This week, the Wayland Baptist Church held a town hall meeting to discuss the possible future of the Cecil B. Moore Library and potential solutions for its closure.
Closed indefinitely on January 21, 2025, the library has had a tumultuous past, with many issues and difficulties arising within the infrastructure and design of the building. Built in 1961, the library has been slowly deteriorating. The HVAC system has completely given out, and the plumbing and general foundation of the building are failing slowly. Councilman Jeffery Young, Jr. of the fifth district in Philadelphia, led the conversation surrounding the prospective resolutions to the presented problems.
In 2017, the library was selected as a Rebuild site in the city and was afforded two million dollars to tend to the sailing HVAC system, which had caused the closure of the library at the time. It was not until the fall of 2022 that the renovations and design process went underway as community members began to demand action and involvement. In the spring of 2023, an additional three million dollars were included in the budget. 2024 was when these designs and plans were finalized and scheduled to begin. However, by 2024, things were yet to begin, and Councilman Young added another five million to the budget.
The idea of building potential housing units above the library was also brought to the forefront. An idea that was not popular among community members.
Because of multiple delays, the library was forced to close in January because of the permanent deterioration of the HVAC system in the aging building.
The town hall meeting served as a platform for discussion among the community members, library employees, and government officials. The rebuild project was proposed by the Councilman and community members, such as members of the Clean and Green initiative.
Library staff also presented their ideas, concerns, and desires for the new building. Many of those in attendance were frequent visitors to the library and relied on its resources and spaces.
The main concern of the existing library was the lack of spaces for teenagers and the building not being ADA compliant. There is also no adult/teen librarian, creating a shortage of staff and a deficit in a necessary resource. The requirements for a new site include a new plumbing and HVAC system, updated air conditioning, a redesign of the space, updated lighting and electrical, and an elevator accessible to disabled patrons of the library.
The current ten-million-dollar budget is enough to ensure all these needs are met. Yet, despite 76 percent of those surveyed in the community – 425 votes – wanting to begin renovations now with the current funding, Councilman Young is still delaying the process.
2.3 percent of the votes are seeking a complete demolition and the construction of a new library. In the meeting, Councilman Young favored the minority and attempted to push the idea of taking down the current building and rebuilding it with additional housing above the library. His speech was met with a loud uproar of disapproval and protest against the idea. Such a plan would mean the library would be closed for five years, and the possibility of the housing being affordable, as the Councilman promised, is slim to none.
“Closing the library for five years would be really bad for the community. Also, the idea of it being affordable is very unlikely. The people funding the project would want some sort of return on their investment, so the prices would be high to create a profit off of the units,” stated a member of the audience.
The integrity of the building and the library was also called into question. Another audience member shared concerns about potential “leaks, fires, pest control, and conflict of interests between the housing units and the operation of the library.” They also called into question the genuine interest in helping the community, asking, “What is the plan to ensure the integrity of library operations? If you love the library so much, it deserves its own space.”
Councilman Young emphasized the importance of the library’s presence, stating that it is a place of “community, culture, and learning.” However, in the same breath, he also tried to push the idea of housing even more upon the audience members. A solution has yet to be decided among the people, though they severely disapprove of Councilman Young’s proposal.
