New library for Leonardtown - location?

[Restless]

I am so glad that the commissioners have agreed to build a new library in Leonardtown. The old one is too small, and has no land to be used for additional building.

There are two proposed sites for the new library. One is back in the area of Fenwick Street and Lawrence Avenue in downtown Leonardtown. In the County Times, Tommy McKay made the case for building it there. I believe he said that it would offer easy access from Fenwick Street, and Lawrence Avenue. Those streets are awfully narrow for the increased traffic that would come with putting the library back there! I wonder how the people that live along there feel about that. Also, there is an awful lot of traffic at the light at the corner of Route 245 and Rt. 5 now. This will only increase if the library is built further downtown. The article says there would be plenty of parking, but if the other two county libraries are any indication, there will not be enough parking. I'm not so sure that that is a good place for a library.

I think it would be easier to get to the library if it were build near the new elementary school on the Hayden property. Most of the people that use the current library drive to it themselves. They come from California, Hollywood, and the lower part of Mechanicsville. The Library Board wants the library built there as do many of those that work at the current library. They are the ones who know what is best for the new library because they are so intimately involved with the day-to-day operations.

As an add-on, I had to laugh when the article in the County Times said that if you are coming from the west, you could get to the library by boat. Just how many people would actually do that? Another humorous thing - building a convention center. I could be wrong, but who exactly would have need of a convention center way down here in St. Mary's?

Any-who, what do you think? Where should it go?

 

[kom526]

I read the county times article and I could go either way with the location. On the face of it, a downtown location would be less expensive without a doubt. The land for parking would be donated so that argument is 'somewhat' out the window. I would like to know where the 800-1000 people a day number comes from though. Also, keep in mind that the Leonardtown Library has been in two different re-purposed buildings in my lifetime and both of those facilities were found to be insufficient in the long run. :shrug:

As I look at the Hayden Farm Educational and Recreational Master Plan, there is no sight of either a library nor the Garvey Center. (Granted, this is the plan that was presented to the mayor and town council.) If they end up putting the library and senior center on that property you can pretty much eliminate four athletic fields, including the stadium/track. (Which is something that is not needed at that location.) I'm sure the Leonard's Grant and Clark's Rest folks will not mind all the new traffic as they cut through from Rt 5.

My take: Build it at the Hayden Farm site. Either way you are going to have people crying sour grapes but 20 years down the road, we will still have a library that, hopefully, has not outgrown itself which what I think we would end up with if it went in to the downtown location. Besides, did you think Tommy would be a proponent of the Hayden Farm site especially since his wife is the town administrator.

 

[alex]

The downtown area would be a traffic nightmare. What happens when the Town has all those special events and shuts down streets? The thing to remember is that the Town Administrator is married to the owner of the County Times so I think there is a lot of bias in that article. Also, the Town Vision has been going on for 10 plus years and not one thing has been built yet. Do you really think it will get done anytime soon? At the very beginning of this project over 4 years ago there was a big public forum with the county commissioners on options to place a new library, then the last bunch of commissioners just scraped the whole thing. I fail to see how a library, of all things, is going to revitalize the downtown. They need businesses and parking that people want first.

 

[Restless]

I didn't know Tommy McKay's wife was the Town Administrator. Now the article makes more sense!

 

[BlueOx77]

I didn't know Tommy McKay's wife was the Town Administrator. Now the article makes more sense!

I wouldn't call it an article, but more of a biased sales pitch.

 

[jrt_ms1995]

You asked for opinions; mine is different. A new library isn't needed, what's needed is less crap (computers & videos) in the current one.

 

[PrchJrkr]

You asked for opinions; mine is different. A new library isn't needed, what's needed is less crap (computers & videos) in the current one.

If you live in one of the more rural outlying areas, the technology at the library is a Godsend. A kid researching for a school paper can easily wipe out a home data allotment in a heartbeat. Some of us po' folks pay dearly for our access. I know ads pay for the upgrades, maintenance, and salaries, but some ads take more bandwidth than the page content.

 

[PrchJrkr]

I read the county times article and I could go either way with the location. On the face of it, a downtown location would be less expensive without a doubt. The land for parking would be donated so that argument is 'somewhat' out the window. I would like to know where the 800-1000 people a day number comes from though. Also, keep in mind that the Leonardtown Library has been in two different re-purposed buildings in my lifetime and both of those facilities were found to be insufficient in the long run. :shrug:

As I look at the Hayden Farm Educational and Recreational Master Plan, there is no sight of either a library nor the Garvey Center. (Granted, this is the plan that was presented to the mayor and town council.) If they end up putting the library and senior center on that property you can pretty much eliminate four athletic fields, including the stadium/track. (Which is something that is not needed at that location.) I'm sure the Leonard's Grant and Clark's Rest folks will not mind all the new traffic as they cut through from Rt 5.

My take: Build it at the Hayden Farm site. Either way you are going to have people crying sour grapes but 20 years down the road, we will still have a library that, hopefully, has not outgrown itself which what I think we would end up with if it went in to the downtown location. Besides, did you think Tommy would be a proponent of the Hayden Farm site especially since his wife is the town administrator.

I remember the library in the building that Chase Dentistry now occupies. You must be one a them thar :comedowners: or a youngin. I think they had like 4 books and 6, 3 year old crop reports. If I'm not mistaken, there was a Vote Kennedy and a George Aud bumper sticker in one window. Anyone remember "Let George Do It"?

 

[kom526]

I remember the library in the building that Chase Dentistry now occupies. You must be one a them thar :comedowners: I think they had like 4 books and 6, 3 year old crop reports. If I'm not mistaken, there was a Vote Kennedy and a George Aud bumper sticker in one window. Anyone remember "Let George Do It"?

You got a few years on me then hoss, been here all my life (south end) never hit the library in LP City until I was in middle school, maybe. *Call me a comedowner? WTF?!"?!?!?*

 

[PrchJrkr]

You got a few years on me then hoss, been here all my life (south end) never hit the library in LP City until I was in middle school, maybe. *Call me a comedowner? WTF?!"?!?!?*

Forgive my ass for showing. I just assumed you were older, because you seem to know Mikey fairly well, and he's older than river bank clay. Mikey remembers when Blackstone Island was 200+ acres and you could walk to it on low tide.

 

[kom526]

Forgive my ass for showing. I just assumed you were older, because you seem to know Mikey fairly well, and he's older than river bank clay. Mikey remembers when Blackstone Island was 200+ acres and you could walk to it on low tide.

Old people have history to share, and I felt sorry for the guy. You could damned near walk out to it this past winter when we had that week of NW winds. The wife was telling me of going to Tudor Hall when the library was there, I had no idea where Tudor Hall was until I was in my late teens.

 

[LtownTaxpayer]

Was the Hayden Farm annexed into Leonardtown for water and sewer? If so, the deviation from the master plan of two schools and athletic facilities to two schools, athletic facilities, AND library/Senior Center would be a material change and might require compensation due to the change in services required. So the old bunch of county commissioners overpaid for the land and the new bunch want to pack more onto the property.

Having said that, I totally agree that town can have traffic problems. The easiest thing for that would be actually building the road that was required to go by Leonard's Freehold and provide another access to Route 5. That road was actually supposed to be built BEFORE Leonard's Freehold was occupied. One of those HUD requirements that was never enforced.

LtownTaxpayer

 

[mitzi]

I believe he said that it would offer easy access from Fenwick Street, and Lawrence Avenue. Those streets are awfully narrow for the increased traffic that would come with putting the library back there! I wonder how the people that live along there feel about that.

I for one, would not to be happy about it all. I think it's a terrible idea. We have a pretty nice, quiet street now and this would ruin it. I go to the current library quite a bit and I don't see a thing wrong with it.

 

[ltown81]

The town is all about jamming as much stuff and traffic as they can downtown. They want 3 and 4 story buildings, and all new roads feeding into town, while also being walkable. It is really laughable how they are doing things.

Unless the old bank was somehow made the library, I am all for the Hayden Farm site. That is the kind of stuff that land is for, and it is less congested.

 

[resident21613]

The town is all about jamming as much stuff and traffic as they can downtown. They want 3 and 4 story buildings, and all new roads feeding into town, while also being walkable. It is really laughable how they are doing things.

Unless the old bank was somehow made the library, I am all for the Hayden Farm site. That is the kind of stuff that land is for, and it is less congested.

I am used to most libraries being built in downtown areas. It's convenient to be able to walk and get lunch and whatnot, but I can understand wanting it off of 245. Most small towns on the eastern shore have their libraries downtown and they are basically one of the main focal points of each town. I think they should either build fenwick extended for the downtown location or complete the rt 5 connection for leonards grant for the Hayden farm location. My only concern is that the Hayden farm location seems a bit more "sprawly". It might be nice if they could at least connect the Hayden farm property to downtown with sidewalks or paths along 245.

 

[Beta]

I for one, would not to be happy about it all. I think it's a terrible idea. We have a pretty nice, quiet street now and this would ruin it. I go to the current library quite a bit and I don't see a thing wrong with it.

As someone who goes to the library, what are the main functions it serves? I'm curious. Since most people can do their research online, is it mainly used by people with minimal access from home? Do people still go there to research or pick up books?

I ask because I'm surprised there's any kind of discussion about spending money on a library in this day and age. What "additional building" (first post) is required for a library that has likely decreased in use over the past 10-15 years? I'm not saying spending money on a library is a bad idea, if there's good reason. I'm just wondering what the reason is.

 

[awpitt]

Go with the Hayden property location. It's in close proximity to the current location so usage levels and accessibly are non-issues. The "downtown" location is too small. No thought about future expansion. Plus it relies on the idea of shared parking with the funeral home. That's a poor thought process in so many ways.

 

[sm8]

As someone who goes to the library, what are the main functions it serves? I'm curious. Since most people can do their research online, is it mainly used by people with minimal access from home? Do people still go there to research or pick up books?

I ask because I'm surprised there's any kind of discussion about spending money on a library in this day and age. What "additional building" (first post) is required for a library that has likely decreased in use over the past 10-15 years? I'm not saying spending money on a library is a bad idea, if there's good reason. I'm just wondering what the reason is.

http://www.stmalib.org/calendar-programs/calendar/

They hold quite a few weekly events there and also have meeting rooms.

 

[Restless]

As someone who goes to the library, what are the main functions it serves? I'm curious. Since most people can do their research online, is it mainly used by people with minimal access from home? Do people still go there to research or pick up books?

I ask because I'm surprised there's any kind of discussion about spending money on a library in this day and age. What "additional building" (first post) is required for a library that has likely decreased in use over the past 10-15 years? I'm not saying spending money on a library is a bad idea, if there's good reason. I'm just wondering what the reason is.

I go to the library at least once a week. My kids both went to story time there when they were little. The oldest one is 22 and the other is 15. Even back then the room used for story time was very, very crowded. Parking was at a premium too. Lots more people have moved to this area since then. The Leonardtown Library is a very busy place! A recent study found that it was visited by 800 - 1000 people per day. On the days when story time occurs, the kids area is full and can get really noisy! The computers are pretty full too. There is one room that is used for citizens to reserve for meetings for different organizations and groups. The waiting list is long.

There are many of us who just go there to get books to read. I do have an iPad that I could download books to, but I still prefer having a book in my hand. The books available are limited because they just don't have the space for more.

 

[lovinmaryland]

As someone who goes to the library, what are the main functions it serves? I'm curious. Since most people can do their research online, is it mainly used by people with minimal access from home? Do people still go there to research or pick up books?

I ask because I'm surprised there's any kind of discussion about spending money on a library in this day and age. What "additional building" (first post) is required for a library that has likely decreased in use over the past 10-15 years? I'm not saying spending money on a library is a bad idea, if there's good reason. I'm just wondering what the reason is.

There are times that Library is so busy...computer wise that you have a wait. There are a lot of teenagers...I know from experience...who dont have internet service at their homes and they go there for projects & reports that require internet.

They also do a lot of events for younger kids, kids that are home schooled, SAHM, retirees, etc...

Even w/ all that being said. I think there is plenty of room at the current library. They have a lot of areas that could be re-purposed to make space. They have a magazine area that is a HUGE room that is 90% of the time completely empty.