The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1899-01-05
FREE LIBRARY.
Trustees Last Night Finally
Approve Plans for
New Building.
SPECIFICATIONS TO BE ADVERTIzED.
What the New Structure
Will Look Like : It Will
Cost $12o, 900.
SPECIFICATIONS TO BE ADVERTIzED.

0S3u PAElS,OS0s
The plans for the new Free Library
! building on Jersey avenue. from Mont
gomery to Mercer streets, were approved
by the Trustees at their special meeting
last night, and the architects were in
structed to prepare at once the specifica.
! tions, which will be advertised within /
/ few weeks and bids invited.
/ A new plan was decided upon last NIGH
| by the Trustees concerning these Speclt
cations. Each applicant for specifications
| Will be given a full set of blue prints OF
| the building required and he must Geposli
| the sum of $25 with the Trustees. He may
then figure upon them at his leisure and
on returning the prints his deposit will be
refunded. Next week a large drawing ol
4-the proposed structure will be hung in the
| present library for the public to see what
handsome building they will get.
/ 1t was in April last year that the
| Trustees received batch of plans for the
| new building and after the most careful
and patient deliberations they on July 22
] & Bacon, of New York, designers of the
I Art Museum at Philadelphia, and the
American University at Washington. The
| Trustees went again over the successful
| plans and made suggestions and alter
ations and at last decided last night that
the plan We're in their judgment just what
the city wanted.
The successful design, the construction
OF which will cost in the neighborhood of
$l20 e0e, presents on the main front on Jer-
sey avenue, from Montgomery street to
Mercer street. a simple yet very handsome
and dignliied structure, 200 feet long, of
stone and brick, in what is known as the
Fin Renaissance style. There win be two
stories and basement or ground floor.
strictly speaking The ground floor will
have. stone front with windows a nltle
smaller than those on the floor above.
i. Inc main doorway in the centre of the
building will be supported by CaryatideS
carved liz stone, presenting an exceedingly
artlstie idsd a atpEpearfance Broad steps will
of the second floor will be of brick and
the windows will be very high, reaching &
to the beginning of the third floor. Civ
These windows wills have stone trim
Dlings, adding much to the beauty of
the building. Above the third or top floor
will be q handsome Roman Doric cor
nice, and above a stone balustrade and
lastly tile roof.
There is nothing tawdry or ginger
bread about the front elevation; it is not
severe, not over elaborate, but it pre-
sents a facade which, when completed,
will be something for Jersey City people
to point out with pride.
The elevation on the Mercer street side
and that facing Van Worst Park will, of
course, be in keeping with the general
architecture of the front, and the en-
frances on each of these sides will be
worthy of the location.
Great care has been teken by the archi-
tects IN estimating carefully the cost of
building the structure after their plans.
All points dictated by the trustees have
been adhered to faithfully. and they saw
the building, when finished. will give to
Jersey City a library building which for
room Nc6nyeniences and so forth cannot
be excelled in the country for the outlay
contemplated.
The plot on which the new buildins viii
stang covers about 300 square feet, ex-
81 feet east on Montgomery a..,ss Mercer
streets. The new building will -. we
fore, have light on three street fronsss
ana ;t an m; area in the rear. The new build
Ing VIII have three stories and a roof
Story, and is planned to accommodate
l2o,eW Volumes. of which 10000 may be
outside q 81 Of rs stacks The first story. to be
and the third L to 10 feet high, il the
second IS 10 feet or of less height than
p. 15 feet ii i the second is 22lz feet, floor to
left to the architects discretion
me building is.to be fireproof through
9ue, 6l.., Or partly fTeproof, and partly of slow
stars, lifts and partitions are to be of
incombustible material.
The ground floor will have three en-
frances, one on Jersey avenue, and one
each on Montgomery and Mercer streets.
the latter entrance admitting a wagon to-
the station delivery. The ground floor is
TO haye .,. the main stairs, service stairway
and lift. On this floor will be the stack
room OF wing with an area ofs1 800 square
feet; the the station delivery, 75o feet; bind
rooms, l.oO0 feet; newspaper room, $500
feet; newspaper files, 500 feet; and store-
room, ianitor and public toilet, in all 500
feet, making a total area of 8, 100 feet
The stack eSoom or wing will extend
through all the floors, and it may even
start in the basement, and have up to
provision must be made for 100 600 vol,
umes in the stacks. These stacks are to
deep De and g to Sc nehgss ehg aoar pa T. IN tSs
clear; interior aisles 3 feet, and wal.
aisles 21a feet wide. There will be abund-
ant light for windows. as nearly opposite
The stack room or wing will be separated
from the rest of the library by solid brick
walls, provided with freproof doors.
The second story will have an area of
S,040 square feet, to be consumed as fol- 4
lows:-Stack room or wing, 1850 feet;
work room, $40 feet; cataloguing room, $50
feet; delivery roon 800 feet; public card
catalogue AGO feet; librarians room, pub
lie 300 feet; reading and periodical room,
and stack room, 500 feet. The work room
and cataloguing will communicate with
each other, and as abundant light is re-
quired they are to be separated by glass
partitions only.
The cataloguing room is to communicate |
directly with the Librarians private room
to stairs and delivery desk SO
as to require as few steps as possible |
for readers and attendants alike The
reading room will be well lighted and con- |
venient to the stacks
The delivery room will be SO placed as
to permit the attendant at the desk to !
supervise as large a part of this door as |
possible. 1t will command a. view of the |
public stairs and hall of the entrance to
the main reading room and will have |
good direct light.
The third floor will comprise the stack |
room, with area of 1900 square feet ref /
erence room, ], 400 feet; two alcoves for T
study each 200 feet, 400 feet; dictionaries, |
ETC., 800 feet; children's reading room, 900 |
feet; children's reference room, 1850 feet; /
trustees room, $40 feet; Assistant Lii I
brarian's room, 300 feet, and toilet and (
/, $50 feet. The reference rooms on this I
floor are to be located near the stacks
and have abundant light The ehildren's I
rooms are best placed away from the (
reference room and adjacent to the spe- /
cial toilet room for children. AS for al 7
will be near the reference and dictionary
rooms and have plenty of light.
On the fourth or roof story will be a |
lecture room of not less than
3 900 square feet. Also an art room of /
not less than 1,400 square feet, and such |
other rooms for custodian. special study, I
ETC., as the space may permit, besides the /
upper story or two stories of the stack !
room.
The heating and ventilation require.
ments are very thorough Shelving will 1
be provided as follows:
Bndery, LOCO volumes; newspaper file
room (bound newspapers), 1,500 volumes;
work ROOM 5000 volumes: reading and PEE
riodical room (periodicals only; ladies'
reading room periodicals only); catalog-
Ting room, 1850 volumes; reference room,
600 volumes; each alcOve, 2s000 volumes
reference room, $500 volumes;