Although the library facilities plan was not finalized today, I consider today’s City Council + Library Staff and Trustees meeting a firm step in the right direction!
I believe that usually when a city — like Boise — hires a consulting agency — like Group 4 — to create a library facilities plan, involving citizen input, that plan is adopted by the city. That’s what I’ve seen with other Group 4 facilities plans. To my relief, that did not occur today.
The recommendations presented by Director Dorr today, along with the comments made by City Council members, and in particular the library facilities planning recommendations put forward by Council President Colin Nash, were an indication to me that they are listening and responding to our feedback, and wanting to adopt a plan the city can fund that meets the most important needs. As City Council members left the main meeting room, Council Member Morales told me exactly that: we are listening.
What I believe will happen next:
City Council and senior Library staff will review the detailed, problem-solving recommendations. These recommendations, put forward by Council President Colin Nash, consider distance to the nearest library. Next, the Library Board of Trustees will review. There may be some adjustments made through the review process, but I believe these recommendations will then be used to guide the adoption of a facilities plan within the next 6 months, so that the facilities plan can be adopted in the FY’27 budget and CIP (Capital Improvement Projects). This does not mean any construction or even land purchase will take place in FY’27 budget, but we may see a branch in West Boise adopted as part of an official city plan.
Some highlights:
Mayor Lauren McLean
Funding challenges, prioritization discussions, long term planning – these are not new problems. We’ve talked a lot about challenges, I think there’s a lot of opportunity here.
Because the golf club (Warm Springs) was in the CIP (Capital Improvement Plan) we were able to pivot quickly when a donor stepped up. (Therefore, it’s important to have realistic projects in the plan)
Library Director Jessica Dorr
Recommendations:
– Budget to maintain and repair existing library facilities.
– Renew the leases for Hillcrest and Collister.
– Explore creative options (non-staffed kiosks, for example)
– Budget to secure, equip, and staff additional library space (not stating where)
– Not to build new spaces under 25,000sf.
– Review and potentially adjust the facilities plan more frequently: every 5 years, instead of 20.
However, Library Directory Dorr expressed concern about building any new branches, stating “I’m worried that a new branch would not improve library service in the way that we hope”.
Finance Director Eric Bilimoria
Cost escalation and growing maintenance backlog have challenged the city’s ability to add new capital assets.
City Council Member for District 2, Colin Nash (President)
– Feels that it’s unlikely the city could fund a $30 million branch library. He would like to see what is possible in the $10-15 million range.
– Asked if we could create designs that allow for future expansion.
– Believes public feedback says the public is happy with the size of existing branches; he wonders if it’s better to build smaller libraries – below the industry best standards — than to do nothing.
– Believes his planning recommendations are consistent with what Library staff, City Council, and public are looking for.
o Prioritizing repairs and maintenance. That’s got to be first. Remain open, safe and reliable.
o Next, I know we’ve made investments in the downtown library. I’m not clear on its shelf life. We need more information on the downtown library.
o Additionally, it seems like we can get a lot of space by relocating administrative operations.
o I find the 3 mile standard in Blueprint Boise not too useful; it’s a goal we’ve (largely) already met.
o As an equity measure, the sustained public advocacy of Citizens for a Library, there are access challenges in part of the city.
o I would like to adopt something more consistent with national averages, 1.8 – 2.4 miles, that would help us identify areas that need libraries.
o The one thing that I would flag, the pressure on our existing system if we decide to have a new library. If there’s an above average facility, how do we alleviate pressure on that one facility?
– Could we identify a geography for Hillcrest / Collister, could we signal a public / private partnership to help us get there?
– Could we acquire / annex space around an existing facility?
– In the long term we need to have a more direct conversation with the public. It may not be more practical to add a branch without acquiring land and designing a facility.
Council Member Kathy Corless
– Fire station, pool: they’re very specific. Looking at libraries, we have a lot more options, in terms of size and the type of building.
– With Hillcrest coming up in 2027 and Collister in 2028, in fairness we should see what’s out there between 10-18,000 sf, it’ll keep us 6 million, back of the iPhone calculation.
– One of the other things we wanted to address is looking at kiosk centers. Non-staffed.
– How could we integrate a Kiosk at Whitney pool, other city locations, …
Council Member Jimmy Hallyburton
– There are other funding sources through the Library Foundation, Friends of the Library.
– Concerned about figuring out the ongoing staffing cost.
– We do need another branch, maybe two.
– We do need a new downtown library; it’s a question of which would come first.
– We need to know the direction we’re going to plan for it.
– Distance isn’t always equitable; in some parts of town you can utilize the greenbelt to get to a library branch.
– If we could establish priority on our projects, that would be helpful. We think our top priority is a library in West Boise, or SE Boise… Until we know which to start on first, I don’t know what we can do with Prop 1… We’ve got to figure out what to do first.
Council Member Meredith Stead
– I think we are on the right track. On making the decision on where a library should be; immediately I’m thinking we need to look for space around activity centers, transit corridors. If I were to wave the magic wand on prioritization, we need to take care of ongoing cost.
– I agree that the downtown library needs attention.
– I know the city has properties, I know we can’t purchase property for a library…
– I love the community engagement we’ve seen for a West Boise library branch. I’d like to support that and vote on that with some kind of land use, service goals.
– I agree with Council President Nash, an additional branch would probably be a leased space.
– I would love us to work towards these goals.
– Hopefully we can determine some criteria that would support that.
Council Member Jordan Morales
– As I reviewed the facilities plan I kept thinking about good, better, best. I appreciate that the best has been outlined. I am struggling with seeing how we get the best. I wanted the 4 bed 3 bath condo downtown, I started in a 600sf apartment.
– As I think about areas like West Boise…
– There’s an opportunity to consider what a good branch library looks like.
– I would like to see what a runway looks like, towards how we get there. I know it can be a long time.
– Fire department is a good example, and 4-person staffing.
– When we’re considering the cost for a digital collection… (the disparity between digital and physical was a shock to him)
– When we’re thinking about our libraries we’re thinking about 3rd spaces but also some people just want books.
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