Moses Lake council endorses library project

MOSES LAKE - Moses Lake officially endorsed remodeling the library in hopes to raise funds for the project.

The city council recently approved the request from the Moses Lake Library Foundation to support the project. Tim Fuhrman, the foundation president, asked for the city to promise it would remodel the library if the money was available as a way to reassure possible donors.

"What we're looking at now is how do we pay for this building," Fuhrman said. "What we do know is that this is not a great economy. The city is not going to have the money to build a $7 million library. So, what we're asking you to do is to endorse the project, so we can actually go out and look for organizations and business to donate to make up for a lot of the costs."

The potential contributors don't want to give money to remodel the library if the city isn't committed to the project, he said.

Fuhrman explained the building was designed to hold books on the shelves, but the use of the library changed since it was built in the mid-1960s.

"The new use of the library is much more technologically inclined," he said. "The population for Moses Lake we estimated was around 8,000 when the library was built; we're more than double that easily ... So, a library that served us well for a number of years isn't serving us as well now."

Another problem is that the building isn't compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, Fuhrman said. He pointed out the doors are about as small as the podium at which he was speaking.

"Anybody much bigger than me has a hard time getting into the bathrooms in that building," he said. "The downstairs facility, which was originally a great little meeting space, the only way to get (to the space) is through the stairway. There are no elevators. There is no other way of accessing that space."

The lack of an elevator makes the space unusable for most larger events, forcing the events into the main area of the library, Fuhrman said. Putting the events in the library means everyone has to participate in the event, whether they want to or not.

The foundation hired Miller-Hull, which developed concept designs for the new library in 2009, and since then, the foundation has been working on raising money, according to the Columbia Basin Herald.

The concept design rounds the ends of the building, and expands it toward the Moses Lake Chamber of Commerce space, Fuhrman said. The concept calls for an about 30,000-square-foot building, and is estimated to cost $11 million.

"I know we built the library out at the college for $7 million. I don't doubt for a second we can do this for something similar to that," he said.

The design is comparable to Big Bend Community College's library, he said. The college went from a 9,000-square-foot area to a 27,000-square-foot building.

"Day in and day out, that library, with only 1,700 students, is full," Fuhrman said. "I think we could easily do the same thing with the Moses Lake Public Library, which serves way more people than (the Big Bend) library does."

The concept adds space specifically for teenagers, children and computers. It also adds a meeting space with moving partitions, Fuhrman said.

Councilmember Dick Deane pointed out the council previously supported the project.

"We would be more than happy to re-endorse it, but there is only one problem: it's the $12 million that you just mentioned," he said. "If you are asking us to endorse you, then I would like to turn that around and have you endorse us by assisting us ... We will help you with the grants and the grant writing, and the correspondence and we will go to bat for you, but we need to know more about what you really have planned for our endorsement."

Deane pointed out the current uncertainty surrounding the property taxes collected from REC. The city may need to refund roughly $4.1 million in disputed property taxes.

"When that becomes clear and is settled out, I think you have a lot of support. You have seven people here and then you have eight or nine people there on the city staff who are more than willing to step up and start helping," he said.

Fuhrman said the foundation started by looking for grants, and found that agencies won't give grants until the foundation has collected some money.

"You need to have money in the bank before most grants will kick in from what we saw," he said.

He pointed out the Paul Lauzier Foundation has been generous over the years, and a number of other foundations have available grants.

The foundation and the city also could divide the project into smaller pieces, Fuhrman said, adding that he doesn't remember asking for an endorsement.

Mayor Bill Ecret asked whether Fuhrman wanted the council to endorse the design or just endorse remodeling the project in general.

"We have endorsed the fact that the library needs to be remodeled," he said. "We have endorsed the fact that the library needs to be built onto. We did that, maybe, two years ago, but we need to lock in on not only a design, but we need to lock in on where the money is coming from."

Fuhrman pointed out the council needs to make the final decision on the design, but he would recommend the concept design that he presented.

"From all the designs we saw, this is the one that made the most sense," he said. "It keeps the existing building. It utilizes space within the park that currently isn't being used. It keeps it in a central place, and allows it to sit really well."

The architect who develops the final plan may deviate from the concept, so Fuhrman didn't want to lock the council into a definite plan for remodeling the library, he said.

Deane moved to endorse remodeling the library, leaving the design out of his motion. He echoed Fuhrman, saying the plan may change and the city will need to be involved in final design.

"What a wonderful public groundswell that you've been able to gather around you," Deane said. "This is Moses Lake coming together."

The council endorsed the project, but Councilmember Jon Lane said the city doesn't have money for the remodel right now.

"This could be a long-term project before it comes to fruition," he said. "We have just built this facility (the Moses Lake Civic Center) which we're still in the process of paying for ... and quite candidly the city budget this year is pretty tight, so we're no different than the school district or any other public agency. We're watching our diets."

He added the project needs to be done, and that to be done right, it should be completed at one time rather than in stages.