HOLMDEL–After months of planning, fundraising and construction, the new Holmdel Library and Learning Center facility is open at Bell Works.
“I think that the old library was great, and it served its purpose, but the township outgrew it, and this is something that the residents of Holmdel really should have for a library. It’s just something that is not just going to be for tomorrow or next week, but for a long time in the future,” Louis LoPresti, Holmdel Library Foundation’s vice president, said.
Mayor Gregory Buontempo, LoPresti and Holmdel Library Foundation President Ann Marie Buontempo, the wife of Gregory Buontempo, were present during the grand opening of the new library facility on Dec. 18 on the first floor at Bell Works, which is located at 101 Crawfords Corner Road in Holmdel.
Numerous residents visited the library facility, which has classrooms, several lounge areas, a children’s section, a desktop station and a lecture room.
According to Ann Marie Buontempo, the new library is about 18,000 square feet.
“It went from just the Holmdel Library to the Holmdel Library and Learning Center. There is a classroom in here that can sit up to 80 students, where teachers can come and have presentations,” Ann Marie Buontempo said. “They can come here and talk about the early transistor radio, astronomy, physics, mathematics, and they can come and have time in the classroom. They can have the students sit down and finish up their lecture after seeing the iconic things that happened in this building.”
The township has been working on opening the library at Bell Works for more than a year, according to Ann Marie Buontempo.
“The foundation was brought together in the beginning of 2017 for the purpose of raising money to offset any expenses to the township. We have been able to provide money so far to pay for the shelving that holds all of the books throughout the library,” Ann Marie Buontempo said.
So far, the foundation has been able to raise about $300,000 for the library, according to Ann Marie Buontempo.
“We are currently raising funds to add to the technology in the library, and we want to have the naming rights. We are looking for larger companies and even individuals or families if they would like to have naming rights to certain items in the library like the book shelves, the classrooms and the breakout rooms,” Ann Marie Buontempo said.
In conjunction with the township, the foundation is planning on sponsoring upcoming events at the library’s new facility, according to Ann Marie Buontempo.
“As far as this library goes, I am ecstatic. I have been here more hours than I can count. This is a full-time job getting it to this point, but it has been a full-time job for many people, not just myself,” Ann Marie Buontempo said.
Mayor Gregory Buontempo said that he has been working on this project for six years.
“I literally started this project six years ago, working on the [old] library and expanding the basement of the library. After I ran through all of the different analyses and all the different configurations, it was a lot of money, and I did not really get anything in return,” the mayor said.
About 18 months into the project, the township started to look for a new facility for the library, according to the mayor.
“Conversations with Somerset Development President Ralph Zucker led us to putting the library here and since then, it’s been a frantic pace of a project to try and make something for the Holmdel community,” Gregory Buontempo said. “My view was, I did not think in a couple of decades we really invested in our community. Giving something back that is tangible, that would really positively impact the community, and I felt that the library was the one project that could do that. This has been the one accomplishment that I really set out from the beginning.
“When I decided I wanted to get involved in local politics, I wanted to do something for the community. I wanted to leave something positive and that I got involved and was able to provide the residents with something I thought was going to be beneficial and not only make the town more attractive, but be useful for everybody.”
For more information about the new library facility, visit www.monmouthcountylib.org.
Contact Vashti Harris at vharris@newspapermediagroup.com.
