SENECA, Mo. —
Backed by petitions containing 2,100 signatures, Seneca residents this week bought more time for their branch of the Neosho-Newton County Library. But, the long-term future of the library, which has been open since 1935, is still unwritten.
Members of the Neosho-Newton County Library Board on Tuesday agreed to keep the library open through June 30, 2013, in hopes of finding a solution.
“I’m extremely happy with the outcome,” Josh Dodson, president of the Seneca Area Chamber of Commerce, said Wednesday. He said most board members didn’t want to close the Seneca operation, but rather “wanted to allow time for community leaders and citizens to figure a way to help this branch survive.”
Dodson and other city officials spearheaded the grass-roots effort to keep the library open, leading the petition drive. Dodson previously said the decision to close the library came as a “shocker” to the community. Several Seneca residents were present at the board meeting.
Last month, members of the library board voted to close the Seneca branch on Nov. 1 because of financial constraints. During their regular meeting this week, board members voted 9-1 to keep the library open through June 30.
Dodson said that allows enough time “to get some things figured out. But we don’t want to keep (extending the deadline) every six months. We want something concrete.”
A committee made up of city and library officials and residents from Neosho and Seneca has been established to look at options for keeping the library open.
“The committee doesn’t have a name yet, but ... right now we have in mind (one member) from the Loma Linda area, (one from) the Racine area, and two (more members) from Seneca,” Dodson said. Joining him on the committee will be Ginny Ray, director of the Neosho-Newton County Library, and three members from the library board, including Kevin Hatfield, who proposed the motion Tuesday to postpone the closing.
The immediate plan, Dodson said, “is to start seeking aid from state and federal grants that may be available.”
Earlier this year, Newton County voters overwhelmingly rejected a proposed 15-cent levy increase that would have raised nearly $7 million annually for the county library system. That money would have been used to expand the Neosho library and to pay for deferred maintenance, including roof repairs and repairs to a leaky sewage line in Neosho.
The current 10-cent levy has been in place for 17 years.
The proposal was rejected with 1,687 “no” votes and 940 “yes” votes. The vote in Seneca was 175 against and 30 in favor.
When the proposal was defeated in June, library board members said they would have to take a hard look at the budget and cut some services.
Keri Collinsworth, board president, said closing the Seneca branch would save $67,000 annually.
“We know the (main Neosho library) is hurting financially, so maybe” grants or collections of public and private donations “will help balance things up a bit,” she said. “This is a start.”
Collinsworth said she was happy with the board’s decision to postpone the November closing.
“I think the (residents) of Seneca are now aware of the need” the library is facing, she said, “and I think this has opened their eyes ... and will help them come up with some solutions.”
Library activity
MITZI THURMAN, branch manager of the Seneca library, 1216 Cherokee Ave., said library computers are used by many area residents who are looking for jobs. Last month, 2,600 books were checked out. Besides providing books and free Internet service, the library also operates a popular story time for children and various summer reading programs.
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