The Cecil B. Moore Library will proceed with a limited renovation plan, leaving $8 million on the table

Philadelphia City Councilmember Jeffery Young Jr. intends to move forward with a limited, approximately $2 million renovation plan for the Cecil B. Moore Library in North Philadelphia, according to the city and library staff.

Young’s renovation plan for the building at 2320 Cecil B. Moore Ave. includes a new accessible elevator and restrooms, and improvements to the building’s HVAC, plumbing, fire-alarm system, lighting, and signage, according to city spokesperson Sharon Gallagher. Construction is expected to last roughly six months, she said.

The library building, first opened in 1962, will be closed during construction, and it is unclear whether the city and the Free Library of Philadelphia will operate a satellite branch for Cecil B. Moore during that time frame. The city is working with the Department of Parks and Recreation to temporarily relocate some of the library’s resources and programming to the nearby MLK Recreation Center at 2101 Cecil B. Moore Ave., Gallagher said.

“These are important. They’re also very basic,” said Kate Goodman, a Cecil B. Moore Library worker, at a community meeting and cookout at the library on Saturday afternoon to discuss the renovations. Goodman is a union member of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees District Council 47.

It is unclear when exactly construction will begin. Library staff were informed earlier this month by the city’s capital programs office that construction would begin in September, but Young’s spokesperson, Yumeno Young, said the project would be pushed back to allow for additional preparation and community engagement. He declined to give a precise timeline for construction to begin.

Young’s plan leaves about $8 million on the table, since roughly $10 million has been raised and allocated toward the renovation project over the past several years. A modest $1 million in renovations were originally scheduled to begin in October 2024 through the city’s Rebuild initiative, but community members and lawmakers fought to secure a total of roughly $5.3 million for the project.

Rebuild developed a comprehensive renovation plan for the library, which community members and staff still support. It includes much of Young’s limited plan, as well as a new teen space, a private study room, new flooring, exterior upgrades, additional computers, and more upgrades.

After Young came into office in 2024, replacing outgoing Council President Darrell L. Clarke, he secured an additional $5 million from the city’s 2025 capital budget and delayed the project. Young used the city’s longstanding custom of councilmanic prerogative, where Council members have near-unilateral control over which projects in their district go forward, to put his stamp on the plans.

Over the past few years, Young has pushed for several development proposals at the site and has resisted investing in the current space. Those alternative proposals have included demolishing the current building and constructing a new building with both a library and affordable housing on top, or moving the library to a new building at 19th Street and Cecil B. Moore Avenue and converting the existing building into another public space.

Young and the city declined to comment on what will happen with the other roughly $8 million that has previously been raised for the library renovation project, or why the Councilmember has opted for this plan despite significant community pushback. Young will host a community meeting sometime in September to provide more details on his plans, his spokesperson said.

Should construction begin soon, that timeline would set the library to reopen before May, when Young faces a likely contentious reelection. The Democratic primary is expected to feature several challengers for Young’s 5th District seat. He is considered the most vulnerable Council member. When Young first ran for office in 2023, he was unopposed in the primary election.

“Neither the Council member’s work on this project, nor our office’s efforts to advance it, are being driven by his reelection,” said Yumeno Young.

The library’s fate will play a significant role in the upcoming election for all candidates, not just Young. Joel Northam, a local resident and organizer with the Philadelphia Party for Socialism and Liberation, said he and other organizers will push the candidates to meet the community’s demands for a fully funded library renovation, or risk losing support.

“If you want that seat in District 5, you have to pledge to release the full $10 million to renovate,” he said.

At Saturday’s community meeting, library patrons spoke about how meaningful the library was to them, and how frustrated they were with how Young has presided over the renovation project. Goodman said the library has had a 70% increase in patrons since June 2025, despite the renovation delays.

Jayden Jackson, 18, loves to flip through comic books and manga at the library, especially ones about Sonic the Hedgehog. He started volunteering at the library a few months ago, because he also loves the community and atmosphere at the branch.

Jackson said the recent developments had provided a good opportunity to keep pushing for the library to receive all of the help it deserves, not just a limited renovation.

“It’s like a light in the middle of the neighborhood,” he said.

Karris Cantrell, 45, said Young’s handling of the library has been so frustrating it has made her want to cry sometimes. She wishes he understood “that he’s not God, that he just can’t do whatever the hell he wants,” with the building, she said.

She and her three children have all been regular visitors over the years, and said the place is as instrumental as a person’s daily coffee, and as comforting as a child’s blanket. Cantrell believes the library deserves a full renovation immediately, so it can continue serving patrons in the neighborhood like her family.

“This library is not just a building and it’s not just books. It’s a soul,” she said.