BY ANDY TAYLOR
chronicle@taylornews.org
CANEY — Fearing citizen rejection of future tax hikes, Caney city councilors Monday voted to forego a proposal to seek federal government funds for the construction of a new city library.
Councilors were unanimous to not seek $244,000 in grant funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development for library construction. Part of the financial package proposal was that the City of Caney would borrow $244,000 for the project and repay the loan at 4 1/8 percent interest over 30 years.
Repaying the loan would raise the city’s mill levy, also known as a tax rate, by about 1.5 mills (using current 2010 budget and valuation numbers) over the term of the loan.
Increasing the property tax burden by that level was too much for councilors to swallow.
“We don’t have that type of money to repay that type of loan,” said councilor April Coots.
The City of Caney has not increased its mill levy by more than 1.5 mills in many years, said city administrator Don Whitman, who admitted that a tax jump of that level during tough economic times would be difficult for the taxpayers.
“Given where we are with the city’s current financial condition and given what we already know about our sales tax collections, to increase taxes by 1.5 mills for the library and not what our other needs are going to be . . . is risky,” he said.
U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development has developed an initiative using federal stimulus funds to target construction of new libraries in rural communities. For years, the City of Caney has been seeking a larger location for the current library, which is housed in a 1,660-square-foot former grocery store building at Ridgeway and Fourth streets. Library patrons have been raising money for the past five years to assist with construction of a new library. As of Monday night, the library had about $230,000 in private donations and proceeds from benefit fundraisers committed to the construction of a new library. That private money would have been committed to the grant-loan package offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development.
The Caney Library Board of Trustees and Can-Kan Dreambuilders had put an $1 million-plus price tag on the construction of a new city library. However, library trustees — through a series of meetings with Mayor Dale McBride — had been talked out of that price level and were able to bring the anticipated construction costs down to $710,000.
That’s why the grant-loan package proposed Monday night would have required $244,000 in borrowed funds, $244,000 in a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant, and $230,000 from the library.
However, Charles Keath of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development office in Iola said Monday night that there was no guarantee that the city would receive $244,000 in grant money.
“There is a strong chance that the government will knock down the grant to about $200,000,” he said. “I would urge you to submit the grant for $244,000 and see what the national office does. I would also recommend that you put the bond (or loan) out for $300,000.”
However, councilors were cold to the prospects of increasing taxes to pay for a $300,000 loan at a time when the City of Caney is putting a tighter grip on spending.
Councilor Jason Moore said that if a bond or loan question for the construction of a new city library were submitted to city voters for approval, he predicted it would be turned down.
He said the similar sentiment prevailed about 10 years when city voters were asked whether to approve a similar grant-loan package for construction of a new city hall. That question was rejected by city voters, Moore recalled.
Moore also said some citizens had complained to him that the proposed library would include a community room for civic events. Meanwhile, the expansion of the Caney City Hall also includes a community room that, he said, was to be used not only for council meetings and municipal court proceedings but also other civic events.
Sandra Freidline, city library director, said she understood the situation differently. In a conversation with Mayor McBride recently (McBride was not present at Monday’s meeting), Freidline said she learned that the community room at the Caney City Hall would be used solely for city police, council meetings and municipal court.
“Then we have a gross misunderstanding of how that community room at City Hall is to be used,” said Moore, adding that the issue should be addressed by the council at its June meeting.
Moore also had concerns about the long-term operations cost of a new library. Even though a new structure would likely be more energy efficient than the existing library, a new and larger library comes with unanticipated operational costs that will require more money from local wallets, he said.
Joan Gordon, president of the Can-Kan Dreambuilders organization that raises money for the library’s construction, said she remained optimistic that a new community library would someday be built.
“We’ll just keep praying about it,” said Gordon, after the meeting. “God will point us in the right direction when He thinks the time is right.”
Despite turning down the grant application through U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development, councilors said they remained solidly in favor of a new library, albeit perhaps with a different funding plan.
“I agree that we need a new library,” said councilor April Coots. “I just don’t believe the citizens will go for a tax increase in this economy to pay for it.”
