The Blommer Science Library reopened Jan. 13 after a week-long delay in opening due to water damage.
The library, which occupies half of the third floor of the Reiss Science Building, closed temporarily after facilities management discovered a leak in a chilled water line in the ceiling of the fourth floor of the building Dec. 23, which led to damaged ceiling tiles, carpet tiles and baseboards, according to a university spokesperson. According to library staff, the leak damaged the side of the building nearest Arrupe Hall, resulting in the library delaying its spring semester opening by nearly a week while contractors restored the space.
A university spokesperson said that the space has been restored following the water damage from the leak.
“An emergency repair crew responded shortly afterward and stopped the leak, removed the water and dried affected spaces,” the university spokesperson wrote to The Hoya. “The hose issue has been repaired.”
Sharon Clayton, the university’s science librarian, said that though the closure was disruptive, it did not meaningfully affect the library’s print holdings.
“At first, we thought there were three damaged books, but once we cleaned them up, two just had ceiling tile dust on them,” Clayton told The Hoya. “In the end, there was only one damaged book, and it’s being replaced. The leaks mostly affected the seating areas and circulation desk area.”
The only text damaged was an introductory quantum mechanics textbook.
The library suffered similar water damage in 2019, which resulted in the university planning to close the space and relocate its collections to Lauinger Library. Following student pushback, the university placed these plans on hold following discussions between students, faculty members and library staff.
James Pape, the head of access services for Blommer, Lauinger and Bioethics Libraries, said the library will continue to operate.
“Every time I talk about Blommer Library, people think it’s shutting down,” Pape told The Hoya. “No, it’s not. We’re going to continue to have books over there. We’re going to continue building the collection, and Sharon’s helped cultivate it as well.”
Despite perceiving Blommer’s future as uncertain, the library remains a common student study spot.
Jessica Cao (SFS ’28), who frequents Blommer, said its location makes it a convenient, quiet study space.
“ I live in Darnall and so most of the people I’ve noticed who study in Blommer live in Darnall and all of those people are freshmen,” Cao told The Hoya. “ I usually study on the far right side when you walk in; the designated area with the individual cubicles is really nice.”
With the space’s increased popularity and community support, library staff are hosting focus groups with graduate and undergraduate students to better understand their use.
Joe Williams, the associate university librarian for scholarly resources, said he hopes to refine Blommer into a community space supporting students and faculty members.
“ We have heard some faculty express an interest in having more space that was more conducive to graduate students’ study space, but that’s not at the exclusion of undergraduates,” Williams told The Hoya. “We’re really just trying to get information about how the space is being used and by whom, and if there are tweaks or adjustments or improvements that we could make to make that an even better study space.”
Clayton said any improvements to the space would balance the needs of undergraduate and graduate students.
“The science graduate students don’t have a lot of work space near their labs, but throughout we’ve also talked about how heavily it’s used as a study space for undergraduates,” Clayton said.
A Blommer renovation would represent a continuation of the university’s efforts to reimagine Reiss, per the 2017-2036 campus plan, which calls for fully renovating or replacing the aging building.
Clayton said she is dedicated to making Blommer a supportive, comfortable resource for students and faculty alike.
“Even though we don’t get very many print books in the sciences these days, we’re continuing to develop the collection, including through e-books,” Clayton said. “I’m having office hours over there every week for drop-in reference assistance. We’re definitely seeing the space as a usable thing and we want to make Blommer the kind of library that students and faculty want to use.”