A NEW LIBRARY IS COMING TO FROG HOLLOW
For decades activists and neighborhood groups have advocated for an expanded library in the neighborhood. Now, with construction almost complete, residents look forward to a sleek, new 13,000-square-foot building set to open in the summer of 2021.
The Park Street Library @ the Lyric is built on the site of the historic Lyric Theater and will continue the tradition of providing a vital community anchor at the corner of Park and Broad streets.
The Plan
The first floor will have a 3,000-square-foot reading room, a separate 1,200-square-foot children’s room, a small café and an enclosed outdoor patio area for performances and events. The second floor will feature a learning lab, conference room and a nearly 2,000-square-foot community room able to accommodate up to 100 people for meetings, lectures, performances and other events.
The Feeling
Exposed wood will give the interior of the new library a warm, welcoming feel. And in a tip-of-the-hat to the history of the site, large photographs of the hand-painted murals adorning the front of the Lyric Theater will hang inside.
It’s a fitting touch for a branch library whose history is intertwined with that of the neighborhood. In the 91 years since the community library opened, Frog Hollow has evolved from an enclave of immigrant factory workers to the epicenter of Hartford’s vibrant Spanish-speaking community.
