Meeting set regarding library

Staff report

NORTH JACKSON

A public meeting concerning a proposed new Jackson-Milton public-library branch will be at 6 p.m. March 1 in the Jackson-Milton high school and middle school complex cafeteria, 13910 Mahoning Ave.

The proposed new library, estimated to cost about $1.4 million, was shelved in 2008, after a recession-induced decline in funding for the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County.

It would be built along Mahoning Avenue on land donated by the school district and located within walking distance of the middle- and high-school complex.

The new North Jackson building would replace the separate North Jackson and Lake Milton library branches, which the library system occupies rent-free but does not own.

Merging the branches is cost-efficient because utilities, maintenance, staff, computers and library materials no longer would have to be provided in two separate northwest county locations, said Janet Loew, library communications and public relations director.

The meeting will include an overview of the project, a tentative schedule for it, and an opportunity for local residents to share their ideas about the new branch.