Board mulls bond issue to pay for library addition

Voters in the school district authorized the bond issue in May.
COLUMBIANA -- The city school board will consider borrowing $1 million to pay for constructing and equipping an addition to the Columbiana Public Library.
The board would borrow the money by issuing bonds. The bond issue measure is on the school board's agenda for its meeting at 5:30 p.m. today.
Anticipating passage: Carol Cobbs, library director, said Tuesday she anticipates the board will pass the measure because school district voters approved a 10-year, 1.03-mill bond issue in the May 8 primary.
The school board must authorize issuing the bonds because the library is linked to the school district. The school board appoints members to the library's seven-member governing board, Cobbs explained.
The library must go through the school board on matters such as issuing bonds.
Groundbreaking on the 5,000-square-foot addition is expected to be in the spring. Once it's under way, construction will take about a year to finish.
The structure will be built on the east side of the library, at 332 N. Middle St. The $1 million bond issue is expected to fund the cost of building and equipping the addition.
Need for space: Library officials say the additional space is needed because the institution has run out of room for its growing collection of books, videocassettes, compact discs and other materials.
Adding more shelves to the facility is not an option because that would reduce maneuvering space for patrons who use wheelchairs.
More than 350 people visit the library daily.
Also included on the school board's agenda is consideration of hiring a head high school girls basketball coach, a yearbook adviser and 10 substitute teachers.