By Dan Murphy
Currently obscured from view, a civic table outside the Copley Branch of the Boston Public Library on Boylston Street is possibly slated for permanent removal.
The city’s solicitation for bids ended Tuesday, Oct. 22, to select a vendor to remove and dispose of the landscape stone and metal table, made of granite and steel, and measuring approximately 26 feet, 10 inches by 3 feet, 6 inches and 4 feet, 8 inches tall. The selected vendor would also be responsible for filling in the hole left by the table’s foundation and installing new pavers to match the existing ones there.
(The table is now encased inside a large, wood enclosure, which is painted black and emblazoned with the library’s logo in white and ‘Boston Public Library’ in white block letters.)
The civic table was installed during the renovation of the BPL’s Boylston Street building in 2016 in an effort to expand the library’s presence outdoors by enhancing its street visibility.
A recent uptick in inappropriate uses of the table, some of which have become health and safety hazards, was cited as the reason for its possible removal.
“In the interest of safety, we have temporarily cordoned off the table while we determine its most appropriate future use, which may include removal,” according to a BPL spokesperson.