Small Town News

Library considers new locations

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Board hopes to keep facility in city limits

Lewes Public Library is set to expand, but officials have not decided where a larger building should be built or whetiier to expand the existing facility.

The library's board plans to appoint a committee of residents in the facility's service area to evaluate expanding at the library at the existing site, as well as building a new facility on another viable site.

The committee would look at site capacity, cost to develop the site, parking potential, accessibility, fitting the building into the fabric of the community, land costs and legal matters.

The committee should be appointed by the end of the month and make recommendations by the end of June, said Beckie Healey, library board chairwoman. At a May 11 meeting at the library to update the public on what could happen with the facility, Healey and board trustees Ned Butera, Gerald Cowan and Michelle Kemp spoke to a sparse audience.

Healey said she's been disappointed in public attendance and participation in meetings about the library despite widespread advance notice. She said news about upcoming meetings is sent to homeowner associations throughout the library's service area.

"Nobody shows up, and I don't know what more we could do. It's not for lack of trying," Healey said.

Why expand now?

The state would pay 50 percent of land acquisition and 50 percent of construction costs if the Lewes library project meets Delaware Division of Library standards, which require 10, 000 square feet of building space per 10, 000 people in the service area.

The existing library is 13, 000 square feet - undersized for a population of 18, 000 in the service area, which extends north to Paynter's Mill and west to Plantation Road; it also includes the Gills Neck area and an extensive swath west of Route 1.

Healey said if the population in the service area grew by only 3 percent, the library would be serving 27, 000 people.

Current census data isn't available, but the service area is expected to grow by 33 percent in the coming decade.

She said given the state's budget, the library-funding program wouldn't last forever. She said disruption of service at the existing library during construction or expansion is also a concern.

Even with state assistance, a substantial amount of money -about $2.5 million - would still be needed whether the library is expanded where it is or a new building is constructed.

Healey said although the board would prefer the library remain in the city, it might not be possible.

"The site remains a very attractive site, but we wouldn't be good stewards if we didn't look at other sites," Healey said.

Built in 1988, wings were added to the structure in 2000. Healey said the library's building is less than half of what's needed to serve people now using the facility.

The library has eight computers for public use. "We're way under what we should have," Healey said. She said although the library might not look busy, it is. Healy said library use has increased 81 percent over the past decade.

Ed Goyda, Lewes Public Library executive director, said space is insufficient for children's story times, teen programs, tutors and computer classes in die existing facility.

He said 40 percent of library patrons use its computers; 25 percent use computers to take online classes.

The existing library does not have room for additional computers, Goyda said.

The City of Lewes owns the library building, which the library leases for $1 a year under a 99-year perpetual lease.

Six parcels under consideration

Including the existing library site, six parcels are being consid-ered for a new facility. The parcels are known as Thompson, Warrington, Kennedy, Groome Church, Five Points and Lingo/Townsend.

The Thompson site is 5 acres southwest of the existing library and adjacent to railroad tracks used only by SPI Pharma Inc. The company's plant is on Hen-lopen Drive, near the Cape Hen-lopen State Park entrance. SPI representatives said the rail line is used about once a week, and the company has no plans to cease using it.

The Warrington parcel is along Kings Highway and is about 2.9 acres widi an option for an additional acre.

The Kennedy parcel is about

3.2 acres and is adjacent to Freeman Highway, which is under Delaware River and Bay Authority jurisdiction. The bay authority would not allow access to the parcel from Freeman Highway.

The Groome Church site is about 3 acres adjacent to New Road, outside the city, but in a designated growth area.

The Hudson family has offered to donate 2.5 acres of a Five Points parcel, situated along Route 9, west of Food Lion supermarket.

The Lingo/Townsend site is approximately 3 acres along Kings Highway opposite Clay Road. Lingo/Townsend has offered to donate the site. Lewes-based Element Design Group is conducting a traffic-impact study to determine how the library might affect die area.





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