Atlanta Journal-Constitution Urges “No” Vote on Library Bond
Norman Oder -- Library Journal, 10/10/2008
- Commissioners, not public, want new central
- Private fundraising may be unlikely
- Director says libraries face increasing demand
“Libraries are part of the fabric that make a healthy community,” observed the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in an editorial yesterday. "But in this specific case, voters should vote NO."
The specific case is the decision by the board of the Atlanta-Fulton County Public Library System to add an unexpected addition to its planned bond referendum. As the editorial points out, the board held 37 public meetings around the county, leading to a request for a $225 million bond referendum, involving eight new libraries, two expansion projects, and 23 renovations. However, the Fulton County Commission added $50 million to the request, aiming to build a new central library instead of renovating it.
The $50 million, along with the $34 million originally slated for renovations, would pay for about half of the new library, but private fundraising “seems exceedingly unlikely, especially with the economy turning sour,” the newspaper opined, calling it a “major project of questionable need.”
Director's response
In an op-ed response, library director John Szabo pointed, out, “[I]t is critical we lift up our public libraries
—used now more than ever. To put the cost in perspective, the owner of a $300,000 home would pay $37.92 per year or just $3.16 per month.”
“This is not about having prettier buildings or an aesthetic judgment on the existing central library,” he wrote, in a nod to those who want to preserve the current Marcel Breuer building (left).
Citing building programs in Nashville, Minneapolis, and Seattle, Szabo played down the central library issue: “A new central library in Atlanta would follow the path of these other great cities, but it is only a piece of the plan.”
