Library draws crowd as eviction looms

PINE PLAINS — A large crowd of concerned residents packed the Stissing Mountain High School cafeteria during a special Town Board meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 26, to voice their opinions on the future of the Pine Plains library building.In January, The Bank of Millbrook bought the building for $1.45 million during a foreclosure sale. The bank served eviction notices to the Pine Plains Free Library and Heart of Pine Plains (HoPP) community center, granting the tenants a three-month reprieve.The town has been in negotiations with the bank to possibly purchase the building, which was originally meant to be a gift from the Foundation for the Pine Plains Community Center and Library. According to a statement by the Town Board, the bank rejected the town’s initial offer, which was “much lower” than the asking price. The bank did not make a counter offer, but encouraged the town to make a higher one.“Our Town Board is very diverse,” Superviser Brian Coons said to start the meeting. “However, we are in agreement that we don’t want to burden the taxpayer by paying an exorbitant amount for that building. We want positive ideas on how we can continue our dialogue with the bank.”Numerous residents spoke throughout the evening, with some wishing to save the building and others suggesting that new homes could be found for the library and HoPP.Keep building, or find new one?John Reilly, an avid user of the library and HoPP, offered his time and services to help the town find a suitable location for the library and HoPP if the building isn’t purchased. He said he is working with a group to redevelop the commercial area around the gas station on Church Street, and the owners of that lot are willing to donate a portion of it to the town if an alternate building is desired.Reilly said he discussed with the owners the possibility of constructing a 2,400-square-foot single-story building built into a slope facing Pine Plains Fine Wine & Spirits and the VA Clinic. The backside of the building would actually be two stories, with the community center on the bottom floor. As for the existing building, Reilly said, “I don’t think it’s a wise investment.”Pine Plains resident Paul Murphy voiced his concerns regarding a possible tax increase.“I’m not saying the town doesn’t need a library, but does it need that library?” he asked. “It’s a great building and it’s used for many things, but we also need to be able to live, and I don’t know if I can afford it.”HoPP volunteer Dorean Gardner emphasized that the community center is “in use constantly” and is an outlet for residents of all ages, from teenagers to seniors.“I would not like to see municipal offices upstairs where the HoPP is,” she said. “If you do choose to purchase this building, if the people can see their way to fund something rather than have another Memorial Hall, another white elephant in our town, we can really work together to see if we can actually save something.”She also questioned whether the library is free or municipal. Library Director Marguerite Hill said at the Feb. 21 Town Board meeting that the library has been municipal since 1960, and the word “free” is in the name because the trustees at the time wanted the name to stay the same.“This is the crown jewel of Pine Plains,” resident Jan Stoutenburgh said of the building. “For us to let it go would be a sin. Find a way.”Pine Plains resident John Henry Low said he and his family love the library, and they donate to the FRIENDS of the Pine Plains Library every year. Low’s wife was a library trustee in the 1990s, and he said their original “plan A” at that time was to move the library to a 2,000-square-foot building, doubling its size.“Now we have an 8,000-square-foot building,” Low said. “We should seriously look back at plan A. We can’t afford 8,000 square feet.”Joan Redmond, a Pine Plains resident, outlined multiple concerns regarding the library building. Redmond said it’s expensive to operate; the new library space has no more room for books than the old building; HoPP activities can be heard in the library; the parking lot is too small and can’t expand; Town Hall couldn’t easily fit in the space; and the 1,000 square feet set aside for the Odd Fellows in the building can never be used by the town."All these shortcomings add up to a building that needs lots of work and significantly more money to adapt to the town’s needs," Redmond said. "Why buy a building with so many negatives if it can’t be acquired at a reasonable price? Why not move back to the old library building and work on developing a viable plan that does work at a cost that makes sense and is affordable?"Former town Supervisor Gregg Pulver outlined how he believed purchasing the building will not greatly affect taxpayers.“In a worst-case scenario, how much are we willing to pay? Is anybody willing to pay $1 a day? Fifty cents a day? How about 20 cents a day?” Pulver asked. “We ran some numbers, and at the worst-case scenario of $1.5 million — which I don’t believe it will be if you negotiate with the bank — at a proposed interest rate of 4.5 percent, 25-year term, annual debt service of $100,000, the Bank of Millbrook would pay a $207 increase in their taxes on their building. Jerry Chestney, who was president of the library board, would pay $99 a year more taxes on his house. [Councilman] Jim Jackson would pay $63 more a year. [Councilwoman] Sandra David would pay $70 more a year. [Councilman] George Keeler would pay $74 more a year. ... An average home comes to 20 cents a day, on top of everything else.”Pulver said these numbers were generated using the town’s current assessment roll. He noted there is also a chance to pursue grant money.The Town Board has previously stated that purchasing the building would result in an estimated 15 percent budget increase.Lynda Wisdo said everyone, including the town, is now “trying to play catch-up” since they weren’t involved with the building from the beginning.“I would love to see the building kept. Can I afford it? Can you? I don’t know,” she said, noting an alternative location for the library and HoPP would help with this conversation.“The best alternative in my mind is to move the library back to where it was, start considering other alternatives and let the bank take the darn thing, pay the property taxes and see what they can do with it,” Doug Kramer said.John Glenbock said the building is a white elephant, and the town should “move on and not consider it.”Lou Galm of Gallatin said, “It’s very important for a community to have a building like this. People see what your town is made of.”Jim Mara, the president of the library’s board of trustees, stated that services rendered — including patronage, circulation, programs and attendance — have all increased since the library moved into its new location in 2009.If the library must move back to its original location, Mara asked that the town “please get us out of there soon.”Odd FellowsA question was raised during the meeting regarding the Odd Fellows, the group that donated the land for the building to the town. As part of the deal, the Odd Fellows have the right of exclusive occupancy of 1,000 square feet in the building.Due to this issue, if an agreement with the Odd Fellows isn’t reached, “it’s going to make the building impossible to purchase,” Attorney to the Town Warren Replansky said. “The first issue that we raised with the bank when this came up was, ‘what are you going to do about the Odd Fellows?’ It still hasn’t been resolved.”Councilwoman David said it’s up to the bank, as the building’s owner, to come to a resolution with the Odd Fellows. Replansky said that if the purchase goes to public referendum, then that means the issue was resolved.“The Odd Fellows are not intractable. That means they are willing to change,” Mara said. “They have not established their position as an organization, but it is my conviction that they will give you what you need to close the deal. They’re not intractable, but they’re not going to allow that building to go out to another owner and lose their rights. They’re not the bad guys.”Coons ended the meeting by stating that the town will meet with the bank again, which will be followed by another public meeting.Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly attributed a quote made by Lynda Wisdo to Joan Redmond. Redmond does not support purchasing the library building.