{"id":377119,"date":"2026-10-19T18:58:12","date_gmt":"2026-10-19T18:58:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/377119\/"},"modified":"2026-10-19T18:58:12","modified_gmt":"2026-10-19T18:58:12","slug":"readers-rejoice-new-dorp-library-reopens-after-nearly-2-years-of-closure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/377119\/","title":{"rendered":"Readers, rejoice! New Dorp library reopens after nearly 2 years of closure"},"content":{"rendered":"

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 The New Dorp branch of the New York Public Library reopened today after around 22 months of closure.<\/p>\n

Library-goers said they had been forced to travel to other branches since the New Dorp location<\/a> closed in January 2025.<\/p>\n

Blerta Alija, who lives in the neighborhood, said in early 2025 she took her children to the Richmondtown branch of the New York Public Library until that location closed for maintenance, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve gone all over Staten Island. I even went to Manhattan, but that\u2019s not fun,\u201d Alija said while she played with her toddler.<\/p>\n

\"NewResidents who traveled across Staten Island for library access can now return to the newly renovated New Dorp location.Claire Hamlet<\/p>\n

The Richmondtown library reopened on Sept. 8, according to a Facebook page for the location.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re so excited the library reopened, we couldn\u2019t wait since last year,\u201d Alija said. \u201cEspecially now that it\u2019s nice weather, you get the walk and the library, it\u2019s great for them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alija said she\u2019s looking forward to the library\u2019s children\u2019s programming.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey used to do story time for kids, I hope they do it again,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"NewResidents who traveled across Staten Island for library access can now return to the newly renovated New Dorp location.Claire Hamlet<\/p>\n

Alija said she frequently came to the New Dorp library with her older son before it closed. Since the renovation, she has had another child.<\/p>\n

Zaim, her oldest son, is now 5. He took his first steps at the New Dorp library.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt looks beautiful,\u201d Alija said. \u201cIt\u2019s huge, this space.\u201d<\/p>\n

Doreen Belloni of Great Kills took the train to see the new space.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like to visit the other branches,\u201d Belloni said.<\/p>\n

Belloni said she uses the library for access to the newspapers. Usually, she goes to the Great Kills branch of the New York Public Library.<\/p>\n

Library branch manager Colleen Chioffe said the renovation made the HVAC system more environmentally friendly.<\/p>\n

\"NewResidents who traveled across Staten Island for library access can now return to the newly renovated New Dorp location.Claire Hamlet<\/p>\n

Chioffe said the heating and cooling systems at most library locations could use an upgrade.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur library also got a bit of a refresh, like new lighting,\u201d Chioffe said.<\/p>\n

Chioffe said library employees were sent to work at other locations over the 22 months. She worked at Great Kills, Todt Hill and Dongan Hills.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe went wherever help was needed,\u201d Chioffe said.<\/p>\n

She and her team returned about six weeks ago, Chioffe said, to set up the library, reshelve books and decorate.<\/p>\n

Chioffe said there were roughly 500 bins of books to sort through and arrange.<\/p>\n

\"NewResidents who traveled across Staten Island for library access can now return to the newly renovated New Dorp location.Claire Hamlet<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m so excited to be back, I\u2019m so excited to be with my team again,\u201d Chioffe said. \u201cWorking together as a team has been so rewarding.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chioffe said the library\u2019s return means old programming will resume, alongside new events.<\/p>\n

Baby Lapsit and Little Movers, library sponsored events for babies and new parents, will return at the New Dorp library. Chioffe said two new children\u2019s librarians have joined the staff, too.<\/p>\n

Lego and STEM programs for older children are on the schedule alongside teen nights and college and career preparatory resources.<\/p>\n

For adults, monthly meetings are on the calendar, too.<\/p>\n

Chioffe described Pages and Projects as a \u201cloose discussion\u201d of books accompanied by a craft.<\/p>\n

At \u2018Hello My Name Is,\u2019 another monthly book club, attendees read a biography of their choice and wear a name tag with the subject\u2019s name\u2014then mingle and discuss what they read.<\/p>\n

\"NewResidents who traveled across Staten Island for library access can now return to the newly renovated New Dorp location.Claire Hamlet<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 The New Dorp branch of the New York Public Library reopened today after around…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":377120,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[9,24,63,134,136,135],"class_list":["post-377119","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-staten-island","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-staten-island","tag-staten-island-headlines","tag-staten-island-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/377119","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=377119"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/377119\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/377120"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=377119"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=377119"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=377119"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}