Stony Point library workers urge voters to support major expansion project

To renovate the larger building, trustees are asking voters to approve a budget increase this November of $1.5 million a year for the next 10 years.

News 12 Staff

Jul 6, 2022, 9:28 PM

Updated 903 days ago

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Stony Point voters will decide in November on whether to raise taxes to replace their small library with one that's four-times bigger.
Rose Memorial Library Director Alice Meacham wants to turn a vacant, 125-year-old building into a 12,000-square-foot space of learning. The town's current library is a quarter of that size.
"The library has its work cut out for it,” Meacham says. “We're in a building we outgrew 20, 30 years ago. It's a really difficult state of affairs over there."
The new library would have an art studio, office space, storage space and a large fourth-floor room for children and teens.
The current library barely has any storage space, and its small children's area is in a windowless basement.
To renovate the larger building, trustees are asking voters to approve a budget increase this November of $1.5 million a year for the next 10 years.
Meacham estimates some homeowners would pay an extra $100 to $250 a year in taxes.
Some Stony Point residents say they aren’t sold on the proposal.
Local business owner Stephanie Compres says taxes on her home are already at $14,000 a year.
"There are a lot of people who have houses we cannot afford. There's a lot of people who are moving out of town because of that,” she says.
Meacham says she needs to work harder to inform certain people.
"We know that a group that doesn't utilize the library as much is that 18-to-50 group. There's so much to offer,” she says.
In 2017, before Meacham became the director, the library asked for an amount half of what they're asking for now to renovate the building — and voters said no.
Meacham says while election laws prevent her from campaigning and collecting signatures, she will hold community meetings. She says she’s reaching out to the Rotary Club, senior groups and the Girl Scouts.