Plan to Move Cambridge Public Library Branch Receives Praise, Pushback

After the Cambridge Community Development Department proposed relocating the Central Square branch of the Cambridge Public Library, more than 500 people signed a petition as of Monday evening expressing concern about the move.

A report released by the CCDD last month suggested the library relocate from its current location on Pearl Street to a new building at 689 Massachusetts Avenue, but under the current plans, the library would only be allocated the first two floors of the new building.

The petition asked the city to provide the Central Square library branch with access to the entire building, which would allow the library to offer additional space for patrons.

The study analyzed 10 city-owned lots to determine how the properties could be reimagined to better serve the city’s goals and the needs of its residents.

The library branch was a candidate for relocation due to the current site’s lack of square footage, distance from major transportation routes, and the potential to use the lot where it is currently located for affordable housing.

A city-owned former bank building located at 689 Massachusetts Ave. was identified as a possible new home for the library because of the structure’s prominent location on a main road and proximity to the Red Line’s Central Square T station.

However, the report proposed utilizing only the first and second floors of the building as library space, which would allow for the basement and the third floor to be used as municipal offices.

In a Feb. 21 email to supporters of the Cambridge Public Library Foundation, Kate Flaim, board president of the organization, lauded the plan to move the “cramped” Central Square branch but criticized the report’s recommendation to only give the library half of the new building.

“This is great news!” Flaim wrote in her email, referencing the proposed change.

“The not-so-great news is that currently the city plans to keep one floor back for office space,” Flaim added. “That means the branch would barely gain any space, and an amazing third floor that could be community spaces (and maybe even a roof deck) would be locked away from public use.”

Maria McCauley, director of libraries for the City of Cambridge, wrote in a statement on Tuesday that they “want to ensure that the Central Square Branch Library is housed in a building that allows the Library to grow alongside its patrons.”

“Currently, the Central Square Branch houses a Children’s floor, the Literacy Center, the Rotary Technology Learning Center, Social Works services, the On the Wall Gallery featuring local artists, and the Black Voices collection highlighting works by Black authors,” McCauley added. “689 Mass Ave. may allow for the Central Square Branch to expand on these important resources and provide the space to continue to develop to meet community needs.”

Flaim said in an interview that compared to the main branch of the Cambridge Public Library, the Central Square branch has only 13 percent as much space but serves 40 percent as many patrons.

Flaim said the extra space is crucial for a library that provides patrons with not only traditional library resources, but also social services and English as a Second Language classes.

“There are a lot of really important programs and things that go beyond what you're thinking of with library services,” Flaim added.

While Flaim acknowledged that municipal office space serves a critical purpose and can be hard to find in Cambridge, she said that opportunities for more free space open to the public are even harder to come by.

“We just hope that we can help encourage the city to think of taking advantage of the opportunity to invest in the future, versus just doing what needs to be done in the moment,” Flaim added.

—Staff writer Michael A. Maines can be reached at michael.maines@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @m_a_maines.