library

An $8 million renovation of Onondaga County’s Central Library in downtown Syracuse wrapped up this month. And the facility on South Salina Street has now become more than a place to get books.

A caregiver sits nearby, as three toddlers tumble through a giant penned-in play area on the second floor of the Central Library. There are books galore spread out through the brightly colored space, but also places for kids to stretch their imagination -- a pretend grocery store, a train table, a stage.

You can literally check out internet access at a few select libraries in central New York starting this month. The Central New York Library Resources Council is behind a laptop lending program.

Gabreiella Jackson spends a lot of time using computers at the White Branch Library on Syracuse’s Northside, because she doesn’t have access to the Internet at her home. So she expects to be one of the library patrons who will be able to check out a laptop and 4G wireless device as part of the CNYFi program. And Jackson things she could put it to good use.

It's been almost two years since Onondaga County lawmakers approved funding for renovation of the Central Library in downtown Syracuse. Now the first steps in revamping the facility are starting.

The Central Library has been ensconced in the Galleries of Syracuse for 25 years now. When it opened up, the Galleries was a retail hub, that's now morphed into what amounts to an office building. Central Librarian Doreen Milcarek says the facility needs to downsize, a move that will reflect staffing cutbacks and the changing needs of library patrons.