Jersey City Library will close Pearsall Ave. branch

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More budget-cutting:


Jersey City Library will close Pearsall Ave. branch on Feb. 28
Friday, February 12, 2010
By MELISSA HAYES
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

The Pearsall Avenue branch of the Jersey City Free Public Library will close its doors at the end of the month.

"The current state of the economy is unfortunate," Mayor Jerramiah T. Healy said in a statement. "In search of ways to reduce spending, the closure of this branch - which is in great disrepair - is a necessary but unfortunate action. We are encouraging residents in the area to utilize the newly renovated Greenville Branch Library."

Library Director Priscilla Weaver-Gardner was out of the office yesterday and could not be reached for comment. Jennifer Morrill, a spokeswoman for Healy, said she did not know if the closure would result in layoffs.

The library, located inside a church building at 104 Pearsall Ave., has low circulation compared to other branches. It is also within a mile of the Greenville branch, at 1841 Kennedy Blvd., which recently saw $4 million in renovations, and is less than two miles from the Glenn D. Cunningham branch, at 275 Martin Luther King Drive.

The closure will save about $154,999 annually. The library pays rent, utilities and maintenance. The Bookmobile will stop outside 104 Pearsall Ave. every other Wednesday from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. beginning Wednesday. The library, which opened in 1981, will close Feb. 28.

In addition to the closure, the Main Branch of the library, at 472 Jersey Ave., will reduce its hours starting March 1. The new hours will be 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday and Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

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