Bibliothèque Benny

Pros: nice interior, medium to large size compared to other public libraries of municipality level of MontrealCons: the noise level is a bit high compared to other smaller libraries and Westmount public library, opening hours are short given its size

On the positive side: now in July you can book computers for yourself and return videos in automatic return chute. On the negative side: one of my latest experiences was disappointing. Got hassled twice by a man not respecting social distancing who wanted the computer I had booked, even when there were several empty computers available. It is too bad people in this postal code aren't treated with same respect as Westmount, IMO. People say it all the time but it is true IMO. Don't act so surprised that we actually read and know how to use a computer and actually have university diplomas.Not so user friendly for working & sometimes doesn't feel safe or that privacy/distance rights are being respected/taken seriously. Lots of gossiping and noise, IMO, probably not much concern for misinformation's harmful impact, IMO.Library culture seems to create social distinctions.Was a bit of a culture shock, before Covid-19, when the red vested trendy looking security team were standing aound and sometimes watching from the stairs and just stared, sometimes they would tell someone off & made it harder to concentrate.Loud gossiping feels almost like you are back in high school watching the cool kids wearing cool clothes and living with cool parents while looking down and tormenting those less fortunate who were about to age-out into homelessness, trapping them in self fulfilling prophecies, and increasing dropout rates, reinforcing their own unapproachable groupthink about them, IMO.Like another poster described, you need to see the funny side, then errors won't feel so bad but why make errors about people in first place? Why allow gossip to be weaponized? Why lord social power over others? Why not treat adults like adults? Seriously what stops them from just handing out phone number or address with gossip they share?Before many services were closed again:At times still noisy cause of auditory design or lack of one, IMO. Giving people space and showing respect is far less intimidating than maskless hovering. Little kids' place is still not open so they can't be blamed for noise. Returns are placed under 24 hour quarantine.Before Covid-19:Could be a very nice library. Good selection of French movies.If noise & privacy policies were fair & effective there would obviously be less noise & more privacy, IMO.A list of answers to most Frequently Asked Questions could help many new people who won't be familiar with keyboard setup. Hints like: to access the @ for email address it is alt control @. Push shift or push Ctrl and then highlight the amount of time that you want to reserve on reservation schedule if you want to work for longer than half an hour. You can eat in cultural centre lobby, which is complete with microwave & fridge. You can also borrow laptops & tablets to use inside library.I recommend this library due to quantity of computers, laptops, tablets; not so much without these things to use. Experience could be disappointing due to noise and what sometimes feels like institutional discrimination causing discomfort/disadvantage for some but not for others. Don't drop out or quit, just let possible systemic disadvantage make you stronger the way it either makes or breaks you by design, IMO. Laugh at it, if you can.At times can feel more like a daycare center than a library. Noisy, intrusive atmosphere could impact quality of your work. Doesn't always feel safe, respectful or clean. The acoustical design of this building seems to be lacking & noise echoes & could weaken focus.Huge difference between superficial goodness & actual goodness, which is why you are not supposed to judge a book by its cover. Get to know how everything works so you can solve most problems. Libraries are meant to serve a higher purpose & why they are supposed to be quiet and free from prejudicial vocals & ghetto traps where resistance feels futile, IMO. It is true that the hand holding the pen writes history. Sometimes male cleaner will start cleaning women's washrooms in attached cultural centre while you are still in there.

the new location is nicer and more spacious than its previous counterpart, although i find the architecture ugly. Staff are polite and helpful, pretty decent selection of books to choose from. WiFi is really slow so if you really heavily on the internet for study, this ain't the place for you. The noise level is crazy by library standards, lots of kids making noise and it makes it difficult to concentrate overall for reading/studying. There are some private rooms to study but i believe they are one reserve in advance.

Very big public library. The inside space is really amazing. You have access to different sections with a very well designed kids corner.The work/study rooms that you can reserve are great and keep you from the possible noise or chatter. Great system.

Very good place. The staff in really friendly and helpful. A lot of activities that are offered for free, very good installations. The kids area is well designed and divided into sections. The adult section is on top floor, which makes it quite. It has French and English books and lots of computers in both sections. You can watch films there. It has the cultural center which offers free spectacles and presentations. Kids love to visit this library.

Very friendly and helpful stuff. My kids enjoy going there. It's a good place to read books and there are many free events here. It's opened on a Sunday. Very clean library and good air conditioning. I often take my kids there to borrow new books to read.

I passed by the other day, and I was positively surprised. It’s a very welcoming space, I really like the halls and the way it’s designed. It’s cozy, people were very respectful. I liked my time there, even if it was just under half an hour.

yes, they have baby section, maybe noisy sometimes. but if u complaint this library is not good, I dont know where you could find other better than here.PS: yes, other comments mentioned the staff here are not that helpful sometimes. It is ture or not, some staff really activity to help but some not. Winter time, baby activity sometimes cancelled at last minutes, but not informed to the parents. like this morning, almost 8 babies with their parents waiting outside in the cold for the baby activity. but the library not opened on time and ask one of the staff, she replied she has no idea about it....

Nice kids section, great staff. The Maker lab is incredible, I assumed my kid was too young at 6 but they patiently showed her how to design and 3D print her unicorn bunny. Amazing!

My local library. Very nice interior. Decent selection of nintendo switch games to borrow. I love it.