The grounds of the Scarsdale Public Library at 54 Olmsted Road are a construction site this fall, and the library has published what is coming out of it: an outdoor pavilion and plaza with seating for about 60, a rebuilt main entrance, and, in a second phase next year, a StoryWalk and garden lounges. The project is called Library in the Park, and no tax money is paying for it. The Friends of the Scarsdale Library raised more than $2.2 million in private donations through a capital campaign to cover it.

What Phase One builds

Ground was broken on June 29, and the first phase is centered on the pavilion. It is designed as an outdoor room the library can program for most of the year, with lighting, audiovisual equipment, ceiling fans and heaters, and about 60 seats for story times, talks, concerts and events. The plaza around it connects to a renovated main entrance with new seating walls and a reconfigured traffic flow at the front door, which the library says is also meant to improve accessibility.

Phase One was originally expected to take about six months. The library's latest update says work is now expected to run into the winter.

What comes in 2027

Phase Two, expected to begin in 2027, adds a StoryWalk (a children's book posted page by page along a path), garden lounges, removal of invasive plants, wider sidewalks, upgraded stormwater drainage and a redesigned refuse area.

Who is doing the work

The landscape design is by Donna Maiello and her team at DTS Provident Design, with Slade Architecture (Greg Bencivengo, Hayes Slade and James Slade) on the pavilion. Savin Engineers' Nancy Barbera and Dean Sproch are managing construction, and AR Brothers Construction is the general contractor. The library's Landscape Project Committee, co-chaired by Margot Milberg and Terry Singer, has steered the project, working with the village's capital project manager, Paul Zaicek, and public works superintendent, Jeff Coleman.

Using the library meanwhile

The building is open through construction, but parking may be limited on some days while crews are on site. All 114 existing parking spaces are to be preserved once the work is finished. The library posts construction updates and answers to common questions on its Landscape Project page.

Inside, the fall program calendar continues as usual, with registration for most children's programs requiring a Westchester Library System card. The library's number is (914) 722-1300.

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