01/25/1988 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

e city. He suggested allowing 60 days for him to perform a free feasibility report on expanding storage. Mr. Bonson said a new library was not needed and did not justify the added tax burden. Martha Rice, 2610 Highland Oaks Drive, chair of the Eugene Public Library Board of Trustees, spoke in support. She commended the committee for its report, characterizing it as "careful, comprehensive, and long overdue." Ms. Rice urged the council to accept the recommendations. She said the board also was concerned about costs, but she thought the new library was needed, and she asked whether the community could afford NOT to expand the facility. Ms. Rice said the board had been seeking an improved library since 1977. She offered its help and encouraged the council to use the board as a resource for the project. e Ann Carter, 2901 Baker, spoke in support. She noted that she was a member of the Friends of the Library and of the Eugene Public Library Foundation but she spoke on her own behalf. She commended the committee for its report, adding that she thought the committee had worked hard, made some difficult decisions, and used a lot of expert advice. She also commended the assistance from the City. Ms. Carter said she thought the City had had vision in the past and constantly did look toward the future, for example in projects such as the Hult Center, the airport renovation, and now it was the library's turn. She said she thought library expansion should be placed on the ballot, and she thought the committee's recommendations had to be accepted because the work had been done well. Ms. Carter said the library probably was one of the most used City services, with cards issued to close to 40 percent of the community, and with many non-cardholders using the library for information purposes, not just for recreational reading or school assignments. She said she thought the community needed and deserved a new library, which should be included in the City beautification program now underway. Molly Stafford, 1060 Madison Street, spoke in support of accepting the committee recommendation. Ms. Stafford said that when the City had proceeded on the airport, it had been her understanding that it would not jeopardize the possibility of a new library, and she believed Eugene needed and wanted a new library. She urged the council to proceed with plans to construct the library and to allow citizens to vote on the library as they had done on the airport. Mary Bentsen, 950 West 16th Avenue, spoke under Other Comments. She said she was a member of the Friends of the Library but spoke on her own behalf. Ms. Bentsen said she believed the need for restoration and enlargement of the library was not an issue and had been demonstrated as long overdue. She said she had been dismayed in recent years by the deteriorating condition of the library. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 25, 1988 Page 5