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April 15, 2009 Dear Library Patrons, We know that you have been anxiously waiting to hear what the future holds for our main facility. With the recent ruling by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, we have much to share with you about what the ruling means and why it is positive news for your library. FEMA recently ruled that the current library building sustained damage greater than 50%. With this determination, by FEMA regulations, replacing the building is more cost effective than repairing it. With replacement, FEMA will cover the cost for a new “like-kind” building in a 90% federal/10% state sharing ratio. Remember, though, FEMA is a reimbursement process: we expend the dollars first, then we are reimbursed. Any incremental improvements to the form, function, and/or design that are made compared to the original building must be paid for locally. The Trustees believe that the greater than 50% damage determination is positive news. It provides a fresh start. To this end, the Trustees have requested City Council to file an application with the State and FEMA to seek approval for a permanent relocation of our new library. To understand why relocation is important, one must understand June 2008. News reports and communications relating to flood levels were constantly monitored. Sandbagging was already underway. Midday Wednesday, June 11th, the crest was changed to a potential 24.5 feet with a requirement: evacuate the downtown by 5 pm. Works teams including volunteers were assembled: to do more sandbagging; to move 40,000 books, materials, and computers to higher shelves; to take expensive electronic equipment and the Zerzanek children’s art collection to the 2nd floor. Plans were completed for a crest of 26 feet. It is hard to believe now but the library was fully open for business that week to approximately 1,200 patrons daily until the doors closed on Wednesday afternoon. By Thursday, the community was furiously racing to save the water plant substation and other locations not under mandatory evacuation. While some items were lost directly to floodwaters, a good portion of the collection was lost shortly thereafter due to humidity and mold. “What was saved?” people ask. Approximately 850 items from the irreplaceable Zerzanek children’s art collection were saved, including an original Dr. Seuss illustration dedicated to CRPL, half of which had been stored on the first floor. The entire children’s book collection on the second floor was saved because it was sealed off post flood. Before flood waters receded, staff worked with a preservation librarian from the University of Iowa to develop a plan for freeze drying. Nine pallets of materials were freeze dried, consisting of difficult to replace items like books of local and state history, plat books, laminated clipping files, maps, an obituary card catalog, and other miscellaneous items. Microfilm has been reproduced. These items are currently in storage until we have a large enough place to house them again. In 1993, water also took its toll, flooding our elevator and electrical systems. Demonstrating prior flooding impacts FEMA’s decision whether or not to approve relocation—could the library be subject to repetitive damage in any future floods. In short, the library is a special use building with large volumes of materials sensitive not only to water but the subsequent humidity and mold. Even after a flood protection system is in place, the question is: At what pre-defined flood stage do we execute a full fledged evacuation? How can this be acceptable for the “people’s university” serving over 120,000 residents? Quite simply, given a fresh new start, these are questions we never want to have to answer. American Nobel Prize winner, William Faulkner, spoke about the fictional setting of his novels, Yoknapatawpha County Mississippi, as his “little postage stamp” of land. Cedar Rapids has its library, its “little postage stamp,” dear to us and facing an exciting future. STAY TUNED!!! We’ll ask citizens to engage in public dialogues. Join us to plan and guide our public library to a safe, beautiful, and bright future. Sincerely yours, Cedar Rapids Public Library Board of Trustees Susan Corrigan, President Doug Elliott, Vice President Harriet Kalinsky Dennis McMenimen Joe Lock Susan McDermott Paul Pelletier Phyllis Fleming Hilery Livengood |