Pros: New Playground, new building (5 years) Open late…read more
Cons: Unfriendly staff, and despite the website depicting a spot inside for closed drinks and snacks to be enjoyed away from the books, we were told there is none (Not at any of the many tables inside, countless rooms with tables inside, benches etc) The Librarian in the main room had a snippy attitude and told me to go back outside to sit at the picnic tables. I tried to explain we just came in from the playground because it's too cold, I have a Brain Tumor and cannot stay outside for long periods of time when it's windy and/or cold. She shrugged it off and reiterated no food in the Library, at all. So, I asked about the bench we saw before we walked in and she started babbling about people ordering takeout and eating it on the bench, in the lobby (not in the Library, so no books, which was her main argument) After wasting a good 5 minutes going back and forth and me mentioning that it says there is a space inside, on the website and repeating that I have a Brain Tumor and my son is Autistic, she finally agreed to let us eat at the bench if we were "discreet"
After setting up hand towels opening the food containers I packed food in and placing the covers underneath them for better support, my son spreading his plushie friends out and setting the drinks out and opening one of the snack trays, an extremely RUDE and arrogant man (looked to be between 45-50 years old) with thick frame glasses and Blonde curly hair, which is being taken over by Grays, abruptly said , "You can't have food here." I tried to explain that the Librarian said it was okay as long as we're discreet and clean up, but before I could even get a full sentence out, Mr. Arrogant cut me off and said, "Yeah well, One person ruined it for everyone. They had food here and left a mess." He then stormed off. We were packing up and trying to think of an alternative place to eat where my Brain wouldn't freeze and Mr. Arrogant came back the other way and my sweet little boy said, "Excuse me, do you know of another place we can eat?" Arrogant breezed by and completely ignored my son. We were forced out into the cold and wind to sit at an old wooden picnic table that has paint chipping from it and wood pieces sticking out of it. It was getting dark, Mosquitoes were out and it was freezing. The outside is unkempt, trash around the playground. Odd that the Librarian and whoever the asinine man with glasses is, would complain about food and the inside. What kind of a public place, with books or otherwise, treats people this way?? And the lack of empathy for patrons who have medical conditions, is appalling.
If it weren't for the playground, I would've given them 1 star. DO BETTER PUTNAM LIBRARY!
