San Francisco's Mission Branch Library Reopens November 14 at Noon After More Than Six Years Closed: 1915 Building, Renovation Budget Reached $40.7 Million
In San Francisco, California, the San Francisco Public Library's Mission Branch Library reopened at noon on November 14 at 3359 24th Street, after more than six years of closure. The library held a reopening celebration that day, and the temporary branch and book drop at 1234 Valencia Street closed at 6 p.m. on October 31.
The Mission Branch, near 24th and Bartlett streets, occupies a Carnegie-funded building designed by G. Albert Lansburgh and opened in 1915, making it 110 years old. It closed in March 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and has since undergone structural improvements and modernization.
According to figures from San Francisco Public Works and the library, the project budget climbed from $19.8 million in 2018 to $40.7 million, with repeated delays; in 2026, delays in connecting electrical power pushed the reopening from spring into fall. The project includes a landscaped courtyard, technology and upgraded ventilation, while preserving the building's architectural character.
The library was previewed to journalists on November 12. With the reopening, the Mission Branch resumes its role as a public reading and program space for the neighborhood, with a children's room, community room, reading room and teen room.
Source: San Francisco Public Library
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Photo: 图：旧金山 Mission Branch Library 立面上的雕塑与拱窗。来源：Eric E Castro，Wikimedia Commons，CC BY 2.0。 / Photo: Sculpture and arched windows on the facade of the Mission Branch Library in San Francisco. Source: Eric E Castro, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.
