Island Park library reopens Thursday after Sandy

The Island Park Public Library, heavily damaged by superstorm Sandy, will hold a public reopening Thursday morning.

The library lost 20,000 books and was closed for nine months, but reopened about two weeks ago and is running at about 70 percent strength, said library trustee Joseph Pontecorvo.

Residents are invited to tour the facility and question library staff from 8 to 10 a.m., he said.

"A lot of people still don't know we're open," he said.

The library will be fully operational within four weeks, he said.

The village of Island Park was submerged by Sandy. Many homes and businesses suffered more than 5 feet of flooding.

The storm closed all of the community's approximately 40 businesses. About two-thirds have reopened, said Glenn Ingoglia, president of the Chamber of Commerce. The library's reopening is critical to the village's sense of community, he said.

"The library is in the center of our town. Not only is it a place where you study and obtain information, but it's also a place that holds a lot of community events," Ingoglia said. "The symbolism of it opening is one more step in the right direction for Island Park."

The library is at 176 Long Beach Rd., near the Island Park train station.