Recent Library Board meeting tame in comparison.

Last nights public forum was a tame event as the board voted in favor of the wording on the ballot and allowed members of the community to voice their concerns over the new library.

Gerald Schaeffer, Universal Design Associates, and Bill Sheneyfelt, the retained counsel for the board, were asked to go over the project’s design and financials for those present.

Sheneyfelt reiterated that the cost per tax payer’s $100 of assessed net value of their property would be $.0524. During the public portion Tom Birk announced that basically that would mean someone with an assessed net property value of $100,000 would pay an additional $50 to $60 in property taxes.

The general consensus of the public present at the meeting was to allow the decision to be placed in the hands of the voters in November.

The board voted 6-1 in favor of the wording on the ballot.

Jim Sueffert the lone opposing member of the board, contended that postponing the issue until the 2012 election would allow for a greater turnout due to it being a national election year.

At the end of the meeting Sheneyfelt, foreseeing the potential for campaigns pro- and anti- bond from the board members and library employees, reviewed the state statute regarding those campaigns. The statute basically states that individuals working outside of the board cannot use any of the resources available to the board to forward their agenda, employees can’t promote their opinion during work hours, and both sides are to be allowed equal access to facilities for meetings.