Brooklyn Public Library - Greenpoint Branch

Having just moved here from LA I had to leave most of my large tools or sell them- I was sure I'd need to shell out hundreds of dollars to fulfill my tinkering needs until I googled "Tool Library" and found Brooklyns Best Kept Secret - a place to check out tools Online and pick them up at the public Library. This idea was put into action by the Environmental Justice Coordinator Acacia Thompson and, LO- AND -BEHOLD... IT WORKS! Short wait times, no fuss pickup, easy returns, online signup and some items that I've never used and I tried before making a purchase- oh yeah, and IT'S ALL TOTALLY FREE. It's a city dwellers dream and made me feel like I was part of a community, and a home. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!

This place is BUSTLING. It has a good kids area, plenty of places to work, plenty of bathrooms, cool demonstration garden, and even lets you check out tools and board games. Really well-run. Some people sleeping or staying out of the cold, but I’ve never had an issue with anyone being disruptive so far.

Thought other reviews might have been exaggerating about this feeling more like a playground than a library. Walked in for first time to the sounds of a sobbing/screaming toddler in the ample children’s area on the ground floor. The issue is more indicative of parents who don’t leave when kids aren’t able to handle a public space, but importantly, the general areas in the library interior are limited, very open, and quite small compared to its impressive facade. Someone who isn’t a caretaker seems to have built this space without the understanding that an area for young children needs segmentation to allow them to be kids. The central library does an excellent job of this. A long-time BK library system patron yet new to the neighborhood. Won’t frequent this location, unfortunately.

On 12/15/2025 I went to pick up my kid at 3:45pm. As I was waiting, a homeless man who was sitting in a chair upstairs (there were several) became very aggressive and tried to attack me saying I was looking at him (I wasn’t). This man was huge - well over 6 feet and strong. He had me pinned between a desk and the wall, with the librarian as well, and he kept lunging at me saying “I’m going to kill you”, “I’m going to choke the life out of you” and “I have nothing to lose”. The librarian and the security guard could not calm him down. Everyone in the upstairs could hear including my kid who heard it but did not see thank goodness. This went on for a good 10 minutes. The police were called, and the man left right before they got there. The librarian told me that this is not the first time t

I have a four-year-old, and my wife works in social services with the homeless, so we understand the value of community spaces. However, you’d expect a library to be a refuge for quiet reading and study — instead, this one feels more like a noisy daycare and an unsupervised shelter. Not ideal conditions for reading and studying.