Levy Library

More renovation news

In case you missed it, this email just went out from our Library Director about the progress of the Library renovation:

I am pleased to report that the Levy Library renovation is progressing.  For those of you who visit the library, you will have seen visible changes.

Beginning July 7, the 10th floor will be carpeted and painted.  This involves removing the old carpet, moving the stacks using specialized equipment and installing new carpet.  During this time, the 10th floor of the library will be closed to all users and the collection housed in that area (print journals) will be unavailable.  If you need material housed on the 10th floor, please speak with a staff member who will work with you to determine the best way to get what you need.  The online library collection will remain fully accessible.

We anticipate that the work on the 10th floor will be completed by July 18.  We look forward to the project being completed by the end of August.  There will be another brief library closure during the period where the elevator lobby and library entrance will be renovated and we will keep you posted.

Thanks for your cooperation and patience.

Ceiling, Walls, Paint...

The renovation continues behind the temporary walls at the Library. Probably the most visible change happening is the construction of new walls to house a new space for faculty collaboration (more details on this in future posts!). Here it is:
There's also been a lot of painting, and most of the dusty old ceiling panels and light fixtures have been replaced:
 
And, I'm happy to confirm that the long-lost women's restroom does still exist, and though it is still closed for now, it will reopen with the rest of Renovation Phase II.

More Computers!

Construction of the new classrooms in the Library is nearly complete, and we have opened one of them to make the computers in it available. Thanks for bearing with us during the days when we only had the computers downstairs in the MRC! The computers are shiny and new and packed with useful programs for you, so please enjoy them, and please respect the food and drink policy: no food or drink of any kind in the computer classroom (drinks in covered containers are allowed in the rest of the library). This is for everyone's benefit in avoiding those dreaded "out of order" signs and we are checking, so please don't make us put on our mean librarian hats (glasses?).

The Books Have Moved!

If you come to the Library right
now looking for that book you've used before - the one that is right on that shelf, in the middle, towards the window (you know exactly where it is!), what you will find instead is this:

If you were able to go behind that door, you would see something like this:

No books!
But they're still here: the books have all been moved to their new shelves, on the other side of the 11th floor. They are all in the same order, according to the NLM Classification system. If you don't know the call number of the book you are looking for, you can look it up in the Catalog, or you can use our guide to Browsing our Bookhelves (opens in PDF format) to find the call number range for the topic you are interested in. As always, please ask at the front desk if you have any trouble finding anything!

Levy Library vs. Your Lunch

I'll let out a secret: we maybe haven't been extremely diligent about enforcing the food policy at the Library for a while (what? There's a food policy?). But, now that we are getting a shiny new space with new paint and carpets and classrooms and maybe even furniture, we are getting concerned about the piles of crushed Doritos and wadded-up sandwich wrappers we find all too often, not to mention the distraction to others when someone brings in their deliciously fragrant lunch. So, we are now strictly enforcing our food policy: please, no crumbly chips, no drippy ice cream, no slices of pizza - in fact, nothing except drinks in covered, non-spillable containers. This will help a lot to keep our space pleasant and conducive to studying and research (and napping).

Vanishing Computers! Books on the Move!

If you've been to the Library lately, you've definitely noticed a few changes. Phase I of the renovation is (nearly) completed, and the temporary walls that blocked off the back of the Library are now blocking off the East side, where the Public Computers normally sit. We're getting ready to open our new classrooms soon: here is a sneak preview of one of them:

We're also in the process of moving the book collection from one side of the 11th floor to other. Now is a rare chance to see Mount Sinai librarians in jeans as we empty the old blue shelves and fill the new grey shelves.

An FYI as we work on Phase II: public computers, study spaces, water fountains and most other things behind the temporary wall can be found down the stairs on the 10th floor. If you need a book, please ask at the front desk and have us find it for you - there are a few different places it might be at this point. And, we're sorry, but the women's restroom is closed - there are public restrooms on the first floor of the building.

Limited Computer Use in the Library as Renovation Enters Phase 2

We are very excited that Phase 1 of our Library Renovation is finishing up!  The South area of the Library, including our new classrooms, will soon be ready.  But in order for Phase 1 to be finished and to prepare for Phase 2, the computers on the 11th floor of the Library will be unavailable next week, April 27-May 1. (They will be disconnected and moved to a new location.) If you need to use a computer in the Library next week, you can do so in the Media Resource Center on the 10th floor of the Library.  During this time we will ask that you limit your computer use to Library resources or Mount Sinai related business.  Thanks for your patience during this short disruption.  And stay tuned for some pictures of the latest progress on the renovation.

     

Painting and Hammering

We don't usually have a lot of need for shovels in the library, but anyone who's been here lately knows that there are all kinds of tools being operated here (many of them a little bit noisier than your typical shovel). Renovation is proceeding full steam ahead, and we snuck behind The Wall on Friday afternoon to bring you an update.

All of the shelves have been repainted a silvery grey (which might be hard to make out behind their protective plastic). This is the first hint of the new color palette you'll see when the carpeting is installed and the walls are repainted.

The light fixtures and ceiling tiles are starting to be replaced as well, and the biggest change is that the walls for the new classrooms have been constructed. In a few weeks those classrooms will be open and full of shiny new computers that we can all use when the temporary walls move and Phase II of the renovation begins.

 

The smaller new classroom.

   

The larger new classroom.

 

This will be study space again someday soon!

Library reopen

The Library has reopened on schedule after being closed for painting on the weekend (sorry - the painting was behind the temporary walls, so you won't see any dramatic changes!). There is a bit of a lingering paint smell, but it's dissipating fast and, unless you are especially sensitive to that kind of thing, it shouldn't cause you any problems if you drop by the Library today to study or do some research.

Library will be closed this weekend: 3/28 and 3/29

As those of you that visit the library know, the library renovation is progressing - thanks for bearing with us! Taking advantage of the first and second year medical student spring break, the library will be closed on Saturday, March 28^th and Sunday, March 29^th, so that the remaining shelves on the 11^th floor can be painted.

As always, the library’s online resources and Ask a Librarian email service will be available during this time.