Library director talks about need for new library

By now, most of you have heard about the library’s future plans for a new facility at the East Peoria 2010 site. Perhaps you’ve talked to a staff member or one of the board members about this project. On April 7, 2009, there will be a question on the ballot asking for community support to issue $7 million in bonds for the construction of a new library facility.

Since early 2003, the FDL board of trustees has worked on bringing to fruition the results of a community-developed long-range plan. A lot has happened since then, but the point remains that the library is important to the quality of life in the East Peoria community. The board asked for the community’s support in 2007 for a new $12 million library. That question did not pass, but more than 40 percent of the population was in favor of it.

The board listened to the community and went back to the drawing board, literally. We’ve worked with our architect, PSA-Dewberry, to create a new, state-of-the-art library facility. The board looked at other options, including taking over older buildings. However, this doesn’t solve the problem of creating a library. We need 32,000 square feet, not the 80,000 square feet or more of some vacant retailers. We wanted to be sure that we’d still be able to offer all the amenities of a 21st century library at a more acceptable price, while still meeting the needs of our community. The board is confident that they’ve done this.

On April 7, East Peoria voters will have the opportunity to vote on a $7 million bond question to build a new library for East Peoria. The $7 million price tag is a significant difference from the asking price two years ago. In addition to it being almost half the cost, the tax increase is for the life of the bonds, about 20 years. We’re in a unique position this time.

Through a collaborative effort with the city of East Peoria, we would move to the EP 2010 site. We’d be a part of the civic plaza, which would include a city hall, a shared meeting room space, shared public restrooms and shared gathering space. It’s another example of the unique thinking that we see so often from the city of East Peoria. We’ve entered into an intergovernmental agreement. It’s a privilege to be a part of such a unique development that incorporates community, commerce and technology.

Anyone who has been in our current facility knows some of the challenges we face. We are located in a converted bank building, with a large underground vault. We have too little seating for our customers. We have 16 chairs available for adults to sit and read comfortably.  We have limited program space. We have only one restroom per gender available to the public. (And, if you’ve ever been in here after a story hour, you know the lines!) We can only have books and shelves on one side of the library. The first floor is reinforced with columns in our children’s department. We get water in our vault and in our children’s room in times of heavy rain. We don’t have any quiet reading space. 

The proposed new facility would be 32,000 square feet. The children’s and check out desk will occupy the first floor, with an entire second floor devoted to adult services. There will be family restrooms, a story hour room, quiet study areas and a special space for young adults. This would be quite a change from our current 12,500-square-foot building. And, the tax rate increase comes to around $40 a year for 20 years, the life of the bonds. That’s less than the cost of two hardback books at the local bookstore.

No matter what happens on April 7, rest assured that the Fondulac District Library will continue to provide our community with the best programs, services and materials.

As always, if you ever have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the library at 699-3917.