Safdie Architects is restoring Pacific Library, the first Carnegie library built in Brooklyn. Located in downtown Brooklyn, one block from Barclays Center, the historic branch has served the community since 1904. The project will add 1,500 square feet and introduce features that expand public spaces, increase daylight, and create gardens around the building. The firm is working in collaboration with New York-based AYON Studio, Architect of Record and Preservation Architect for the project. The team has developed a design that restores the historic character of the building while making the library more accessible to the community.
For more than a century, the Library has served as a safe and welcoming space for the local community, providing books, programs, and computers. In 2019, Brooklyn Public Library began working with the branch neighborhood to shape this renovation. The design builds on that community input, reflecting the Library’s longstanding role as a place for learning, gathering, and connection.
Excavation around the library will create gardens, which will be planted with birch trees, ivy, and ferns. Set within this garden will be a new two-story solarium accommodating the children’s room and teen room, providing peaceful spaces surrounded by green. The excavation, glass pavilion, and restored lightwells will bring daylight into the previously dark lower level.
Over the years, alterations to the original building, including the removal of the original conical roof and skylight, as well as other minor additions, blocked daylight from entering the building. The renovation will restore the original roof shape and recreate its skylight. The skylight will substantially increase daylight in the reading spaces below. A new interior skylight at the upper level will allow sunlight to reach the main library level.
“I was excited at the opportunity to restore this unusually elegant building to its initial glory and to remove changes made over the past century,” said Moshe Safdie, Founding Partner of Safdie Architects. “We are restoring the library while, at the same time, introducing new elements that will make it more accessible and inviting as a civic space. By adding a garden and solarium, we are enhancing the building and adding new amenities that benefit the community.”
The renovation of the Pacific Library is part of Brooklyn Public Library’s campaign to revitalise its Carnegie libraries and balance their historic architecture with contemporary use. As part of this effort, the design reconfigures entries and circulation to improve accessibility. Additional upgrades include a new elevator, sidewalk-level entry, single-user restrooms on every floor, and comprehensive upgrades to the building’s systems. Designed for LEED Gold certification, the project prioritises energy efficiency, envelope performance, and adaptable interior spaces that support changing community needs.
“Pacific Library has served the borough for more than 120 years, offering Brooklynites access to knowledge, opportunity, and growth. Today, we take an important step toward ensuring the Library continues to serve the community for another century,” said Linda E. Johnson, President and CEO, Brooklyn Public Library. “We are thrilled to work with Moshe Safdie and his team, who deeply understand and respect the power of the public library. Together, we are committed to honoring and preserving the history of the branch, while also imagining a modern space that inspires and uplifts future generations of New Yorkers.”
The design will feature new classrooms to support Pacific Library’s educational programs and create additional spaces for staff, including offices, workstations, and a lounge. New spaces will prioritise the Adult Learning program, a cornerstone of the library’s free educational programs, providing classes in reading, writing, math, HSE/GED preparation, and more. Designated areas will also be reserved to support children’s and young adult programming, extending the branch’s longstanding commitment to serving young readers.
Known for designing major cultural institutions, mixed-use developments, and civic complexes, Safdie Architects brings the same focus on public life to the intimate scale of this neighborhood library. As Architect of Record and Preservation Architect, AYON Studio is working closely with Safdie Architects to integrate architecture, engineering, historic preservation, and materials conservation throughout the project.
The project also builds on Safdie Architects’ longstanding engagement with libraries as essential civic institutions. The firm’s previous library projects include Vancouver Library Square in Vancouver, the Salt Lake City Public Library, and the transformation of the historic Free Library of Philadelphia, each exploring how libraries can extend beyond repositories of books to become active public places for gathering, learning, and exchange.
Pacific Library’s renovation is funded by Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, Council Member Shahana Hanif, former Council Member Brad Lander, the Office of the Mayor, the Gowanus Neighborhood Plan, and with proceeds from the redevelopment of Brooklyn Heights Library.
