Commissioners Favor Repair Over Rebuild for Library

The borough Board of Commissioners favor renovating Haddonfield's 92-year-old library instead of building a new one, they said in a meeting last week.

The news was delivered when commissioner met with library officials who favored several concept-plans to build a new library.

"In the current climate, given all the other balancing priorities we have to look at, I think where we ought to be is what's called ADA plus," said Commissioner Ed Borden. "I think given the physical space that we have to work with, the ADA-plus option is the one I think can work."

ADA stands for the Americans with Disablities Act, which guarantees public facilities are accessible to the disabiled. Borden and Haddonfield's two other commissioners, Jeff Kasko and Mayor Tish Colombi both agreed with Borden. A plan they favor includes adding wider stairwells, handicapped accessible bathrooms, an elevator and other improvements to the nearly century-old building on Haddon Avenue and Tanner Street.

It's estimated to cost about $1.86 million.

The library board of trustees pitched four concepts for the construction of a new library to the commissioners over the summer. The total costs for the projects ranged from $6.1 million to $8.5 million. The public funding ranged from $3.6 million to $5.9 million. Three of the four concepts could have been located in a borough-owned lot on Clement Street. The fourth concept, one favored by the library board, could have been located on private land at the corner of Wilkins and Allen avenues.

"Three of the concepts envision a traditional approach: the borough would award a contract for the construction of a building that houses a public library," a previous statement from the library board said.

"The fourth concept envisions a public/private partnership under which an independent entity would facilitate the construction—on private property and by a private developer—of a multi-use building that includes not only a modern public library but also some other highly desirable community facilities. All four concepts call for financial contributions from private sources."

The ADA-plus option costs substaintally less. Library Director Susan Briant, who attended the meeting with commissioners, questioned the decision.

"I've seen a lot of towns waste a lot of money by rebuilding a first, second and third time and that's about what's going to happen here," Briant said. " I realize the economy is extremely difficult, but unfortunately the library is never the priority. This really isn't going to address what a town like Haddonfield needs."

Colombi said the commissioners are going to do everything they can to improve the library as quickly as they can.

"It could be years before we can do anything bigger," she said.