Library project worth pursuing

By Chronicle Editor

Like all growing communities, Bozeman is up to its eyeballs in public works needs: a new jail, major high school renovations (maybe even a new school), a whole litany of infrastructure improvements -- and a new library.

The campaign to build a new library has been perhaps the most frustrating because it is tantalizingly close to fruition but was seemingly stalled. Fund-raising for the $14 million project was stuck at $9.6 million until an anonymous $1 million donor was announced Tuesday. Adding to the discouragement has been a scaleback in the original plan to meet rising projected construction costs with yet another scaleback under consideration even though the latest plan called for a "bare-bones" building.

The options are clear: scale the project back yet again, or redouble efforts to realize the original dream of building the best library this city can afford. On Tuesday, the Library Board of Trustees opted for the latter, and they are to be commended for that. Now, construction needs to begin to take advantage of what will likely be the lowest cost of building materials that can be expected anytime soon.

This is a project worth seeing through to the end. As a university town, Bozeman is uniquely rich in literary culture and deserves a first-class library. The location chosen for the new building is situated on the rapidly and elegantly developing east end of downtown and the new building could make an emphatic statement about our city and contribute to the ongoing enhancement of the downtown area.

Raising the funds for this project has hit a few snags, but the $10 million-plus raised so far is a remarkable amount of money. It's a testament to Bozeman's citizens' desire for a first-class library and their commitment to get it done. A significant part of the money raised so far is a $4 million bond issue approved by Bozeman voters three years ago, and those voters may have to be asked again to get this project done.

A substantial amount of the money available -- $2 million or more -- is tied up in the existing library and won't be freed until the library can be moved to its new location. City commissioners are in a position to make that money available sooner on the contingency that it is repaid later and there's no reason they shouldn't do so.

Per capita library-use rate here is the highest in the state, and the existing library has seriously outgrown the space available at its Rouse and Lamme location. A new library must be large enough to meet needs well into the future. That means knuckling under now and sticking to the plan.

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