Anonymous $5.2M Gift to Revitalize Boston Public Library’s Third Floor

A generous anonymous donation of $5.2 million is reinvigorating efforts to renovate the third floor of the Boston Public Library (BPL). 

For nearly a decade, the library's third floor, which once housed exhibits such as prints, photographs, and 3D dioramas from the 1960s, has been inaccessible. According to a CBS News Boston report, the floor stopped being used because of its deteriorating condition. The heating and cooling system, which doesn't work correctly, does not allow artifacts to be exhibited and stored in a climate-controlled way.

"It was the one floor that was never renovated in the '90s and 2000s when the rest of this building was, in fact, renovated," said BPL President David Leonard in a statement shared with CBS News Boston.

Thanks to this recent anonymous gift, the BPL is moving forward with the design and planning phase for the renovation. The total project cost has not yet been determined.

According to CBS News Boston, the renovation plans include transforming the third-floor Wiggin Gallery, which is currently closed, into an interactive classroom where visitors can create art and engage with exhibits in a hands-on manner.

Leonard also confirmed that Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has committed $50 million in future capital funding to support the third-floor renovation.