The words “books are doors to wide new ways” loom large on the facade of the McGregor Public Library at 12244 Woodward Ave. in Highland Park. Unfortunately, its doors have been boarded up since April 2002.
What’s going on? Highland Park officials didn’t return our calls, but it’s a pretty safe guess that it has something to do with the burg’s $14 million debt.
The library, completed in 1926, was designed by renowned New York City architects Tilton and Githens in the Beaux Arts style. Today, the more than 90,000 books sitting untouched beneath a leaky roof are a sad reminder of a once thriving center of knowledge.
The grassroots Highland Park McGregor Library steering committee has been lobbying long and hard to get the place reopened. As the above photo shows, their fight isn’t over yet.
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