The Kingsbridge Library marked the beginning of its new seven-day service Sunday with a community celebration which brought together local leaders, families, and educators to read, learn and connect.
The location joined Bronx NYPL branches in Mott Haven and Baychester in restoring full service, seven days a week, thanks to an influx of $2 million in the City Council’s Fiscal Year 2026 budget.
Council Member Eric Dinowitz, who represents Kingsbridge and said he frequented the public library as a child, emphasized its role as a vital public resource. He noted that the expansion would provide working families, students, and older adults with greater access to learning, literacy, and technology.
“Libraries are lifelines for our communities,” Dinowitz said. “With Sunday service, he said, “more families will have the chance to discover the joy of reading, students will have space to study and grow, and neighbors will be able to connect with the vital resources our libraries provide.”
He underscored the importance of having resources that are accessible to people in the Bronx who can’t make it to the library on weekdays, which comprise the bulk of library hours.
“This investment ensures that Bronx residents – no matter their schedule or circumstances – can take full advantage of everything our libraries offer,” Dinowitz said.
The expansion brings the number of libraries in the Bronx open every day to six and the number across the city’s three public library systems that offer seven-day service to more than 30. The NYPL launched an aggressive pressure campaign following mid-year budget cuts in 2023 that eliminated seven-day service in November of that year.
The campaign successfully restored funding in the 2025 budget from the cuts that eliminated seven-day services. Book lovers, the NYPL, and the City Council pressed on, and on Sunday, 11 additional public libraries, including the Kingsbridge Library, joined those with restored hours.
Now, Bronxites can visit and browse the two beautiful floors of the Kingsbridge Library on Sundays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., enjoy the outdoor garden space, the children’s story space, use a computer, or explore one of their featured STEAM Discovery kits.
Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson was also at Sunday’s celebration, calling the Kingsbridge Library— and all Bronx libraries— places that “open doors to knowledge and opportunity.”
“Libraries serve as anchors in our communities,” Gibson said. “They are safe spaces where our families, older adults, and youth can gather, learn, and grow.”
The celebration marked the occasion with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, after which, everyone headed inside to listen to Council Member Dinowitz read aloud to local kids. The story-time circle was part of a partnership with the childhood literacy nonprofit, Literacy in Community (LINC), which aims to address the connection between low literacy and poverty. LINC Chief Programs Officer Laura Walsh said that more hours for young readers in the Bronx will have a big impact on children’s futures.
“Families now have more opportunities to read together, explore new stories, and connect with one another,” Walsh said. “LINC is proud to continue our partnership with the library to make these moments possible because literacy is essential to community strength. At LINC, we believe that when a child reads, a community succeeds, and Sunday openings ensure more families can share in that success.”
As more libraries return to full-week operations, city leaders and advocates point to ongoing public investment as key to sustaining essential services and increasing opportunities for all New Yorkers.
