The West End Library is set for a major overhaul, but residents worry they could be left for years without vital public services while the project moves forward.

City planners have proposed an entirely new building for the West End Library that includes several floors of affordable rental housing.

Details are sparse this early in the process, and residents are still hashing out disagreements over height and the particulars of the housing program.

Library services themselves are also up in the air, with some residents saying that relocating them to other branches will effectively remove them from the community for the duration.

The Boston Public Library (BPL) held a meeting on October 26 to discuss housing and get input on the project’s Request for Proposals (RFP), a draft of which was released in late December.

Another meeting on January 10 moved the drafting process forward, but residents are still divided about the height of the building, which demographics should get housing priority and other more specific details about the wording of the RFP. “It’s important to get a mix of unit types and income levels,” said Christopher Owens. “I’ve spent a chunk of my career responding to RFPs, the subtlety of what gets worded in these documents is really important. If you tell a shoe factory to make as many shoes as possible they will all be size two, and if you say ‘as many housing units as possible’ they’ll all be single units.”

The project is split into two separate components, the library itself plus the shell and rental properties. The branch’s internal architecture is decided by the Boston Public Library (BPL), but the shell and rental spaces will be created by a private company working with the BPL within the constraints of the RFP.

The RFP does give some early design specifications, such as having 17,500 to 19,000 square feet for the library on the first one or two floors. The land itself will remain city property, with the developer entering a long-term lease for the rental housing.

The main point of contention among public comments at the January meeting was what form the library’s services would take in the interim. BPL staff confirmed that vital services would still be available at other city properties, but community members protested that that would still substantially restrict access for the residents who need services most.

Establishing a temporary space was a popular proposition, but the BPL said renting out spaces is usually prohibitively expensive. Some community services not associated with the BPL, such as the food pantry, will be able to move to the new West End Community Center.

“I understand it’s the BPL’s policy not to provide temporary services, but that’s a misguided and short-sighted policy for any place that’s going to be missing a library for two to three years,” said Colin Zick, speaking for the Beacon Hill Civic Association. “The project is off to a good start, but some more substantial provision should be made for these vital services. Many of their users are elderly and not able to travel.”

Sebastian Belfanti, president of the West End Civic Association, said the group approves of the additional housing and hadn’t taken a position on the height of the building. He also stressed that the Association would “really like to see some temporary accommodation made for a library during the interim period.”

While the city didn’t immediately make any commitments about an interim space, both BPL staff and other city officials were receptive to the idea and promised to explore their options going forward.

“I definitely agree that three years is much too long to go without library services,” said City Councilor Kenzie Bok. “I’d definitely advocate as a City Councilor for us to get more robust replacement services and see what we can do about an alternative space. If the issue for the library is the carrying costs, I feel like we could do something to drive that down. We will focus on that.”