Pierce County Library System announcement.
PIERCE COUNTY, Washington – The Pierce County Library System Board of Trustees and Lakewood City Council will hold a joint meeting Thursday, Nov. 17, from 6-7 p.m., at Lakewood City Hall in Council Chambers, 6000 Main St. SW.
At the joint meeting, the Lakewood Library Building Community Advisory Committee will share its recommendations for quality library services for a downtown Lakewood building and a Tillicum neighborhood building. For the past five months, the 12-member volunteer committee has been reviewing and analyzing information about the libraries from Library System administrators, city building officials, engineers, architects and other professionals.
Attend the meeting in person or join via Zoom (dial 253-215-8782 and enter meeting ID: 868 7263 2373). The meeting will also stream live on the city’s YouTube channel.
In creating the recommendations, committee members discussed their values for quality library services. This included location and accessibility, right-sized for services important to the community, the ability to offer contemporary library services, and flexibility to adapt space for future services. Members also reviewed input from more than 2,000 people who responded to a survey this summer about library services. Resident feedback was collected at public events such as the Lakewood Farmers Market, interviews with community leaders, and comments in emails and at meetings. The committee also reviewed input the Library System gathered from the community in 2019.
Two representatives from the committee will present the Community Advisory Committee’s recommendations at the joint meeting. The Board of Trustees will determine next step.
Sandra says
Who monitors the work of the board of trustees? How are they chosen? It would appear that over the history of the Lakewood library the board(s) did not conduct due diligence regarding repairs, updates and preventive maintenance to the point that the beautiful, custom designed building is no longer worth the cost of repairs and upgrades. Taxpayers want to be able to trust those who are custodians of their community resources.
Walter Neary says
Regarding your question about the accountability of the library board, I tried to answer that here: https://thesubtimes.com/2022/06/08/letter-the-least-accountable-government-in-the-county/