will contain the majority of the adult resources, while the second story will feature a children’s area and an additional multi-purpose room for children’s programming. A large staircase will connect all three levels.
The project is targeting LEED Silver certification and will incorporate sustainability elements such as a green roof, high-efficiency lighting and mechanical systems, on-site stormwater retention, and a highly insulated building envelope.
The nearest subways from the library are the M and R trains at the 63rd Drive–Rego Park station to the north along Queens Boulevard.
Construction of the new Queens Public Library at Rego Park is expected to cost $39 million and is slated for completion at the end of 2028. A temporary mobile library will be set up on site beginning on January 8, 2026.
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I thought Adams wanted to build housing on top of libraries.
Exactly. And at this location, right above a subway station?
It should be the base of a 20 story apartment building.
The subway station is 4 1/2 relatively short blocks from the library location.
A 20 story building would tower over all the buildings nearby, easily 3 times the height of existing buildings.
OK, then, at least put a 6-story building with a library there. That could have been 50 apartments and a great library.
Adams is out.
Looks better than a breadbox!
Nice retro-ish design.
Love the design but a missed opportunity to put housing with a library here.
It’s easy to imagine a dense housing development eventually goes up behind the library wedged next to the LIRR mainline.
We are adding 1/2 a floor to the top of the building for $35 million. Such a waste.
We don’t need any more apartment buildings! Shalimar Diner went out because of a greedy landlord and in its place is another oversized apartment building. Will this new library have less books in English and more in Russian, Chinese and Korean?? I hope not but, disgustingly, probably.
You sad, pathetic, and racist fuckwit.
Send the russians back to the front. Don’t need any of Donnies homeboys trying to bring his brand of corruption back to Queens.
About time !
Also to add ,we definitely don’t need more apt and so called housing ..queens is over populated as it is !
We need more affordable housing units not libraries. Books can be viewed online . Libraries are obsolete at this time.
Richard, it sounds like you never picked up a book in your whole life, or stepped foot inside a library.
Do you not realize libraries provide free public access to the internet for those that may not have money to afford a computer, a phone, or electronics?
Do you not realize they provide a place to connect with the community?
Do you not realize you can go to a library to look for a job, or attend free workshops to improve or start your career?
Do you not realize libraries increase literacy rates and allow the public to sign up for a library card for free?
Do you not realize libraries hold invaluable information about the past and enable people of all ages to learn how to read & write?
I’ve lived in Rego Park for 49 years and want more affordable housing too, but this library needs a complete overhaul and upgrade. I also want to see children learn to grow up with the basic skills of reading, writing & learning how to socialize with their peers. I don’t see how a parent can make that happen if all they do is give their 3-year old child an iPad or a phone to distract them and keep them quiet, then wonder why their kid can’t properly maintain an attention span, speak properly to adults, or read something as simple as an analytical clock for God’s sake.
To say we don’t need libraries anymore sounds very fascist of you and something straight out of Trump’s Project 2025 playbook. If you don’t like libraries, move somewhere else like West Virginia or Oklahoma.