Rendering courtesy of Sage and Coombe Architects

A rendering of the new Maplewood Memorial Library, which is expected to open this fall, library officials said.

Book readers in Maplewood, N.J., will soon have a sleek new library that blends the world of books inside with nature just outside its massive glass walls.

The township's new Maplewood Memorial Library is slated to open this fall after two years of construction, library officials said recently.

The $22 million facility is being built on the same footprint as the old library — circa 1955 — at 51 Baker St. in the Essex County township west of Newark, according to Sarah Lester, the library's director.

"Maplewood is a community of readers, and is a very diverse, culturally-rich community, and I think that's what we were really going for — a building that reflected that richness, that diversity," she told NJ.com.

Library officials received an $8.3 million grant from the state through the Library Construction Bond Act to fund the project, Lester added. The township contributed $12 million, and the Maplewood Memorial Library Foundation raised another $2 million in private donations to go toward the effort.

Maplewood Memorial Library's grand opening celebration is expected to be held in October, she said.

Until then, a temporary library for patrons is operating at 129 Boyden Ave. while construction on the main branch continues.

Bringing Library Up to 21st Standards

Before work started in August 2022, the Maplewood library was a single-story building with only one electrical outlet in the main reading area, Lester explained.

NJ.com also reported that accessibility was a major issue; for instance, the building's community room was located in the basement.

However, once finished, the new library will be two stories tall, with the community room and main entrance designed to be on the ground floor. It also will feature a new entrance from the township's nearby Memorial Park.

More outlets and a new forum space with stadium seating also are planned to allow patrons to use their laptops and other devices in the library as well as 10 quiet and collaborative rooms. Additionally, a new space for teenagers will be located on the second floor with a wall of floor-to-ceiling windows, Lester said.

As a result, she noted, "our teens have one of the most prominent and beautiful spaces in the building."

Sustainability also was a priority when designing the building, Lester said in speaking with NJ.com., adding that the glass used on the building is fritted — meaning it filters natural light while reducing glares and cooling costs. It also helps prevent birds from striking the glass.

"There's just a lot of thought that has gone into every aspect of this building," she explained.

Encompassing about 32,000 sq. ft., the Maplewood Memorial Library also will be much larger than the old facility, which was approximately 24,000 sq. ft. in size — about half of which was underground and less accessible.

The new library and its expanded space reflect "the kind of community that we are in Maplewood," Lester said.

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