March 11, 2008
Financier Pledges $100-Million to New York Public Library
By Maria Di Mento
Stephen A. Schwarzman, a New York financier, is giving $100-million to the New York Public Library, where he is a member of the library’s Board of Trustees.
The donation kicks off the library’s plan to raise a total of $1-billion in private donations and government funds to renovate its flagship building on Fifth Avenue, build two new libraries in Northern Manhattan and Staten Island, expand the library’s online services, and shore up its endowment.
Mr. Schwarzman’s wealth was pegged in October at $7.8-billion on Forbes magazine’s ranking of the wealthiest Americans. He’s a co-founder of the Blackstone Group, which holds interests in corporate debt, hedge funds, private equity, and real estate. Mr. Schwarzman, who in recent years has been criticized for living a lavish lifestyle, made more than $600-million when Blackstone went public in June.
Earlier this month, Mr. Schwarzman pledged to give $5-million to the Inner-City Scholarship Fund, in New York, to endow scholarships for needy children attending Catholic schools in the city.
Mr. Schwarzman did not place any restrictions on how his donation to the library — which plans to name its Fifth Avenue building after the financier — should be used.
“I’ve always loved this library, particularly for the way in which it serves all people and entirely without cost to them,” Mr. Schwarzman in a press release. “It’s a free university for everyone, from children to scholars.”
Paul LeClerc, the library’s president, said it will take approximately five years to put in place all of the library’s plans, which have been designed to meet the needs of its users, the number of which has increased by more than two million since 2006.
He also said the institution hopes to double its number of visitors, in both physical visits to the library and online visits, in the next five years. Approximately 40 million people have visited the library’s collections, either in person or online, in the last year, said Mr. LeClerc.
“The world of information and ideas has changed profoundly, and the needs of library users have changed in response,” said Mr. LeClerc, in a statement. “In neighborhoods, on the Internet, and at the heart of the city, our new plans provide a framework to deliver future generations of library users with the services that will be essential to their lives and livelihood in this new era.”
Mr. LeClerc said that so far a total of $250-million, which includes Mr. Schwarzman’s pledge, has been promised by donors and foundations. He said that the library has not yet decided how Mr. Schwarzman’s gift will be used, but he called the pledge “stupendous.”
“This is great philanthropy,” he said. “It’s for the good of the people.”
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