ARLINGTON – Voters could write the next chapter in the Arlington Library’s history Tuesday.
That’s when they will decide whether to approve an $8.1 million bond that would give the library a new home.
If the measure passes, plans call for the new library to be built across the street from the current library on city land. The new building would be nearly four times as large and offer four times the number of computers as the current library. The bond also includes money to buy about 42,200 new items to fill the shelves, nearly doubling the library’s collection.
If the bond passes, the city will transform the current library into a public meeting space, City Administrator Allen Johnson said.
Proponents say Arlington outgrew its library long ago. With more growth expected, overcrowding will be a problem until a new library is built, they say.
“A library is so important to a community,” said George Boulton, a retired florist who is leading the drive to pass the bond. “We just need to leave for future generations the legacy of a quality library. … We can not expect people to come into this community and not have the library that they deserve.”
Supporters say the 20-year bond will cost homeowners approximately 18 cents per $1,000 of their homes’ assessed value. That means the owner of a $300,000 home would pay $54 a year in property taxes.
A similar measure failed in 2000, but Boulton is optimistic it will pass this time. No opposition groups have formed and promoters have talked up the measure to civic groups and at festivals and school open houses. The City Council also decided to back the bond.
Retired engineer Brian Laine is skeptical of some of the claims promoters have made regarding the need for a new library.
“There’s no doubt the library’s been there 25 years and it’s beyond capacity,” he said. “It’s just after looking at the library, I had doubts about whether we really need one that’s four times the size of the existing one.”
Nonetheless, Laine said he will probably vote to pass the bond.
Reporter Kaitlin Manry: 425-339-3292 or kmanry@heraldnet.com.
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