Goshen Public Library & Historical Society | 203 Main St Goshen, NY 10924 | Phone: 845.294.6606 | Fax: 845.294.7158 | RCLS Member
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Library Purchases 5 acre site
By plnkh | January 26, 2007
The following press release was sent to the local papers by the library board:
On December 26 the Goshen Public Library and Historical Society took its first step toward a new library that will serve the needs of our community well into the future. We closed on the purchase of a five acre parcel of land adjacent to the Salesian Park.
The $600,000 purchase price is financed by a two year, interest only mortgage provided by Union State Bank. This mortgage allows the Library the time we need–24 months–to embark on a capital campaign that will raise philanthropic funds to cover the cost of the land. Capital campaign fund raising will also help to pay for a portion of the new construction. The balance of the construction will be financed through a public referendum to be held within the next two years.
The Library is taking this important step forward because we were encouraged to do so by community leaders. The need for a new library was clearly defined by the community advisory committee that helped draft the strategic plan we published in 2005. (You can download a copy of the plan from our website, http://goshenpubliclibrary.org )
Since the owner of the site was unwilling to accept the contingencies required to put the purchase to a referendum, we moved quickly to secure the site for our community’s future. The location and cost meet all the parameters established by community groups (site selection committee, community advisory group, Library Board) for the location of the library and protects the remaining village parcel of the historic Salesian land from development.
After researching all the legal options, it was determined that the Library, acting on behalf of the community, has the authority to use any library assets to purchase land. The Salesian acreage is appraised at $615,000, and has an equalized village assessment of $686.00–the purchase price is a good value and will appreciate as a community asset over time. The mortgage payments will be paid from the Library’s operating budget of $1,078,316 which was approved by taxpayer in April 2006. That budget approval included a line for new building expenses.
Inherent in the Library’s plan for a new building is the sale of our present historic 1918 home. The Library has already been approached by more than one party interested in purchasing the building to preserve it. Our current site is appraised at $730,000 with an equalized village assessment of $1,194,545. The proceeds of the sale will be added to the capital campaign funds and used to pay down the cost of the new building. In addition, when sold, the building most likely will be added to the village tax tables.
Topics: Building |
January 31st, 2007 at 6:38:02 am
I support a new library for the Goshen community and
thank those who are stepping forward to make it happen.
My questions and concerns are as follows:
1) The future library site appears to be located in one of the
most traffic congested areas in the village. With the future
park, county building, Craigville park and future housing
developments located in the same vicinity makes for a traffic
nightmare. In regard to long term growth of the Goshen
community, it appears to me that community leaders and planners
need to think outside of the box and not position community
resources within the confines of the village.
2) If planning for a new library is 13 years in the making why
wait until after the purchase of the land to start the capital
campaign? How much money has been “put aside” to pay for the new
library?
3) 50 parking spaces —- seems inadequate. In addition to
our growing community, a new library will attract people from
other communities. Unlike the current library there will not
be easily accessible street parking.
4) What is the anticipated completion date of the future library?
5) Has the Goshen Library planning committee visited the
Suffern Free Library as well as meet with members of their
planning committee? The Suffern library is an excellent
example to go by and perhaps learn from their planners. One
could only hope that our new libary will be half as great as
Suffern’s.
I appreciate your reply to my questions and concerns.
Thank you.
February 5th, 2007 at 12:32:23 pm
Mary
Thank you for supporting our new library. I’m grateful that you’ve logged on to our website and are reading my blog. I’m happy to answer your questions.
First, our timeline for completing the new building is three to five years. The land we purchased—part of the old Salesian estate—is walkable from most parts of town. We wanted to keep the accessibility to the library as high as possible and this location does just that. We’re a small town with an infrastructure that reflects our roots yet our population is growing and, as you know, Goshen is also the county seat. There is bound to be traffic issues in just about any location. However, we’re very aware of the need to improve traffic in that area and ease congestion at the busiest times of the day.
We won’t be building a new access road to the library but will be improving the road presently used to access the park which you will also you to get to the new library. What will also help is that the peak traffic times (when people are coming and going to work) do not coincide with the peak usage times of the library—so rest assured, our traffic will not add to the congestion we all experience in the morning and afternoon rush hours.
We wouldn’t be responsible stewards of the philanthropic dollars we will raise if we began a Capital Campaign before knowing the location, having the plans and determining the costs for the new building. We now have a location. The architectural plans are almost complete and we’ll be unveiling them to the public shortly. With those final plans, comes the price tag for this project. While we have $74,000 in our capital reserve fund, we have now embarked on a campaign to raise 20 to 25 percent of those costs privately to ease the burden on your hard-earned tax dollars. Our initial discussions with a number of Goshen families who are interested in supporting this effort have been very successful and we are confident in the capital campaign’s long-term success.
You are right—50 parking places may not be enough and we’re working with our architect to maximize our parking potential. However, when we are faced with overflow parking situations, we are developing an agreement with the town to use the parking lot in the park which is adjacent to our land. We are also working with our architect to make that connection an easy, safe and well-lit walk from one space to another.
Visiting new libraries was an integral part of our planning process. We’ve been to Suffern, to new libraries in Rockland, Orange, Putnam and Albany counties and to others across the state. We were greatly influenced by their innovations and have taken the best practices of each of those new libraries and integrated them into the plans for our new building. I’m sure you’ll be quite pleased with what our new library will be and what it will mean for our community.
Again, thank you for your questions and your support. Let me know if there’s any other information that you’d like.
–Pauline