Ann Berget has asked me to post my answer
to her in response to her questions about the new Central Library.
Here it is. I apologize in advance for the length.
First
of all, regarding the sustainability goals: the proposed design should be able
to realize the principles articulated in the document provided by Tom Hysell
from Architectural Alliance. Everyone connected with the new Central
Library Building wants it to be as 'green' as it can be. The biggest
constraints will be time and money. The current budget only provides for a
basic building, that may or may not allow for all of the current state of the
art sustainability technology.
To my
knowledge, Mr. Pelli has not yet provided specific information about the
expected on-going costs of operating the energy systems because we are not
that far along yet in the design process. As we move forward it would
be the Architectural Alliance firm or the cost estimators from Mortenson/Thor who will
be providing those estimates.
Regarding what you call the "bonus" services, we actually see the
Teen Center and meetings rooms as "basic" for a 21st century
state-of-the-art public library. Since it is anticipated that the
staffing for the New Central Library will not need to be greater than the
staffing at the old Central Library, we believe that we will be able to sustain
"basic" programs and services. We also believe that
the current budget situation will improve in the next 5-8 years and so
we should not limit the possibilities for this Library based on today's
financial situation. There have been
a variety of documents prepared by the City's Finance Office in the
past few months that illustrate the problems currently facing the city and
how with budget restraint in the the next 5-8 years, the tax
revenue situation will improve. This information is in a
document entitled "Proposed City of Minneapolis Financial
Planning and Policy Resolution: Independent Boards, July 8, 2002, Exhibit A:
Ten-Year Annual Demand on Property Taxes" (for which I could not find a
link). And as you also may be aware, the Friends of the Library will
be raising at least $15 million form private sources for the new Central Library
building. We are hopeful that this effort will also help create
an on-going endowment which will provide additional revenue
for the Library.
You
were right about leakage problems at Walker
Library. However it would be very difficult to try to come
up with what has been spent over the years to remedy the problems since many of
the repairs as I understand it were done as part of other projects.
Thanks
for your interest in the Library!
Jan Feye-Stukas,
Acting Director
Minneapolis Public Library
250 Marquette Avenue
South
Minneapolis,
MN 55401
PH:
612-630-6202
FAX: 612-630-6210
Email:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
-----Original Message-----Thank you for this policy piece. Unfortunately this says nothing specific about how effectively the proposed design can realize these principles.
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Friday, October 04, 2002 7:58 AM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Re: [Mpls] Library green/sustainability goals
When Mr. Pelli presented this proposal to the Implementation Committee, did he provide any written material discussing the operational energy efficiency and maintenance costs that he envisions for the building?
Also, how would the "bonus" services at this site - teen center, community space - be impacted by the kinds of cuts that the Lib. Board is currently considering for the system as a whole? Would this building be held harmless from such future reductions if the community steps up with the additional dollars needed to build it? If so, how?
Just a note: An earlier turf-rooftop design (Walker Branch Library) was celebrated for its creative design when it was built, but was plagued with serious and expensive leakage problems from the day it opened. Perhaps Carol Becker, our number-wise list member, can provide info on how much money was spent over the years to attempt to remedy the design problem at Walker?
Just a note 2: It is interesting that - according to the Strib article - the enthusiastic crowd at Tuesday's unveiling was apparently made up of a majority of non-city residents. Hope this isn't a case of "It's a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there."
Ann Berget
Kingfield
