Page 13 of Bad to the Bone
“We won’t have anything near enough to pay for that until the next quarterly library fund disbursement,” Andy countered. “Assuming we’re still here by then.”
“Let’s hold that for unfinished business,” Laura Lou said with a frown. “Are there any questions or corrections?”
The financial report was quickly approved, and Jennifer gave a brief update on the Friends of the Library committee’s plans to sponsor a bake sale just before Halloween and a holiday craft fair the weekend after Thanksgiving. All other business having been dealt with, Laura Lou opened the floor to new and unfinished business and the elephant in the meeting room they had avoided until then.
“As you all know, last month Odell Tillman presented a proposal to the town council to purchase the land the library stands upon. He has made no secret that if he’s successful, he plans to tear down the library to expand his business, Tillman Motors.” Laura Lou couldn’t hide her frown.
“The council has scheduled a special session on Wednesday to solicit public input regarding the proposal. I know each of you has been reaching out to friends and family to encourage them to present comments, as well as researching options should we prove unsuccessful in blocking Mr. Tillman’s proposition.” The grave cast of her expression betrayed her fear that the possibility couldn’t be discounted.
Andy spoke up first. “As you’ve seen over the past year, the funding we receive from local tax revenues is barely enough to keep the library functioning. There isn’t enough to cover extraordinary expenses—such as the roof repairs—let alone expansion of services. True, we do receive some federal funding, but it’s generally earmarked for specific uses, such as installation and maintenance of the computer network. And that’s in danger of being cut back or even eliminated completely.
“The building dates from the 1920s, and because of its age, it requires significant maintenance,” Andy continued. “Regrettably it isn’t a Carnegie library or anything that could qualify for historical landmark status. It’s just old.”
Alex shook his head. The library might not be architecturally significant, but it held a special place in his heart, and he had to believe that more people than just the other members of the library board felt the same way.
“I’ve looked into options in a worst-case scenario.” He pulled out the notes he’d taken over the past weeks since Odell had dropped his bombshell. “While the current building is paid for, the utility and maintenance costs might be reduced if the library relocated to an alternative facility. Unfortunately there isn’t any large enough space readily available in town. Options such as taking over an empty warehouse or home would involve significant renovation costs to meet our needs, and of course we’d have to pay rent or a mortgage in addition to normal operating expenses.”
“In a true worst-case scenario, the library would have to close completely.” Alex knew the sadness in Laura Lou’s voice had little to do with the loss of her own position, should it come to that. “We would donate as much as we could to the primary and secondary school libraries, but I’m afraid much of the adult collection might be lost. We would liquidate what we could, but the cost of replacing even a limited collection such as ours would make reopening the library at another time prohibitively expensive.”
If the library closed, it would be gone for good. Alex vowed to do his best to keep that from happening.
