Should the Main Library Be Torn Down and Moved?

Request for Qualifications Hints Someone Wants to Move Main Library
Click here to read the Request for Qualifications sent to developers and others about possibly tearing down City Hall and the Main Library and building new structures.

Did you know that the RFQ also raises the possibility that the Main Library could be moved out of being near City Hall?

I am here to tell you that the City Council NEVER held a public meeting that included hearing from the community about what the City should do (if anything) concerning the Main Library (or City Hall for that matter). Nor did anyone sit down with the City's library staff and ask for their ideas.

So my concern is that unless the public starts speaking up about the future of the Main Library that by the end of July, developers and designers will present proposals that instead of saying "fix, repair and refurbish" both City Hall and the Library, promote the idea that the Main Library should be torn down and moved away from City Hall. 

I am holding a Community Meeting on "Visioning the Future for the Main Library" Meeting Set for Saturday, June 29, 2013 at 12:30 pm in El Dorado Library Community Room. El Dorado Library is located at 2900 N. Studebaker Road.

I called the meeting after several residents expressed concern that the public had not be given the opportunity early in the process of discussing what they want and that the process would be developer driven.

 Since its beginning, the City of Long Beach has had a main library either in or adjacent to its downtown City Hall. The RFQ states about the Main Library: "Rebuild or relocate within the Downtown area the existing Main Library with a modern facility that meets current user needs and use patterns, giving it a more prominent identity and enhancing efficiencies."

 Once the City Council receives all the responses to the RFQ and their proposals, the Council will have to decide what to do with the current City Hall, Main Library, and old courthouse.

While I personally think the City should retrofit and refurbish the Civic Center and Library which would be less costly, I really think it is important that the residents provide input on what they want these facilities to look like and what services they should provide and where they should be provided. I invite the public to attend so we can have this discussion.

Thanks for reading. Have a great weekend. I look forward to seeing you at the public meeting.