New York Public Library unveils renovation plan

The New York Public Library is moving forward with a $300 million renovation of its landmark Fifth Avenue building that will more than double its public space and fireproof the majestic main reading room, the library president said Wednesday.

But the plans he presented at a news conference have drawn withering criticism from some respected architecture experts, including Ada Louise Huxtable, who says the grand Beaux Art edifice is embarking on "its own destruction."

Library President Tony Marx has a different vision for the building completed in 1911.

"The driver of this project is to create the single greatest circulating and research library in the most beloved building here in the crossroads of New York," he said...