brooklyn public library

New York Magazine recently featured the Greenpoint Library and Environmental Education Center in Curbed’s “The Best of the New New York Architecture,” by architecture critic Justin Davidson. The article recognizes the project for its strong connection to place, highlighting its public plaza and role as a welcoming civic anchor at the edge of Bushwick Inlet and Newtown Creek, and positions it among a select group of projects shaping a more contextual, community-driven approach to contemporary architecture in New York City.

Read the full article here.

We’re thrilled to share that the Greenpoint Library and Environmental Education Center has been featured as a case study in the NYC Department of City Planning’s Principles of Good Urban Design. Highlighted as an exemplary civic building, the project is recognized for demonstrating how thoughtful architecture and landscape design can strengthen community life, reflect neighborhood identity, and advance the City’s sustainability goals.

The case study showcases the library’s welcoming public spaces, its integration of indoor and outdoor environments across three levels, and its close collaboration with local environmental organizations. It also highlights the project’s innovative strategies—including energy-efficient systems, stormwater capture, and biodiverse outdoor programming areas—that contributed to its LEED Gold certification.

Completed in 2020, the library continues its long legacy as a community anchor in Greenpoint and a leading example of high-quality civic design in New York City.

View the case study here.

Images courtesy of @nycplanning on Instagram.

We are thrilled to celebrate the unveiling of the design for the New Lots Library. MFA partnered with MASS Design Group and worked closely with Brooklyn Public Library and the East New York community to reimagine how a new public library can serve as a beacon of restorative justice, honoring the history of its site while creating new opportunities for celebration, connection, storytelling, and healing. Developed through a robust community engagement process, the design reflects a deep dialogue with the East New York community about their past, present, and vision for the future.

The new 25,000-square-foot library will replace the existing branch, expanding access to essential educational and cultural resources for generations to come. Thoughtfully designed to foster solidarity and shared memory, the space embodies a commitment to renewal and community-driven growth. At its core, the design for the library acknowledges the historic African burial ground on which the current library stands, providing a new space for reflection, renewal, and reconciliation.

Programming includes dedicated reading and music rooms, learning and exhibition spaces, an auditorium for community events, and outdoor areas for gathering and reflection.

“Public libraries are some of the most trusted places in our city, and each branch library has an opportunity to be responsive to the unique needs of their community. The Brooklyn Public Library continues to demonstrate their commitment to their communities, supporting designs that offer transformative visions for their libraries,” said Karen Fairbanks, Founding Partner of Marble Fairbanks Architects. “Here at the New Lots Library, we hope this project expands that trust by acknowledging past wrongs and offering spaces inside and out that empower the East New York community to grow, to make, to learn, to advocate and to continue their journey.”

By embedding these spaces within the community, the New Lots Library will be an anchor of social infrastructure in the New Lots and Brooklyn community—strengthening inclusion, deepening community connections, and contributing toward a more equitable future.

This fall, Karen presented the Greenpoint Library and Environmental Education as part of the Designing Libraries for the 21st Century Annual Conference. Her talk focused on how the legacy of intense community activism around the environment shaped the project, leading to a design that heals past damage to the site and introduces new ways for the community to focus on environmental justice and education.

Karen joined Greg Raschke, Senior Vice Provost and Director of Libraries, NC State University, on the panel Community-Centered Design: A Current Framing. The panel was moderated by Patrick Deaton, Associate Director, Learning Spaces and Capital Management, NC State University.

Our work with MASS Design Group continues on the design of a new building for the New Lots Library in East New York. We are now in Schematic Design, working closely with Brooklyn Public Library (BPL) and the community to explore opportunities to transform and expand the branch to better serve its present-day patrons as well as future generations. Sited near a historic African Burial Ground housing the remains of enslaved individuals, the design will have an emphasis on learning from the past to inform the future, interwoven with narratives of social activism, education, community, and restorative justice.

The New Lots library is one of the largest libraries in the BPL system, offering a diverse array of programs for all ages. Also a hub for educational adult learning programs, the library is one of five across the Brooklyn Public Library system that has a dedicated Adult Learning Center, catering to individuals from diverse linguistic backgrounds. Over the past year, the branch hosted around 2,500 programs and welcomed over 168,000 visitors.