After decades of discussion, a county library location in Carrboro is still at least three years away.
At Tuesday’s Orange County Board of Commissioners meeting, the board received an update on the continuing effort between the county and Carrboro to choose a site for the Southern Branch Library.
Three sites were originally proposed: 1128 Hillsborough Rd., 401 Fidelity St. and 301 W. Main St.
According to a report from town staff, the West Main Street site — which is also the location of Carrboro Town Hall — was not a viable option because library traffic would further congest the area.
Jeff Thompson, the director of asset management services for the county, said county staff preferred the Hillsborough Road location because the property is adjacent to Martin Luther King Jr. Park. He said the proximity would promote the area as a center of community life.
“This site services existing and future populations,” he said.
But several participants voiced concerns that putting the library in a suburban area would neglect urban residents.
“I think the staff criteria are painfully biased against urban locations,” said Carrboro resident Patrick McDonough.
County Manager Frank Clifton said the desire for an urban library has come up in staff research, but that rural residents must also be considered.
“There’s an element that would like to see a very urbanized library,” he said. “But the county has a broader audience to reach.”
Commissioners also agreed that other locations should be considered, as requested in a letter from the Carrboro Board of Aldermen. They also agreed to consider making the library a multi-use space.
Nerys Levy, of Friends of the Carrboro Branch Library, said she has been working on this project for 23 years. She said definitive plans for the library need to be made soon.
“If we over-delay this, it will be another 10 years before we come to a consensus,” she said. “I would say, of course, let’s have dialogue, but the decision has to be made sometime soon because 15,000 adults in Orange County can’t read and write.”
The board will discuss the library further at an April 9 work session.
Notable
The board approved an agreement between Orange County Emergency Services and the Orange Rural Fire Department that will allow one county EMS ambulance to be placed at the Orange Rural Fire Department station on Phelps Road.
EMS director Jim Groves said this will help the county decrease response times to the northern part of the county.
Quotable
“This legislature seems to be moving like caster oil through the human body,” said Commissioner Barry Jacobs. Jacobs said the legislative process needs to be streamlined to get issues on the county’s agenda in a more timely manner.
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