RED HOOK — A library tool shed will pop-up in Coffey Park next month, offering a “gallery of tools” to locals for construction and repair jobs.
Rekstur, a design firm that focuses on city public interest projects, will construct the
“Red Shed,” a locally run and volunteer-operated tool-sharing program for Red Hook.
In the neighborhood that was devastated by Hurricane Sandy almost a year ago, there’s still a lot of work left to do, said Adam Wiesehan, co-founder of Rekstur.
“There’s a lot that’s unseen,” he said.
The library, which will be open on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in October, will carry basic equipment like drills, saws, hammers and screwdrivers as well as power tools and non-toxic products for mold removal, Wiesehan said.
The “Red Shed” will lend out tools to locals, starting with simpler tools and moving to more expensive ones after building a relationship with the individual, said Wiesehan, who hopes to add demonstrations and classes as well as create memberships and a digital tracking system to function like a regular book library.
“We want to get as close to an actual library system as possible,” he said.
The “Red Shed” will be funded through a grant for hurricane relief from the Citizens Committee for New York, said Wiesehan, adding that Rekstur has teamed up with Red Hook Volunteers, a recovery group that was created after the storm, which will donate tools to their library.
While the tool library will only run through October, Rekstur is hoping to make it a permanent fixture in Red Hook.
The group is raising funds through its website and may soon start a Kickstarter campaign, said Wiesehan, who estimated that they would need about $60,000 to operate the shed for a year.
However, Wiesehan is open to sharing and collaborating on space, which will bring down the cost, he said.
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