The question should not be which library site is best now. The
questions should be what site is best in 20 years and 50 years. If
the City Council were to hold off on deciding on any library site
at its Wednesday night meeting, we would approve. Above all,
council should avoid putting the matter on the November ballot as
suggested by Mayor Dennis Kennedy.
The question should not be which library site is best now. The questions should be what site is best in 20 years and 50 years.
If the City Council were to hold off on deciding on any library site at its Wednesday night meeting, we would approve. Above all, council should avoid putting the matter on the November ballot as suggested by Mayor Dennis Kennedy.
Some decisions should not be left to voters. Tax increases, yes; electing representatives, definitely, but once chosen, voters should let their elected officials do their job. We’re talking about a significant long-term decision here. Ducking a decision by putting the issue on the ballot is a bad idea.
Voters call, e-mail, show up at meetings carrying signs, hire sky-writers to get their opinions heard, but then they should stand back. We elected a council do decide on such issues, to consider all sides and voter wishes but, in the end, to make decisions on what is best for the entire community.
Council will not have heard from a majority of residents through calls and petitions; they won’t even hear from a majority of voters in November, given the abysmally low number of Americans who show up at the polls. Adding the question to the ballot would cost the city about $14,000 in fees to the Registrar of Voters, according to the City Clerk.
City Council members have spent considerable time and effort reviewing the pros and cons of where to put the new library, mostly with open minds. They have heard proponents of both sides return more than once to the council podium; they and The Times have been deluged with passionate letters and visits.
The problem is that nobody seems to be able or willing to see the other side or to accept that a problem pointed out can be fixed.
So, let’s take a moment to step back and look at the situation. Both sites, the Civic Center site and the Third Street site, have problems. Neither is perfect.
Third Street is really too small to allow the 20-year building expansion the growing city will need, especially with 40 residential units taking up space as part of the project. The Civic Center site is too far away from a main thoroughfare to encourage library users – a fact that has been proclaimed by library experts everywhere for years.
Further, the entire Civic Center complex, in the long run, should be relocated. City Hall should not continue taking up space on what would be a fine neighborhood park and other residential uses. City Hall – and the library – should be in a more visible location, together if possible.
Both currently proposed sites do have many good things going for them but the size and location issues are not fixable and will be with us for decades.
What we suggest is that council, at Wednesday’s meeting, wait on choosing a site and on building a library until two things happen:
First, if they waited until more money was available, the city could build the 40,000 square-foot building the city really needs. More money will be available with RDA3 on the horizon and, one hopes, with an improving economy.
Second, if they waited until council decides what to do about the entire Civic Center, they could find a better site for City Hall and the library, together. Council members have already said formally and informally that they see a downtown, out in the open, library as benefiting more people than a Peak Avenue library.
There are several sites in the area that could prove almost perfect if a little time is allowed to work out the details: the aging Britton Middle School campus will surely be available in a few years; Albertson’s Plaza is an attractive idea besides several other vacant lots on Dunne Avenue, all nearby and visible.
Let’s wait and see what happens. Don’t put this to the voters; few of them have the whole picture the council does. It’s the council’s responsibility to determine what’s best for the entire population. Don’t be swayed by a small part of the community (on both sides) with blinders on.
Let’s do it right. Let’s wait.
