Belmont Public Library

Mediocre… and they can’t seem to alphabetize their DVDs which makes it really annoying to try to look for anything specific. It’s not the worst, but it’s definitely not great, especially for a rich town!
And the parking lot, wow, don’t even get me started…

After reading some pretty negative reviews I am here to defend the Belmont Public Library! One reason why I love this place is because of it’s hours… many libraries in Greater Boston close on Sundays, but not the BPL! Sure, the building is old and there is a slight mildew smell, but I think it makes the atmosphere much more welcoming. Computers are available to those with a minuteman library card, but you can also ask the staff for a guest pass in case you left your card at home or are visiting from out of town. There are plenty of individual desks, larger tables, and comfy chairs to choose from. It’s rare for me to come here and not find a place to sit. All the staff are extremely friendly and accommodating. If you are looking for something that isn’t in the Belmont collection they can send an order for that exact novel or book on tape to other libraries in the minuteman network. When the ordered item becomes available they will call or email and you can pick it up right here in Belmont! In elementary and middle school I always participated in the creatively-​themed summer reading program hosted by the children’s room. In the spring and summer the adjacent garden area offers wooden benches with a view of the stream. The Claflin room has limited hours but provides a look into Belmont’s past, and the stockpile of local records is impressive. I have to say that the well organized nonfiction section is my favorite area to browse. Oh and I can’t forget to mention the awesome free wifi! Overall, the quiet and cozy environment keeps this library at the top of my list for everything from cram sessions and research projects to reading just to pass time.
To wrap this rant up, a couple of hints:
1: library staff are lenient; they allow coffee and other beverages, but please don’t be rude and eat your entire lunch at a table!
2: sometimes parking can be difficult, there isn’t a ton of space in the lot so be ready to parallel park on concord ave!
3: don’t attempt to form giant study groups here, the noise level will attract some dirty looks from people trying to read.

Lots of quiet seating and very friendly staff! It’s a great place to focus and get work done

All my experiences have been positive at Bellmont Pub Lib… everyone is gracious and professional. Only a few times in the past, I had a staff person fall into a nod while asking for a book, the POOR thing !! Belmont rocks !!
Denise

Well-​worn, dusty-​feeling, and poorly lit in spots, this is one library west of Boston that is not a charmer (especially compared to those in Arlington, Newton, and Wellesley). The upstairs (where the fiction books are) is positively gloomy, while the downstairs is a hodgepodge of rooms, with the one to the right perhaps being the most pleasant.
For fiction lovers, however, it is easy to overlook the lack of atmosphere, as this library has a very good collection upstairs. Also, their DVD collection is small but good, and their nonfiction, including computer books, is admirable.
If you’re not staying here for long stretches of time, the Belmont Library is an adequate spot to go to.

Great library! Did you know you can get free museum passes through the Friends of the Belmont Library? Also you can login online and request to have any book in the MinuteMan system shipped to your branch!

Have you ever wondered who has time to write those seven-​paragraph ALL CAPS comments on
articles? Blame the senior (very senior) citizens of Belmont who hog the public computers. I suggest that one’s internet time be shortening in proportion to the amount of time CAPS LOCK in on.
Luckily, the olds don’t seem to know about the smaller clutch of computers that have unfiltered access to the internet. Maybe the dark screens confuse them? The library has done a good job of having fast up-​to-​date computers with all the standard programs (Adobe, MS Office, etc.) pre-​loaded.
The goldmine here, however, is the brilliant and easy-​to-​use copier/​fax/​scanner. You queue up the stuff you want to print and when you’re ready for it you enter your release code on the machine, pay 10 cents a page, and out it comes. No more forgetting stuff you printed or having it get mixed in with OPP — other people’s printouts. It’s also really easy to fax and FREE, I said FREE to scan black and white documents to PDF and have them emailed to yourself. This is critically helpfully when doing that occasional legal stuff we all go through!
The library will undergo a much-​needed renovation soon and the plans they put out look like the new version will best the lovely Watertown Public Library. I hope they keep some of the furniture; it’s not «old and dingy», it’s «mid-​century modern»!

Mold, mildew, must, and dirt: That’s what Belmont Public Library is like.
Books are torn, covers are missing, and pages are triple folded. Shelves are overstuffed with ancient copies, and the seating areas are terribly dismal. The light in this library makes me want to shoot myself with a staple gun n every finger and toe.
Worst library I’ve been to so far in MA. Worse than Everett.

The library looks a lot bigger on the outside than it is on the inside. Space is at a premium here, apparently, and it’s pretty obvious that their collection is suffering from the lack of space (though what they lacked in books and DVDs they made up for with a plethora of neighborhood and local information on the tables out front by the circulation desk.) It feels semi-​claustrophobic. I wish I had something nicer to say about it, but everything was rather disorganized, and basically it felt under-​staffed.
To the town’s credit, the building itself is lovely, with a veteran’s memorial facing the circ desk, carved from stone with the names of local soldiers who served in the World Wars, Korea, and Vietnam.
Good news for the Belmont Library is that they are currently raising the money to build a new library! Hopefully the plans go through and it becomes a reality.