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May 6, 2010

Washington's local library would be eliminated with merger to county system

Wednesday, May 05, 2010
By STEPHEN J. NOVAK
The Express-Times
WASHINGTON | If the borough were to get rid of its local library and join the county system, it would remove a local cost but also a local amenity, officials said Tuesday.

And taxpayers might end up paying slightly more.

Borough council had been considering putting the choice to voters in November. It did not make a decision one way or the other during discussions Tuesday.

Warren County Library Director Maureen Baker Wilkinson was on hand at Tuesday's council meeting to answer some questions, many of which centered on the fate of the Washington Public Library.

If a merger were agreed upon by voter referendum, the facility at 20 W. Carlton Ave. would be shut down to accommodate the county's limited library budget, Wilkinson said.

Patrons from the borough would have to travel to Franklin or Independence townships or Belvidere for library services, but there are more offerings there than the local library can provide, including DVDs, video games and electronic books, she said.

"There's a lot of services that we do offer," Wilkinson said. "It would cost the residents more money, but that's your decision."

If Washington had been included in this year's county library budget, it would have cost the borough $266,000. The borough is budgeting $261,000 for its library; $270,000 was spent on it in 2009, officials said.

While the borough is looking for ways to trim its 2010 budget, council members expressed skepticism about joining the county library system.

"I would argue that most people that use our library now are probably walking there," Councilman Victor Cioni said, to agreement from the audience. "If it gets moved out of town, I would imagine the local library participation drops 80 to 90 percent."

Borough council in March gave Manager Richard Phelan permission to draft a ballot question that could appear before voters in November, asking them if they would approve of merging the local library with the county system.

Council members at the time made it clear they want to review the effects of such a merger before they decide whether to send it to voters.

There is no cost to the borough to have a question appear on the ballot in November, officials have said, while a special, separate election would cost about $10,000.

Washington first got a library in 1913, when a group of residents formed a library association in the rectory of St. Peter's Church, according to the library's website. After the library changed locations, the borough took it over in 1927.

The current library building was dedicated in 1983, according to the website.

Reporter Stephen J. Novak can be reached at 610-258-7171, ext. 3542, or snovak@express-times.com. Talk about issues in your town at lehighvalleylive.com/forums.

Posted by tumulty at May 6, 2010 5:58 AM

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