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"New Laramie County Library at the Forefront"
GUEST EDITORIAL
Submitted to the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle - April 2, 2001

Recent editorials and articles in this newspaper and other media outlets have again put the Laramie County Library System (LCLS) at the front of community discussion. While we gratefully acknowledge that so many in the community continue to express support for a new or improved facility, these reports have raised some issues that are either incorrect or need clarification. Therefore, we feel it is necessary to examine the facts and clear up some fallacies that are circulating through the community.

Why is the board of directors trying to force the issue of a new Laramie County Library?

A volunteer group of citizens comprises the LCLS Board of Directors. The board is confident of its organized plan to involve the public in every step of the process to provide voters with a well-developed ballot issue to address the community's public library. LCLS has not received any funding from voter-related issues since 1967, 34 years ago, when funding was passed to create the facility in which the library is currently housed. We intend to provide a new facility with the same long-term benefits to the community.

Why do you need so much space?

In the mid-1990s, Peter Inniss of The Planning Studio created Phase I of the library's master plan, evaluating the long-term needs of the library especially as they relate to a new facility. This plan, which is available for review at the library's Information Desk, found that the Laramie County Library of the Laramie County Library System "would need a facility of a minimum of 96,000 square feet" to be worthwhile in 2020. The current facility has lasted over 30 years, but the library has outgrown the available space. As the master plan states: "The numbers generated at this level of the project should not be considered final but are only the initial attempt to understand the general needs of the library over time." As the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle acknowledged in its editorial on March 25, 2001, "Does the county need a new library? Yes. It outgrew its current location on Central Avenue a decade ago."

Why was there no "Phase II" of the master plan?

Again, there was simply a lack of money to accomplish the task. We had requested funding via capital facilities ballots in 1996 and 1998 to continue the planning, but the voters defeated these measures. Therefore, we have relied on Phase I and the knowledge gleaned by library board members, committees, and staff who have participated in library building seminars and workshops to move the project forward.

Is the library hiding the master plan from the public?

Not at all. Like all public documents, we have kept this behind the information desk, and it is accessible to anyone who would like to see it. Additionally, WYLD Cat, our online catalog, conveniently lists this item and where is located.

With all the other libraries in the area, why do we need to expand the Laramie County Library of the Laramie County Library System?

Cheyenne does have a number of great libraries within the community, but each library has a different mission: some may target certain areas of the population, some may be purely academic, and so on. The Laramie County Library System is a public, county library. We attempt to meet the needs of the entire population (as we say, from cradle to grave), including what books and materials we carry and what programs we offer. Comparing us to other libraries in the community is simply comparing apples to oranges. It is also vital to remember that we are a library system that serves ALL of Laramie County, with a board appointed by the county commissioners, and with funding from Laramie County. These factors obviously have a great impact on our mission and obligation to county residents.

Why can't you keep the current location and just add branches in the city?

The primary reason is money. Each branch requires duplicate costs for programming, materials, operations, and management. At its current population and library funding level, multiple branches, beyond the ones in Burns and Pine Bluffs, do not appear to be economically feasible for the community at this time.

Why not just build extra stories on the current facility?

On the current location, building a second story adds merely 15-17,000 square feet. This would alleviate some of the crowding that we are currently experiencing, but does nothing to resolve any future needs of the library. Based on preliminary investigations, the space would be full the minute it became available.

Is the library only looking at locations outside of the downtown area?

Nothing could be further from the truth. Following citizen input gathered during our next round of public meetings, we carefully will examine all areas in relation to the recently established broad criteria to determine the best location for the community's needs, now and 30 years to the future. Currently, we have a list of over 30 potential locations, including several downtown sites, procured from suggestions from the community.

Are you only investigating one-story buildings?

We are evaluating every suggested site and not trying to limit our options. As such, with a possible 90,000-square foot facility, we may very well have to consider a multi-story library since, at a certain point, square footage becomes too great for a single-story facility. However, library building experts generally agree that a single-story facility offers a number of advantages:

• the potential for lower cost, as they relate to utilities, elevators, staffing, etc.,
• the potential for better use of material and equal accessibility,
• the potential for staff flexibility and efficiency,
• the potential for better security, and
• the potential ease-of-use for patrons and convenient public orientation.

How did you decide what criteria to use in locating potential sites for the library?

To begin, we listened to the advice of library building experts and the experiences of others in a similar situation around the nation, who have provided some criteria guidelines. On top of that, we held eight public meetings asking for community input as to criteria for the county's library. Although a total of only 33 people attended the meetings, we obtained some quality input from these people. At their March 27th meeting, the board of directors, considering citizen input and the recommendation of the Facilities Advisory Committee, approved the following broad criteria which will be used to narrow down the 30+ sites to a manageable number for further study:

• availability
• site size
• accessibility
• central location
• neighborhood compatibility
• cost
• site history

Details from the public meetings, including the lists of suggested criteria, are available for viewing at the Information Desk.

Was LCLS negotiating to take over the Montgomery Ward building?

LCLS was exploring options when it considered the Ward building, and never entered into any formal negotiation process. Part of the county librarian's job is to fully investigate a situation like this and present the findings to the board of directors, which is exactly what she did. The correspondence between parties outside the library can hardly be interpreted as proof of negotiations. If and when the library enters into a formal negotiation process, we will seek appropriate advice from experts and legal counsel.

Why would the library lease part of the Montgomery Ward building for commercial purposes?

Discussion during a brainstorming session produced this idea, which never became a finalized plan. Realizing that we would probably not immediately need the entire area of the facility, we discussed forming partnerships with agencies that provided services to families and children and using a portion of the facility to house such co-operative ventures. Perhaps by working together, people utilizing social services could also utilize the library at the same time. The library provides materials helpful in developing resumes, interviewing for jobs, parenting and medical information, as well as a great children's collection. While the parent was meeting with a social service agency, maybe the child could enjoy a story time. Following their meeting the parent could easily access library material relating to the meeting. We were brainstorming on ways to maximize the tax dollar while providing needed services to county residents. There was also discussion about meeting the consistent public demand we have to provide a place for people to eat, a coffee bar, an informal meeting place and a library store, any or all of which a private enterprise might operate. As the process continues, we will continue to explore these ideas, seeking ways to provide the best services possible.

Why did the library need $20.5 million for the Montgomery Ward building when the original estimates suggested a $5-6 million cost?

The $5-6 million was the bare minimum cost of acquiring the building and remodeling only a portion of it. The $20.5 million figure utilized a more reasonable cost for remodeling the entire building and included additional costs such as site development, engineering and architectural fees, furnishings and equipment and establishing an operation and maintenance fund. The ability to have an operation and maintenance fund was provided for by the legislature a number of years ago when they realized that the Capital Facility (now Specific Purpose) tax was a great way to help get public facilities constructed but did not provide for the ongoing increased costs of operations and maintenance.

Why is the library over-estimating the County's population?

One editorial mistakenly states that the master plan gave estimates for just Cheyenne's population in 2000. In fact, the master plan figures were for all of Laramie County. The Planning Studio obtained a variety of data from expert sources to come up with population projections. These projection suggested a population of 79,380 in the year 2000 for Laramie County. Figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, released recently, reflect that Laramie County's population as of 2000 is actually 81,607. The data listed in the master plan underestimated actual county population by 2,227.

Why did you destroy the Carnegie Library?

Unfortunately, many of us were not in town when the Carnegie Library existed and never had a chance to see this beautiful building in person. It is interesting to note that the Carnegie Library only offered 10,000 square feet of usable space and was considered too small and non-expandable in the 1960s. Once we obtained the current library building, ownership of the Carnegie Library, under a 1901 agreement, reverted to the City of Cheyenne. The current library facility, which has a gross square footage of 39,400, is in very good condition and another entity should be able to use the facility for many years to come.

LCLS, the oldest continually operating county library in the United States, has maintained a proud presence in this community for over a century. The library's success in the county has been contingent upon growing with the population and meeting the public's needs. As we begin the 21st century, technology and user demands will continue to grow and change in ways that we cannot anticipate. The library must have the room and ability to meet these changes, some of which may not even be on the horizon. A public library is the information center of a community, whether in the availability of a classic novel or in obtaining the latest piece of information from the Internet. In addition, our programs-from summer reading celebrations to book discussions to guest speakers' lectures-continue to inform and enlighten the public, often attended by numbers far exceeding our expectations. In the next 30 years, the growth of the county will be strong, and we want to be able to grow with the community.

Finally, the quote "Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive" comes from J.R. Pope's "A Word of Encouragement" according to The Columbia Granger's Dictionary of Poetry Quotations. Providing accurate information with source given is just one of the many benefits of a library.