PORT HADLOCK — The Jefferson County Library will place a measure on the Aug. 16 ballot asking voters in the unincorporated part of the county to approve an $8.4 million bond to provide most of the funds for a $9 million expansion.
The 11,170-square-foot library at the corner of Ness’ Corner Road and Cedar Street needs more room, said Ray Serebrin, library director.
“Demand is exploding at the library,” he said Friday. “We’re setting phenomenal records in the amount of stuff people are checking out,” with overall use up 9 percent annually over the last three years, he said.
The library board last week approved the bond measure resolution for expansion of the building by some 86 percent, adding another 9,700 square feet.
20-year bond
If it is approved, the bond measure would cost the average property owner — one with property assessed at $250,000 — $44 annually in additional property tax for 20 years, the library director said.
It will be voted upon only by residents of unincorporated Jefferson County, both the east and west sides of the county. Those living in Port Townsend and Forks will not vote on the measure.
If the bond is approved, design work will begin this fall, with construction to start in spring 2013 and opening slated in late summer 2014.
Miller/Hull Architects of Seattle have created a conceptual plan but only to facilitate a cost estimate, Serebrin said, adding an architect won’t be hired for design work unless the bond passes.
Actual design will be accomplished with public input, Serebrin said.
Meetings are planned next month at the library at 620 Cedar Ave. in Port Hadlock, with one set for 6 p.m. Thursday, May 19, and another at 2 p.m. Wednesday, May 25.
A meeting also will be conducted in Quilcene in early June to get input from the south county residents, Serebrin said.
Capital campaign
In anticipation of bond approval by 60 percent plus one of the vote — a supermajority is needed to pass a bond — the board plans to begin a capital campaign to raise the remaining $600,000 for the expansion.
A silent campaign — in which prospective donors are approached one-on-one for contributions — will begin in May. A community campaign will start in July or August.
Even before beginning a formal capital campaign, the library has raised $153,000, Serebrin said.
“We’re a quarter of the way there, and we haven’t even started asking yet, so it feels very good,” he said. “It feels like there’s a tremendous amount of confidence in this project.”
As another example of confidence in the project, Serebrin pointed to a January opinion poll that found more than 67 percent of potential voters supported a bond measure.
The Nelson Report, a Salem, Ore., public opinion research firm, polled 373 people by phone, in what was a statistically valid survey, with a margin of error at plus or minus 5 percent, he said.
Library additions
Although plans could change, the idea now is to have three tutoring rooms, two multipurpose meeting rooms — one to be used as a technology training center, with the library doubling the number of computers — a large 120-seat community assembly room and an expanded children’s room.
The book and media collection would expand by 20 to 25 percent, Serebrin said, adding that 48 percent of the checkouts aren’t books but instead are CDs, DVDs, recorded books and other media.
Additional seating for quiet reading also is planned.
“Recent economic demands have accelerated the demand for materials, technology and services during the past two years,” Serebrin said. “We’re getting loved to death.
Top 3 percent
Hennen’s American Public Library Ratings ranked the county library in the top 3 percent for per capita usage for libraries its size nationwide, and in the top 5 percent nationwide for libraries its size for checkouts per hour.
Yearly averages show that 70 percent of county residents hold library cards, said Meredith Wagner, associate director.
In March, the library broke its usage record, Serebrin said. The previous high circulation was about 34,000 items per month. In March, circulation was more than 37,000.
The number of people who walked into the library increased to 185,314 in 2010 from 167,689 in 2009, Serebrin said. In 2008, the door count was 137,651.
Through 2030
The expansion would be expected to accommodate population and collection projections through the year 2030, said Susan Whitmire, board chairwoman.
Operations would expand, as well, but those would be funded with no additional taxes, Serebrin said.
“We have figured out how to handle operating costs within the context of the present budget,” he said.
In addition to services at the library building, the Jefferson County Library bookmobile travels to Brinnon, Cape George, Coyle, Gardiner, Port Ludlow, Quilcene and Paradise Bay.
The library provides service to the West End through reciprocal agreements with Timberland Regional Library, which has branches in Grays Harbor County, and the North Olympic Library System branch in Forks.
The Jefferson County Library reimburses those libraries for the cost of library cards for residents of the unincorporated county, about $60 per household, Serebrin said.
Those who want to contribute to the library’s building fund don’t have to wait for the capital campaign, Serebrin said.
Anybody who wants to contribute can contact the director at the main number, 360-385-6544, or send a donation to the Jefferson County Library, 620 Cedar Ave., Port Hadlock, WA 98339
For more information about the library, phone the main number or visit www.jclibrary.info.
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Managing Editor/News Leah Leach can be reached at 360-417-3531 or leah.leach@peninsuladailynews.com.