County Approves Bill to Study Carnegie Library Relocation

The process to move Patchogue's historic Carnegie Library to a new location is continuing with the unanimous passing of a bill at Tuesday's Suffolk County Legislature meeting.

The bill will allow the County's Department of Public Works (DPW) to study the feasibility of moving the building to the property. The idea was by County Legis. Rob Calarco, D-Patchogue, in February.

"DPW will be working with the Village of Patchogue and Tritec to develop a plan of action in terms of where the building would actually be situated on the property," Calarco told Patch Wednesday.

The study will also go over issues including the preservation of parking spaces on the property and the type of foundation necessary for the building. Several of these issues were by an architect at a Patchogue Village Board of Trustees meeting.

Following the study, a second bill will need to be passed by the Legislature to allow the County to enter into an agreement with Patchogue Village. A date has not yet been set for the approval of the second bill.

Calarco said that other issues to be determined include what types of uses the property will be allowed to take on, building costs, insurance and maintanence issues.

The library currently sits on land owned by Tritec Real Estate Company, which as part of the New Village project plans to build 291 apartments, 46,000 square feet of retail space and 18,000 square feet of office space. The company is obligated to move the library at no cost to the Village.

The building was  to be in danger of being knocked down when Patchogue Village mayor Paul Pontieri said that the Village may be unable to afford the Lake Street building’s maintenance.

Since then,  and  have been working to find the building a new location and a potential private use for the Carnegie Library.

A potential use for the building that was discussed by Village trustee Lori Devlin at a included housing media classes for the . Devlin said that she is working with Campbell Daglish of the organization, who is applying for grant funding to support that use.

Trustee Gerard Crean also said in February that a possible drawback to the new location would be that it would limit its scope of potential use to municipal or non-profits when on County property.