A few weeks after Election Day, Grand Forks residents will be asked to weigh in on the topic of another election: Whether to build a new library and, if so, what kind of library it would be.
The Community Foundation is working to collect input. On Monday, the group asked for and was pledged the help of area news media to put the library on their agenda and get residents thinking about the issue more starting next week.
The foundation will then ask residents to participate through two forums scheduled the week of Nov. 15, Internet questionnaires and a random survey of 600. Results would be released the beginning of January.
Kristi Mishler, the foundation's executive director, said the group isn't taking a side on the matter. The point is to have a discussion and let residents decide, she said.
Mishler and library Director Wendy Wendt listed some key questions that need answering: Where to build the new library? Should it be one big library or many smaller branch libraries? What kind of technology should it bring to the table? What features should it have?
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The library board pegged costs at about $18.8 million in July when it decided to postpone a vote on the library until April to have more time to gather the kind of input the City Council wanted. The vote would be on a ½-percent sales tax that would end in 5½ years. The current library near the Grand Cities Mall on South Washington Street is widely considered to be outdated and far too small for the level of activity.
