Library expansion enters city discussion

By Jennifer Eisenbart

Editor

While the City of Burlington Common Council and staff worked late into the night Tuesday in an attempt to resolve the city pool situation, another potential project was discussed in the earlier Committee of the Whole meeting.

A possible Burlington Public Library expansion and renovation was discussed.

Library Director Gayle Falk made a presentation that outlined the history of the library in its various locations, other library renovations in the area – and possibilities for Burlington.

According to Falk, there’s one simple problem at the current location.

“We’re feeling crowded,” Falk said simply. Currently, the library has 16,000 square feet, but only 11,000 square feet is usable. There is no elevator in the building, which means basement – and very limited upstairs space – is not accessible, and the main floor is packed almost to capacity.

The city currently has more than 200,000 volumes in circulation – 61,329 bound books and 145,293 electronic books. However, the circulation numbers have more than 96 percent of that coming from the bound books, and 168,000-plus visits to the library per year.

A proposed expansion would add about 12,000 feet of building space in what is currently the parking lot, at the cost of about $3-$3.5 million dollars.

Falk said Tuesday that the extra space would likely buy the library about 20 to 30 years before it needed more. Other options include the possibility of a combined government/library building, or a standalone library.

Alderman Tom Vos questioned the age of the current building – built in 1917, with an addition in 1986 – and whether the city should just build new.

“Thirty years from now, we could be spending $30 million to build a library, versus spending $6 million,” he said.

Several aldermen also asked what the future of library space would entail. With e-books gaining strength, many wondered how much space the physical library needs – and whether bound volumes are going to be around in the future.

However, Falk said, with many recent library expansions, there is also a focus on public space, meeting areas and community gathering places.

She also said that “it’s definitely a trend” to share space with other government entities.

When asked if she preferred one option over the other, Falk said neither “outshines the other.”

“It depends on what the municipality wants,” she said.

The other major factor in the discussions is cost. With the city looking at problems with the city pool and the aging city hall, the question of what to do – and when – came up.

Mayor Bob Miller said that, if you took each project at $3-$3.5 million, and added the projected amount of about $48 to the tax bill, it would add about $150 a year for the average city property tax bill.

That, Miller said, would be a lot of money and he’d want to see it approved through referendum.

There was also the question of where to put the library if it moved from the current site. As many aldermen wanted to see it remain downtown, Alderman John Ekes said, “We also need to say: What is downtown?”