Letters to the editor
Published: August 31, 2008 Dothan Eagle

I attended the Dothan City Commission’s recent work session designed to discuss the proposed new Houston-Love Memorial Library. As I and others feared, the commitment to building a new public library was pure politics: all talk and no action.

As long as the public library is only a priority when there is money left over from other government functions and obligations, Dothan will never have a new public library.

The commission’s meeting work session essentially postponed plans for immediate action on a new facility. The reason? Tax revenues are down and the city cannot meet its already-committed obligations.

A good reason, yes, but if the city was really committed to a new library, priorities would be aligned to get one built.

The city is committed to new ballfields because the fields at an existing recreation center are too small, too cramped and not conducive to tournaments. Those fields are about as old as the current library — but those are not the only fields in Dothan, as they were 40 years ago.

Modernization has occurred in recreation. What about modernization for the library? There is no need to pit library and recreation against each other. Both are important functions and responsibilities of a city.

As an outsider to the months of meetings and planning by the library’s major promoters, I am of the opinion that the city commission has not acted in good faith. The city commission is committed to a new public library in words only, not in deeds. I suggest that the commission meet quarterly in the public meeting room at Houston-Love Memorial Library and that they make sure that the public library is one of the stops made when prospective businesses and industries come scouting for new locations. Priorities might then realign.

Corporations are used to decent and functional public libraries in cities in which they locate. Public libraries are an indication of the importance a city places on an educated community and an indication of a city’s commitment to providing educational/intellectual opportunities for its citizens.

H.G. Wells said, “Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe.”

To paraphrase, Dothan’s history becomes more and more a race between education (a library being just one facet of it) and catastrophe (a stunted city lacking stability and growth potential due to an inadequately educated constituency).

Cindy Aman
Dothan

Why we need a new public library

by Sharman Burson Ramsey

A friend tells the story of taking her child to the > Houston-Love > Memorial Library's Children's Library. The little girl had to use the bathroom facilities and when she opened the door she turned to her mother incredulously and asked, "You want me to use that?"

I must say, as a native Dothanian, that statement caused me to take another look at the building I had taken for granted. I had also noticed that you had to back up against

the back wall to shut the door in the ladies room and that the facilities were quite definitely worn from wear, but that little girl and her mother were new to Dothan. That which we natives had come to accept as the natural aging of a sort of family member, they saw as nasty, poorly maintained and unacceptable.

I then started looking at the living room of our community through fresh eyes. Probably each of us from every walk of life has walked through those doors at one time or another.

One wonders, how did Great Aunt Agatha - our library - wind up sequestered in the attic accepting with gracious dignity and humble gratitude the crumbs from the table left over after every other spending project our elected commissions have chosen to fund?

Calmly and graciously, though her carpet is threadbare, held together with duct tape and her facilities are barely adequate, she welcomes with the best of her resources dignitaries who are considering bringing businesses to our community, young people who might settle bringing their young families, retirees who might settle here who
see libraries as a central focus of activities and resources.

What must they think of us?

That little girl's fresh perspective should enlighten us all. One need only visit Panama City's new library to see what is possible when a community has leadership that has a vision for more than sports facilities.

As the fundraising chairman for the Friends of the Houston-Love Library, I do not come to the community asking for help. Indeed, as a community, we are like a family and I will merely say our Great Aunt Agatha is in dire straits and we are merely offering our family the opportunity to join us in building her a home worthy of what we expect of
her, a place where we can visit, bring friends, and not be ashamed of how we have allowed that home that belongs to us all to become so shabby.

Dear Great-Aunt Agatha has provided temporary shelter from the rain to the homeless, comfort to the blind through audio, Braille and large print books, opportunities to job seekers and students through computers, family information and preservation of local history through local history room with its genealogy books, engendered the
love of books in children in her children's library through its many programs, welcomed us for meetings and provided videos for education and entertainment. With quiet dignity she continues to nurture us in her current gentile poverty. But she deserves more respect.

The library has a "shovel-ready" plan that only needs property on which to build and the money to finance the project. In this time of people needing work and money coming available for infrastructure projects, may I suggest that our forward-thinking public officials might hasten off to the portals of government and present our project as one
that will immediately put people to work on a project worthy of their investment?

My own personal hope would be that the "living room" of our community would remain at its heart and that someone would hear our request that land be donated for that purpose. What better memorial to a loved one than donating property or a room to perpetually memorialize that individual in the stones and bricks of a building that will contribute
so much to those who enter?

We'll have lots of opportunities to participate in events to contribute to Great Aunt Agatha upkeep: First Wednesday speaker lunches at the Basketcase beginning in April; Dothan Superstar, a talent competition from middle school to young adult with tryouts in July and the final competition in August; a Landmark/Library picnic featuring the talented
Maddox family in September.

While those events are great opportunities for our Dothan family to unify and gather, those fundraisers will do little more than mend the grand lady's shabby garments. The patriarchs of our Dothan family who manage our community funds have for too long forgotten Great Aunt Agatha and her ever-expanding family responsibilities. To them, I
say, isn't it time she got a new home to continue all the kind services she performs for us?

Perhaps it takes a child to lead us.

For more information on projects and how you can participate contact the library or join Houston-Love Library Friends on Facebook.

Sharman Ramsey is chairman of fundraising for the Friends of the Library.

Committee sees breakdown of potential new library

By Lance Griffin

The new Houston-Love Memorial Library will be more than just a collection of books. The library’s director envisions a community magnet that includes separate sections for adults, teens and children, public meeting rooms, computer labs, a business center, a coffee shop and enough space to adapt to changing technology over the next two decades.

Director Betty Forbus presented conceptual renderings Friday of what a new library could look like during the meeting of the local Library Committee. The renderings, drawn by Davis Architects of Birmingham, allow for a 60,000-square-foot facility with an overall cost of about $16.5 million.

“It is essential that we plan not only for needs today, but what potentially could come on the horizon over the next 20 years,” Forbus said.

Forbus said she has been studying all public libraries which have been built in the last 10 years in Alabama, Florida and Georgia to find common themes and determine what worked and what didn’t. New libraries in Fairhope and Florence in Alabama as well as Panama City in Florida were among those studied. Forbus said several other factors were considered, including discussions with building consultants and data from surveys and demographics projections.

The possible space breakdown for a new library includes 21,000 square feet for books and multi-media, 5,760 square feet for seating, 2,900 square feet for the circulation/checkout area, 2,650 square feet for a community meeting room area, 1,050 square feet for a 21-station computer lab, 1,550 square feet for a business center, coffee shop and a friends book sale room, 1,350 square feet for cassettes for the blind collection, 1,910 square feet for the Bookmobile collection, 8,000 square feet for children’s area and programs, 16,000 square feet for adult services, 5,940 square feet for reference, 1,050 square feet for the teen area and 2,225 square feet for administration.

Committee chairman Taylor Barbaree said there is no way of knowing how the building will be configured until a construction site is determined, but determining space allocation is an essential step.

The committee adjourned into executive session for about 30 minutes to discuss land purchase options. Barbaree said the committee discussed multiple options for land purchase, with each of the properties located inside Ross clark Circle. However, Barbaree said the committee remains open to exploring other potential sites.

Barbaree said the committee does not have the power to purchase land. He said the committee’s purpose is to move the new library project forward and make recommendations to the Houston-Love Memorial Library Board and the Dothan City Commission.

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Conceptual renderings of a new Houston-Love Memorial Library can be seen at http://www.newdothanlibrary.com