Hillcrest Library Reopens After $2.2 Million Renovation Project that Replaced the Roof and HVAC Systems

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Hillcrest Library Reopens After $2.2 Million Renovation Project that Replaced the Roof and HVAC Systems

DDC: Ian Michaels, 646-939-6514, michaelia@ddc.nyc.gov
QPL: Ewa Kern-Jedrychowska, 917-702-0016, ekern@queenslibrary.org

(Queens, NY – September 27, 2024) Commissioner Thomas Foley of the New York City Department of Design and Construction (DDC) and Queens Public Library President and CEO Dennis M. Walcott today announced that QPL’s Hillcrest Library has reopened following the completion of a $2.2 million renovation project that replaced the library’s roof and HVAC and climate control systems. The project, which began in February 2023, was managed by DDC for QPL. The library reopened September 24th.

Queens Public Library President and CEO Dennis M. Walcott (sunglasses) joins local elected officials and library and DDC project staff to welcome the community back to Hillcrest Library

“With the new roof and climate control systems the Hillcrest Library is now more efficient, more resilient and better able to keep its users safe and comfortable as we deal with the effects of climate change,” said DDC Commissioner Thomas Foley. “DDC not only builds cool stuff all over the City but we renovate it too.”

“We are thrilled to welcome our customers back to Hillcrest Library, which is now better prepared to serve the community for years to come,” said QPL President and CEO Dennis M. Walcott. “We are grateful to the Office of NYC Mayor Eric Adams and the Office of NYC Council Member James Gennaro for providing financial support for this project and the NYC Department of Design and Construction for managing it.”

The Hillcrest Library at 187-05 Union Turnpike offers books, movies, music, free Wi-Fi, free computer workstations, classes, programs and a wide range of events for children and families. The library is open six days a week including Saturday and can be reached at (718) 454-2786.

The new roof and HVAC systems help make the library more efficient, more resilient and better able to handle the effects of climate change

About Queens Public Library
Queens Public Library is one of the largest and busiest public library systems in the United States, dedicated to serving the most ethnically and culturally diverse area in the country. An independent, non-profit organization founded in 1896, Queens Public Library offers free access to a collection of more than 5 million books and other materials in 50 languages, technology and digital resources. Each year, the Library hosts tens of thousands of online and in-person educational, cultural, and civic programs and welcomes millions of visitors through its doors. With a presence in nearly every neighborhood across the borough of Queens, the Library consists of 66 locations, including branch libraries, a Central Library, seven adult learning centers, a technology center located at the Queensbridge Houses, the nation’s largest public housing complex, and a community learning center at another public housing complex, the Ravenswood Houses. It also has five teen centers, two bookmobiles, and two book bicycles.

About the NYC Department of Design and Construction
The Department of Design and Construction is the City’s primary capital construction project manager. In supporting Mayor Adams’ long-term vision of growth, sustainability, resiliency, equity and healthy living, DDC provides communities with new or renovated public buildings such as firehouses, libraries, police precincts, and new or upgraded roads, sewers and water mains in all five boroughs. To manage this $33 billion portfolio, DDC partners with other City agencies, architects and consultants, whose experience bring efficient, innovative and environmentally-conscious design and construction strategies to City projects. For more information, please visit nyc.gov/ddc.