New York Public Library, Melrose Branch
Completed as a Project Designer at Mitchell Giurgola Architects
Facts & Figures
Public Library
15,663 GSF
15,663 GSF
Bronx, NY
A Contemporary Completion of a Classical Fragment
The Melrose Branch of the New York Public Library stands as a testament to the enduring role of the civic institution. Originally designed in 1914 by Carrère and Hastings, the building’s classical narrative was interrupted in 1959, when a fire claimed its upper levels. For decades, the library operated within a truncated, two-story masonry shell—a fragment of the original neoclassical vision that struggled to accommodate the evolving needs of the Central Bronx.
The redesign is conceived as a formal completion of the building’s historical intent. By introducing a new third-floor addition, the project restores the vertical proportions and balanced composition characteristic of the Carnegie era. This new volume is not a mere extension but a contemporary crown, capped with a deep aluminum fascia that reinterprets the classical cornice for the modern day.
Design Team
Ground Floor Plan: Teen’s Reading Room
Second Floor Plan: Adult’s Reading Room
Third Floor Plan: Children’s Reading Room
Children at the Top
The journey culminates in the children’s reading room on the top floor. Positioned to capture the site’s most abundant natural light, the space features lowered sills that invite the neighborhood in, while a wood-slat ceiling provides acoustic and visual warmth. At night, this upper level glows through the new window wall—transforming the library into a luminous beacon and a renewed center of gravity for the Melrose community.
The architectural language of the addition draws directly from the building’s existing DNA.
A rhythmic window wall wraps the street facades, extending the cadence of the original punched windows into a continuous, light-filled plane. Deep mullion caps provide a tactile depth to the exterior, creating a play of light and shadow that aligns with the internal structural grid. On the lower levels, the masonry is preserved and updated with expansive, clean-paned glass, bridging the gap between historical weight and modern transparency.Before
South Elevation Drawing- Existing
West Elevation Drawing - Existing
South Elevation Photograph - Existing
West Elevation Photograph - Existing
After
South Elevation Drawing - New
West Elevation Drawing - New
South Elevation Photograph - New
West Elevation Photograph - New
The elevation studies document a rigorous re-alignment of the building’s vertical proportions.
By mapping the remaining 1914 proportions, the new addition extends the neoclassical rhythm into a contemporary register. This transition is realized in the photographs, where the textured permanence of the historic masonry meets the precision of the aluminum crown, successfully restoring the building’s intended civic scaleThe Stair as a Sculptural Anchor
Internally, the project honors the NYPL Carnegie Design Standards through a disciplined palette of white oak and custom craft. Built-in window benches and reading tables offer a domestic sense of place within the larger civic volume. These environments are unified by a new three-story steel and errazzo staircase. Housed within a minimalist grey void and animated by vertical strip LED lighting, the stair acts as a sculptural anchor, drawing the community upward through the building’s expanded program.