Community Library’s spot in county system in peril

Community Library’s spot in county system is in peril

By Gail Peckler-Dziki
Correspondent

The Kenosha County Library System Board has sent letters to the village presidents of Paddock Lake, Twin Lakes and Silver Lake and the town chairmen of Randall and Salem, warning the budgeting process for next year is to begin and the Community Library isn’t in the picture.

Some time after the birth of the Community Library in Western Kenosha County, the law changed regarding the representation of libraries with a multiplicity of owners.

The Community Library began with an intergovernmental agreement between the villages of Silver Lake and Paddock Lake and the Town of Salem.

In the early 1990’s, the Village of Twin Lakes and Town of Randall joined the effort.

Salem is the largest municipality in the system, with more than 12,000 residents. Twin Lakes is next in size, followed by Randall, Paddock Lake and Silver Lake.

One way the municipalities sought to keep things on an even keel was for each to have two board members with the one state-required representative from the high school districts in the area. Wilmot would appoint one representative for three years, then Central would have its turn.

The Community Library is part of the Kenosha County System. That could be about to change.

State law regarding representation on the Community Library Board has changed, requiring the municipal membership be allotted by population.

That change would give the Town of Salem more members than the other communities.

This creates some difficulties.

First, in the past a long-term group of library leadership and board members created a situation where Salem appeared to be favored in the allotment of services despite the fact that all communities contributed to the funding of the library.

Second, since library board membership is voluntary and unpaid, it is hard to find residents who wish to sit on the board.

In order to continue to receive the state funding needed and to keep its place in the county system, the five involved communities must develop an agreement setting up board membership that is compliant with state law.

Last year, Salem developed an agreement that allowed the town to allocate some members to other communities.

Town Administrator Pat Casey had a verbal agreement from the Department of Public Instruction, which oversees libraries in Wisconsin.

Kathy Christensen, who is a member of both the Paddock Lake Village Board and Community Library Board, wrote to John DeBacher and requested a written approval of the plan.

No written approval was received.

Then Paddock Lake wrote an agreement that created a 10-member board, with a school district representative. All except Salem signed this agreement.

Salem put forth another agreement with nine representatives, working with DPI to refine it.

There has been no joint meeting of the municipal heads regarding the update of the agreement, as there was the last time in 2008.


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