& Albany County Post - The Altamont Enterprise

The Altamont Enterprise – Thursday, December 20, 2012 9
A month after building defeat, library board flummoxed on future
By Tyler Murphy
VOORHEESVILLE — A month
after a record number of district
voters cast ballots against a library
building project, the board
of trustees is still collecting information
and seeking consensus
about what to do next.
The Dec. 17 meeting was the
board’s first since voters defeated
a Nov. 13 referendum to build a
$7.6 million library. Of the 1,778
votes cast, 1,446 voted against
the measure and 332 voted in
favor.
The project would have nearly
doubled the library taxes on an
assessed $200,000 home in New
Scotland, from the current rate of
about $252 a year to about $478
a year — $226 higher during the
first year of the 20-year bond.
The project also would have to
raise annual operating costs by
$246,750.
“So does anybody here actually
know what they want to
do next?” Library Director Gail
Sacco asked the board during
Monday’s meeting.
A few members responded inaudibly
by shaking their heads
followed by President Robert
Kent responding, “I don’t.”
At Monday’s meeting, former
library trustee and building
committee member Dick Ramsey
sat with the board in discussing
the vote.
He pointed out that double the
number of voters came out for
the library’s referendum then
the latest school budget vote,
something he said never happened
before.
“You don’t get this many people
to turn out for this kind of vote
unless someone did something.
I had several people in front of
me voting for the first time,” said
Ramsey, adding that efforts by
organized groups opposed to the
vote had succeeded in influencing
participation.
“I don’t think it was just an
organized effort. I think there
was overwhelming consensus on:
‘We don’t want anymore taxes,’”
said Trustee Janna Shillinglaw.
Like several others on the board
Shillinglaw mentioned tough economic
times were partly to blame
for the referendum’s resounding
defeat.
“People have no control over
a lot of things, like gas prices,
but they do have control over a
building project,” she said.
Sacco said the project was defeated
because of the “economy
and the lack of knowledge.” She
went on, “The idea that people
think of the library as a building
for books; they don’t think
of eReaders or librarians that
have masters degrees, or about
our data bases, or the morning
program for preschoolers or the
The Enterprise — Tyler Murphy
Project rejection: Voorheesville Public Library Board President Robert Kent, left, and Library Director
Gail Sacco, far right, listen to discussions about the library’s defeated building project referendum.
In a record-setting turnout on Nov. 13 voters defeated the measure. Kent urged members to keep public
sentiment in mind as they consider the library’s next step.
grants we get, or the homebound
program for people confined in
their house for long periods of
time, or our gallery space. They
don’t know what’s here.”
The director said she had received
a number of notes from
residents saying “the reason was
the money, not the design or the
lack of understanding.”
“You have a hard time making
the connection for people
who don’t use the library,” said
Trustee Stella Suib, agreeing the
role of the library has expanded
beyond book collections.
Suib said the library was a
“community hub,” especially for
schoolchildren and the elderly
who don’t always have technology
or other resources at home.
The defeated project would
have purchased new property
along the Altamont–Voorheesville
Road (Route 156), across
the street from the Voorheesville
firehouse and elementary school.
The proposal would have doubled
the current library space to
19,000 square feet, though the
room for book collection would
have increased by only about 10
percent, leaving the remaining
area available for more technology
and programs.
“That’s the thing about it, it’s
about the kids and the future. If
you get it right the first time, it’s
right for the future,” added Ramsey,
saying the library proposal
was designed to grow with the
town. He said the areas around
New Scotland had seen rapid
and large-scale development
and believes it’s only a matter
of time before the town begins
to experience the same.
“The town of New Scotland is
not going to stay 10,000 people 10
miles from Albany,” he said.
Reality check
As board president, Kent made
few remarks about the defeated
project during the discussion but
urged members to heed public
feedback.
“I think there was overwhelming consensus on:
‘We don’t want anymore taxes.”
“We developed an open and
honest process. We gave the community
an opportunity to get informed,
if they wanted to or not,
and they voted — they voted no.
This is a democracy this is how
it’s suppose to work and now we
need to move on,” said Kent.
The board decided to wait for
the final results of a feedback
survey to be finished before making
any decisions. Sacco said the
library had contacted a number
of volunteers and others in an
effort to understand people’s
individual feelings on the failed
project and gain a better grasp
of public expectations.
Kent told board members
there is still time to contact additional
residents to participate
in the survey.
“We need samples to help our
reality check,” said Kent.
“We need time to think about
this. It’s been a long process
and needs considerable consideration,”
added Trustee Rita
Stein.
Initial planning discussion for
the defeated project began in
2005, said Kent.
The board agreed to retract
a $1,000 hold on the parcel of
land where the proposed project
was to be built. The money will
be returned to the library, said
Sacco, and the property will go
up for sale.
The library is still eligible for
the next three years, to receive
a $51,000 state grant awarded
for the purchase of property. “It’s
there until the board has a better
idea on how it wants to move
forward,” said Sacco.
Library officials said demand
for services had been growing
and the current structure, built
in 1989, was unable to expand
or keep up with changing technology.
What’s next
Trustee Rebecca Pahl told the
public at a previous meeting the
board had resisted investing too
much in the old building over
the last few years because it was
preparing for the new project.
She said the current building,
assessed at $645,000, needed a
million dollars worth of repairs,
which includes replacing the
roof.
Pending needs at the current
library were not discussed at
the meeting but Sacco told The
Enterprise more details on how
the board would address those
concerns would be developed
over the next three months as it
prepares next year’s budget. She
said the building had been maintained
well but a few looming
projects could have considerable
expenses, such as a roof repair.
“It all depends on how the
board decides to proceed,” she
said.
She added, “I think board
members are community residents
who care about the library
and about community they live
in. They are being very thoughtful
and careful about moving
forward and making sure they
are hearing what the public has
said.”
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