Library expansion moving forward

Two initiatives on the
November ballot

Every year, Gunnison County libraries see about 130,000 visits. With a county-wide population of just over 15,000, that amounts to roughly eight visits per resident. For Larry Meredith, executive director of the Gunnison County Library District, that’s a pretty staggering number—and just one example that libraries continue to be a relevant resource in the electronic age.

It’s a message he’ll be delivering this summer as he sets out to educate Gunnison County residents about two initiatives they’ll see on the ballot during the November 2011 election.
According to Meredith, the library district will be seeking voter approval on two matters this fall: a bond to cover the construction of a new library facility in Gunnison and a children’s library in Crested Butte, and a dedicated mil levy to fund the library’s ongoing operation.
According to Meredith, the district was created three years ago by voter approval, and has been funded by the county in the absence of a dedicated mil levy and supplemented by grants. According to County manager Matthew Birnie, the intergovernmental agreement signed by the County and the library district in 2008 set current funding at “9.19 percent of the taxes collected through the mill levy on real and personal property.” Essentially, it’s a “percentage of revenues” approach that gives the library district a percentage of general fund revenues produced by the local property tax.
According to Meredith, the mil levy would increase funding to cover operation.
The task before Meredith and the library board now is to remind voters that libraries continue to be a vital resource.
“[Those 130,000 visits,] that’s a lot of people in and out of our doors, and circulation statistics are going crazy,” he says.
Circulation has increased from 66,000 books and other materials in 2005 to 158,000 in 2010, Meredith says. Between 2007 and 2010, use of public computers grew from 27,000 users to 30,000—a number that can only grow so much, according to Meredith, because there is a finite number of computers and a time limit per user.
And in 2010, patrons downloaded 1,700 audio books and e-books from the website. He expects that number to double in 2011.
“People who don’t understand the real role of libraries think we’re obsolete,” he says, “but we’re pretty much reinventing ourselves. We’re going to create what we’re calling a community learning center as part of library’s county-wide program.”
As a programming arm, it would expand the literary action program, which currently works primarily with non-English speakers.
“But we want to expand the definition of literacy to include financial health, computer skills… It would be a series of programming. This thing has got some real potential, and is one of the ways the library is becoming more and more relevant. We’re going to focus to a large extent on workforce development, working with people who need new skills,” Meredith said.
But the expansion is also about improving the library’s ability to serve its current patrons, particularly in Crested Butte where the Old Rock library is barely 3,000 square feet. The children’s library would add an additional 1,200 square feet of space in a separate building to the south of the Old Rock building, with a footprint of 1,000 square feet and a 200 square foot loft.
“Right now we want the public to know that the children’s library is going to make Old Rock much more efficient in terms of people who want to come in and work on a laptop and use public computers and peruse the books, and it will be more effective children’s programming than we provide right now,” Meredith said.
The estimated budget for construction and operation of the expansion in Crested Butte and Gunnison continues to be refined, according to Meredith.
“We expect the total cost [of the county project] will be in the $8 million to $9 million range, based on current market conditions, estimated construction costs [with high and low estimates] and considering potential operating costs,” he says. “Of course, we want our facilities to be as energy-efficient as possible and estimating potential energy costs is difficult at best. This figure represents construction of a new facility in Gunnison, construction of a children’s library in Crested Butte and remodeling of the interior of Old Rock in Crested Butte, and total operating costs for the Gunnison County Library District.”
What that means for the average homeowner is about $25 per year per $100,000 of assessed value. For a house valued at $300,000, it would be $75 a year to cover both the operating expenses for the library and a bond for construction to be repaid over 20 years.
“We’re trying desperately to hold it to that number,” Meredith says. “Some people say they just don’t want any more taxes, and we understand that. But we think if we have to go back in a year or two, [costs will rise dramatically].”
So Meredith and the library district march forward. On Tuesday, June 28, the Board of Zoning and Architectural Review approved the plans for the Crested Butte children’s library. On Wednesday, June 29, the library board held its first public meeting in Gunnison to roll out the initiatives. According to Meredith, the reception was great.
“The reception has been pretty good so far, but we know there were a lot of people missing, so we’ll be working over the next three months through presentations to spread the word,” he said.
The library board will go before the Crested Butte Town Council for approval of the project in mid-July, and Meredith is also planning to host a public meeting in Crested Butte around that same time. In Gunnison, they have already secured the property for the new facility through an annexation from the Van Tuyl ranch in the northwest part of the city, and the Gunnison County commissioners have given their blessing to the project as well.
“[Voter approval] is a tough call to make, but it’s definitely in your court in terms of education. It helps that it’s a couple pizzas a month, but the economy has people scared,” commissioner Hap Channell said.