JAMESTOWN – The James Prendergast Library is moving forward in the effort to establish a library district.
On Thursday the board approved a motion to proceed with filing the required paperwork needed to hold a public vote on the creation of a district. Board president Tom Rankin said the action is necessary if the board is to move forward with the effort to create a district.
“We are pursuing a district vote to seek community based funding and this will allow us to move forward with some applications that we have to fill out and paperwork that we have to do,” Rankin told WRFA following the meeting. He also reminded residents in Jamestown that the board is looking into establishing the district due to funding concerns in recent years, which include a reduction in aid from several sources.
“As has been seen the last few years, our main source of funding – the city – has been cutting aid for us,”Rankin said. “Local granting agencies are not as generous, for good reasons, but we can’t rely on them for operating expenses. So this is to seek community-based funding so we can sustain the library into the future.”
Rankin said that the proposed district would have the same boundaries as that of the Jamestown Public School District and when a vote takes place to see if the public wants to create the district, it will likely be during the annual school board election and budget vote, although it could also be at a later time to be determined.
Once a date has been established, the board will schedule informational meetings with the public to provide more information on the impact the district would have – including any annual rate payments.
NEW LOGO AND WEBSITE
The old Prendergast Library logo (top) and the new logo design (bottom) that was reviewed by the board on Jan. 21, 2016. The board approved the new logo, although the tagline “Preserving the Past. Focused on Your Future.” will likely be revised in February.
In other news the library will be launching a new website, complete with a new logo, in the coming weeks.
On Thursday the board approved moving forward with a new website design that executive director Tina Scott says will be more user friendly for patrons and also provide more flexibility in presenting content for the staff. The new website will likely be launched in the coming weeks.
The new logo is a multi-colored, modern design that Scott says will help to improve branding for the library as it progresses further into the 21st century and the digital age. It would also include a new tagline, although the board may revise the tagline, which is tentatively “Preserving the past. Focused on your future.” Some board members were interested in learning more about why the “preserving the past” portion of the tagline needed to be included. They’ve asked to see a revised version of the tagline and will review it during their next meeting in February.
In addition the board also approved a $5500 grant from the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation that will assist with renovating the children’s room. The board is hoping to remove the large circular desk in the reading room in order to create more space for children and their families. However, that would also require a significant amount of electrical rewiring, which would be covered, in part, by the grant.
Preserving the past should remain as part of the tag line. As we learn from our past as we proceed toward the future. Those who ignore the past are doomed to repeat it.