The following letter to the editor concerning the new Reston Regional Library by Fairfax Library Advocate Kathy Kaplan was printed in the Reston Connection newspaper.
To the Editor:
In
January, 2015 the Library Board of Trustees was given a document from
the Department of Public Works that indicates Reston Regional Library
will be rebuilt at its current location. At the September, 2014 Library
Board meeting Library Director Sam Clay stated that a task force had
been appointed to oversee planning of the new library, and he had been
appointed to that task force. We would encourage Supervisor Cathy
Hudgins to inform the community about the composition of the task force
and to let us know how many Restonians are on it. Does the task force
include any members of the Reston Friends of the Library or any retired
librarians? Is our currently serving Hunter Mill Library Board member,
or any retired Library Board members on this task force?
We
would like to have information as to the size of the planned building.
Will it be part of a mixed-use building? What other uses are expected?
How many square feet will the library be? How many books will be shelved
there? How many meeting rooms will be provided? What space will be
allotted to the Friends of the Library for their book sales? Will there
be space for a library store like those used by Montgomery County to
sell donated and ex-library books? How many computers will be available?
How large will the children's section be and how many volumes will it
hold? How many dedicated parking spaces will be included in the plans?
Will there be a temporary facility provided during construction?
What
will be the projected cost of the new library? Will the $10M bond be
enough to cover a new building? If not, are there plans to add more
money to a bond referendum within the time frame necessary to use the
$10M bond funds currently available?
Will
the shelter be separate from the library with its own entrances? How
many people will the shelter be built to accommodate? Will there be
support services on site to provide assistance to the homeless
population?
The
2013 Beta Plan included elimination of library Youth Services and a
transition to digital-only libraries. In light of current research about
the problems of children retaining information read from digital
screens versus print books, will Reston Regional be built as a
digital-only library with minimal use of print books? (Please see
September 2013, Scientific American article, Why the Brain Prefers
Paper).
Ebooks
are not purchased by libraries. They are rented. In fact, they are not
even books; they are rented pieces of software that expire after a
prescribed number of checkouts. The cost-per-checkout (CPC) for ebooks
is at least four to ten times the cost for print books. County Executive
Ed Long just announced a large cut to the library in the FY2016 budget.
Will the configuration of the new library reflect a continuing reliance
on print materials since it is clear ebooks are beyond our budget?
Other
jurisdictions allow public outreach when community libraries are
renovated, redesigned and rebuilt. Will the Reston community be included
in the decisions about the future of our library?
Kathy Kaplan
Fairfax Library Advocates
Reston
http://www.reston-connection.com/news/2015/feb/25/letter-question-ask-about-library/
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