Renovation wraps up on downtown Syracuse 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. Library Director Susan Mitchell says this area was the last piece completed in the renovation. "We started the renovation on the third floor, and then came down to the first floor and finished up in the second floor where children, adult literacy and job training is,” Mitchell said. She says the renovation created a smaller, sleeker library. “We really reduced our overall square footage by 30 percent, but only 10 percent of that was in patronage areas. Most of it was in staffing areas. We had