Don Grosdidier, co-chair of the new library campaign, presents plans for the proposed library at Monday's City Commission meeting. Ballots for the vote on the library will be sent out to voters between Feb. 9 and 19, and will need to be returned to the county clerk's office by March 1.
Supporters of a new library appeared before the City Commission Monday night to provide more details on the campaign, including features the proposed new building will have.
In the coming weeks, residents will have a chance to vote to determine whether a new $4.6 million library should be constructed.
Monday is the last day to register to vote, and ballots will be sent out to voters between Feb. 9 and 19. Voters need to mail their ballots to the county clerk’s office by March 1, and there will also be a dropbox outside of City Hall, where voters can leave their ballots.
Don Grosdidier, co-chair of the Eudora Community Library Capital Campaign Committee, explained to city commissioners the impact the library would have on the community for generations to come.
“It celebrates our unique culture and history in Eudora,” Grosdidier said.
Before the City Commission presentation, The Eudora Times spoke with three proponents of the new library campaign. According to campaign co-chair Laura Lewis, new and improved technology will be a prominent feature of the library, including reliable WiFi.
“There are several meeting rooms in the new library, TV displays, really all of that was integrated into the design to make sure that if folks are working remotely they can utilize the library and reserve the rooms that they need,” Lewis said. “Meeting space was critical in the design throughout, and almost 50% of the library is meeting space.”
Lewis and Grosdidier are confident the library will bring economic growth to the community, and that it will provide a boost for businesses downtown. Library Director Carol Wohlford agrees.
“Most communities, when you build a library, it becomes an economic engine, because it brings people from all over,” Wohlford said. “So people go down the street and it will hopefully keep our ‘old town’ going.”
The plans for the library have been finalized. If approved by voters, the new library will feature a multi-purpose space, a gallery that will house local art and rooms that community members can rent for events. Nonprofit organizations will be able to rent those spaces at no cost.
“A new library seems to be the next piece that’s really going to bring Eudora to be the great community that it is and definitely provide equitable opportunity for all residents,” Lewis said. “I think there’s a gap, and the library will meet a lot of those gaps, with free WiFi, the resource centerand a place for kids to go after school.”
During the meeting, Mayor Tim Reazin provided questions on the library plan, including about parking. Reazin asked whether there will be enough parking space, since the library will have a capacity of 200 people.
Grosdidier said there will be parking behind the library, a parking lot to the north of the building and on-street parking as well.
Reazin also had questions over the difference in operating costs between the current library and the proposed one.
“That’s kind of my worry when we’re building something four times the size of what we have now,” Reazin said. “We’re only projecting the operating costs to go up .25 mill. I’m assuming you would need to hire more staff.”
Library Board President Eric Magette said no additional staff will be hired for the new building.
“One of the first things we did was ask our staff to start to look for budget efficiencies,” Magette said. “We’ve been working several years now, Carol and her staff, on the budget and being frugal and fiscally responsible. We’ve operated the last three years with an average $58,000 surplus. We’re going to be able to absorb a lot of those new operating costs.”
Magette said operating costs at the new library will increase by $50,000 to $70,000, with most of this money tied to utilities. Right now, the owner of a $150,000 home in Eudora is paying about $67 a year to fund the current library.
If the new library is built, this will increase to $132 a year for the next 20 years. More information on the costs of the proposed library is available in this Eudora Times article.
Proponents of the library previously told The Eudora Times the building will provide growth for the community, and attract more people to live in Eudora.
In the conversation before the City Commission meeting, Grosdidier said if more people live in the community, they may end up paying less taxes to support facilities, due to a wider tax base.
“There are certain quality of life issues in any community and investments that are made, and if you take a look at this community, this community has invested heavily in schools over the last 25 years, and that has certainly promoted growth,” Grosdidier said. “This is another investment into the community, and I think it’s going to pay off for years to come.”
The presentation to commissioners was informational only with no further action needed.
In other business:
City Attorney David Waters discussed opioid mitigation efforts. Kansas is part of multi-state litigation against pharmaceutical companies as a result of the opioid-addiction crisis.
In May 2021, Gov. Laura Kelly approved a bill that deals with how to use funds received from opioid litigation. It also limited how much litigation municipalities can do, leaving this responsibility to the Kansas attorney general.
The resolution also certifies that any funds received by the government shall be spent on lawful purposes, such as covering costs public safety might have incurred through the opioid crisis, or purchasing opioid overdose rescue kits that contain Narcan.
Reach reporter Abby Shepherd at [email protected]
This story has been corrected to fix the mill rate referenced.