When officials from the New York City Public Library met with Blackstone Group CEO Stephen Schwarzman, the meeting must have gone really well. After studying their ambitious $1 billion renovation plans, Stephen Schwarzman liked what he saw and pledged a whopping $100 million to kick off the project.

“This was an absolutely first-class, professional, practical strategic plan, and it deserved to be supported,” Stephen Schwarzman told the New York Times. Stephen Schwarzman said the $100 million will be distributed over several years (he did not divulge the actual dispersement schedule) and is 100% guaranteed. “It binds me and my estate, even if I die,” Stephen Schwarzman said.

In recognition of Stephen Schwarzman’s generosity, the iconic Beaux-Arts building, guarded by the famous marble lions Patience and Fortitude, has been renamed The Stephen A. Schwarzman Building. The building will remain an official history landmark under the auspices of the Landmarks Preservation Committee.

The New York Library is still searching out an additional $900 million is its most extensive renovation project ever. The $1 billion dollar project will be earmarked to upgrade buildings, relocate stacks, build new branches in Upper Manhattan and Staten Island, and even open a café in the Central Library. The Library also seeks to expand its services for children and teenagers, acquire more computer workstations, and set up a more extensive wireless network.

Stephen Schwarzman believes the New York Library plays an important role in self-improvement. “The library helps lower- and middle-income people — immigrants — get their shot at the American dream,” Stephen Schwarzman said. Stephen Schwarzman’s comment is backed up by research; 60% of the library patrons are members of minority groups, and 60% are from families with incomes of less than $50,000 a year.

New York City has many buildings that bear their main benefactors’ names. The new building at the Museum of Modern Art is named after David and Peggy Rockefeller, while the Library for the Performing Arts at the Lincoln Center is named for Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman.

New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg praised Stephen Schwarzman, writing in an email message, “With this donation, Steve is giving back to the city that gave him so much and is helping ensure that New York remains a cultural and intellectual capital of the world.”

Article Sources: After Big Gift, a New Name for the Library, A $100 Million Donation to the N.Y. Public Library (New York Times)