Canarsie’s tired 1960 library building is officially on its way out, making room for a warm, wood-forward replacement that doubles the public space and turns the east Brooklyn branch into a climate-conscious showpiece.
The new two-story mass-timber library will span roughly 11,000 square feet and broke ground in February, with completion expected in 2027 after a nearly $31 million construction program. Studio Joseph’s design leans hard into exposed wood and natural light, with a tall glass facade, a 50-seat flexible meeting room, a recording studio, dedicated teen and children’s areas, and an outdoor terrace. Library leaders and the project team say the mass-timber structure is intended to cut embodied carbon while giving the interior a noticeably warmer, more welcoming feel than the mid-century building it replaces.
As reported by Engineering News-Record, the job is a $30.9 million project that will deliver about 11,000 square feet of space when it wraps in 2027. Brooklyn Public Library said in a press release that the design grew out of months of neighborhood engagement, with roughly $20 million of the funding coming from New York City capital allocations. The system named Studio Joseph as architect and Shawmut Design and Construction as general contractor, and has told patrons they can use nearby branches while the Canarsie site is closed.
Part of a broader city push
The Canarsie rebuild is arriving as the city leans into mass timber for public projects. The New York City Economic Development Corporation launched the NYC Mass Timber Studio to promote low-carbon construction and offer technical help for early-stage developments, NYCEDC explains. Brooklyn Public Library’s New Lots branch is in the program’s inaugural cohort and is being designed with mass timber, MASS Design Group notes.
On the construction side, Shawmut and the design team say working with exposed cross-laminated timber called for new sequencing on site and detailed protection plans. Engineering News-Record reported that crews tested 16-by-13-foot curtain-wall mockups on Long Island and mapped out breathable coverings so the wood will not be damaged as trades move through the building. Mercer Mass Timber, which is supplying CLT and glulam components, says the material helps the project meet sustainability and aesthetic goals while creating a warm, tactile interior that plays against metal exterior cladding, Mercer Mass Timber notes. Architect Wendy Evans Joseph described the design as one that “captures the spirit of what we were listening to,” reflecting the neighborhood engagement that shaped the plan.
For neighbors, the upgrades are concrete and close to home: double the program space, dedicated stroller parking near the children’s area, expanded teen zones, and a public recording studio and maker space that the library hopes will support both after-school activities and workforce programs. Brooklyn Public Library’s announcement credits local elected officials with helping to secure funding and points residents to interim services at nearby branches while Canarsie is closed, Brooklyn Public Library said. At the groundbreaking, officials framed the project as both a bet on community infrastructure and a model for climate-minded civic design.
Construction components are expected to start arriving later this year and into next as teams move from mockups to full erection, and the branch is scheduled to reopen in 2027. The outcome of early public mass-timber efforts like the Canarsie branch will serve as case studies for city regulators and designers as New York pursues lower-carbon municipal construction through programs such as the NYC Mass Timber Studio, NYCEDC says. More technical reviews and community programming updates are expected as the construction schedule and test assemblies firm up.
