Kennett Library board member Jeff Yetter has been making the rounds of local government meetings asking for funding to build a new library, and he and library director Megan Walters brought their road show to West Marlborough on Nov. 4.
The architect's renderings show a modern, 29,000-square-foot building located just a few lots east of the current library on East State Street in downtown Kennett Square. Jeff said the glass walls are designed to draw people in and allow them to see all the library's activities.
Jeff emphasized that libraries are about far more than just books these days. The library runs many popular children's programs and has a thriving English-as-a-second-language tutoring program, but the 58-year-old building has just run out of space.
Plans also call for an auditorium that could be used by community groups as well. There would be 37 parking spaces reserved for patrons.
The catch, of course, is the cost of building and operating a new library, the same hurdles that the library board has struggled to overcome since the idea of a new library was floated back in 2000. Jeff said the building is estimated to cost $15 million, and operating expenses would of course increase in a larger facility with an expected doubling of patrons.
He said that West Marlborough has 108 library cardholders, 1% of the total, though the number of township users is likely higher. He asked the township to contribute $22,638 per year for three years toward the cost of building the library.
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