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Updates
Board Moves Forward
with Facilities Assessment,
Maintenance Master Plan,
and Feasibility Study
Last March, the Library, City Council, and the
School Board met to review their accomplishments
and to discuss strategic visions and the
obstacles - mostly financial - to realizing them.
The Library’s situation remains dire. With
no new millage since 1997, Shaker Library is
receiving property tax collections comparable
to 2003 and reduced state funding equivalent
to what was received in 1994, a cumulative
loss of more than $800,000 annually, or
one-seventh of its total income.
Following this successful work session,
the Library Board started moving forward
with the work of examining the condition
of Library facilities and developing options
for the future. At the beginning of 2014, the
Library Board addressed operational costs,
mainly through cuts in staffing and hours
of operation at Bertram Woods Branch and
Main Library. Ongoing maintenance costs
and building needs are of major concern
as Main Library is located in an 88-year
old building leased from the City and
the Library-owned Woods Branch is in a
54-year-old building.
“Quite simply, the Library is both indispensable
and, as it turns out, in need of a
drastic overhaul. Our facilities are beginning
to exceed their useful lives,” according to
Library Director Luren Dickinson.
The Board commissioned the wellknown
library design group HBM Architects
to complete a Facilities Assessment and to
rate every component of both library buildings,
inside and out, on a scale of poor to
excellent. They also created a Maintenance
Master Plan to help the Library prioritize
necessary work through the year 2025.
It is projected that over the next decade
more than $1 million in maintenance
funding will be needed for Woods Branch
and more than $4 million for Main Library.
Following further examination of the
assessment and capital needs, the Board
approved a continuation of the facilities
assessment process with HBM at its June
meeting. The architects are now completing
a Feasibility Study to determine if there are
ways to incorporate or eliminate the need
for maintenance upgrades as part of renovation,
expansion, and/or new construction.
The Board’s goal is not just to bring the
Library’s buildings up to a satisfactory level,
but to provide dynamic facilities based on
21st century best practices, which will serve
the community well for decades to come.
This will be a transparent and inclusive
process and the Board will seek input from
the public.
The intent is that a number of
facility options will be made available for
discussion. The Library Board hopes to gain
consensus, approve a plan, and set a course
of direction for the schematic design phase
at its September Board meeting.
@ Shaker Library
Updates