Friday, Sept. 30, 2005 | ||
Bad Links? | Library plans moving aheadBy JOHN THOMPSON Coweta Countys newest library is now more than an abstract theory; its now a full-blown design. Members of the librarys board of directors met this week to go over state rules and regulations governing the new structure. The board also continued looking over designs or the building that will be near the intersection of Lower Fayetteville Road and Ga. Highway 154. According to Coweta County Information Director Patricia Palmer, the new library will be a 25,000-square-foot full-service library. It will feature study rooms, a childrens area and will also have a focus on getting the importance of literacy out to the community. Its also being built so it can be expanded easily, she added. This is the second meeting of the reconstituted board. The original board was put in place shortly after Coweta voters approved a special purpose local option sales tax that would allocate $6 million towards the construction of a new library near Thomas Crossroads. But, after the board started having meetings, a difference of philosophy arose between the board and the County Commission, said county administrator Theron Gay. The board was committed to building a 22,000 sq. ft. facility, which is what the SPLOST would fund, Gay said. But there was also word the county would receive $2 million in funds from the state for the library, so the board wanted to build a bigger facility. The board also wanted to play a key role in the hiring of personnel for the new library. When the board created the library board, they were thinking it would focus more on helping the library with programs, Gay added. After the settlement was reached, Coweta County officials commented on the issue. In a written statement, the commissioners said they were anxious to move forward with the Coweta County Public Library as well as with library services in other areas of the county. The statement concluded with the countys philosophy for the new center. It is the goal of the Board of Commissioners to provide the best library services possible to the greatest number of people by locating facilities that are sized to adequately serve the areas where they are located. |
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