By Noelle M. Steele, Daily Reporter
nsteele@greenfieldreporter.com
GREENFIELD -Sam Collins has been a Fortville resident for just two years, but when he strolls into the town's tiny public library, he feels at home.
There's nothing stately about the nearly 23-year-old one-story building whose doors he passes through each morning, but what Fortville-Vernon Township Public Library lacks in grandeur, it makes up for in hometown charm, he says.
"I kind of like it small like this," says Collins, 47. "(There's) a little bit of ownership."
But that ownership could change under a bill going before the Indiana General Assembly. Senate Bill 348, authored by Sen. Beverly Gard, R-Greenfield, allows county officials the option of consolidating all their library districts into one countywide system. In some counties, that could result in combining four or five districts, each of which might have multiple branches.
Locally, the bill could drive a merger between the small Fortville facility Collins enjoys and the 39,000 square-foot Hancock County Public Library, which is based in Greenfield and operates a branch in Sugar Creek Township. Fortville serves residents in Vernon Township, while HCPL caters to the rest of the county.
The bill itself is not what sparked the topic of consolidation, however, pointed out Gard. Essentially, the bill is a response to the 2007 Kernan-Shepard Commission report, which suggested a variety of methods for streamlining local government, including reducing the number of library districts in the state from 239 to 92.
Library officials balked at what they considered an overly cookie-cutter solution. While countywide systems would undoubtedly benefit some areas, it seemed counterintuitive to force libraries from varying communities into the same mold. The Indiana Public Library Coalition, which consisted of library representatives from across the state, formed in hopes of reaching a better solution, and thus, the groundwork for SB 348 was laid.
"Normally, libraries ... are very non-controversial," said Gard, who is an HCPL board member. "They don't like to rock the boat. The libraries have decided, much to their credit, they want to be proactive."
Specifically, they seek to put control back in the hands of community leaders they say know the needs of the areas they serve. Gard's bill first appeals to the Indiana State Library to lay down a statewide set of standards by July 1 that every library district must follow. It then calls for the formation of a planning committee for each county. The committee, comprised of local officials and representatives from each library district, would be faced with determining the best model for library service in the county.
"Our needs are different," said HCPL director Dianne Osborne, who served on the coalition. "We needed to do something about taking up our stand."
Committee members would have until July 1, 2010 to develop a plan that meets the newly developed state standards. The bill allows for several options for delivery of library service, including keeping multiple districts or consolidating.
The premise is to allow some state say-so in how libraries are run while maintaining autonomy.
"If the counties do not come up with a plan, the state library can develop a plan," Gard said. "That's the incentive for the counties to do it themselves."
Local library officials seem reluctant to say whether a merger here would be in county's best interest. Fortville Public Library director Richard Bell said he's had to tread lightly when discussing the topic before his board.
"A merger has been discussed at various points, and I got to tell you, the first time I mentioned it, I got a very cold response," he said. "They don't want, in essence, to turn over the keys to the facility before they know what they're getting."
Some benefits to coming under the HCPL umbrella are undeniable, Bell said. For example, a typical month of HCPL programming includes half a dozen children's and teen programs, as well as adult-centered activities and guest speakers. A glance at Fortville's Web site, on the other hand, reveals a stark calendar.
"It's been tougher for us to offer that programming to feel like it's cost efficient," Bell said, citing a lack of local daycare facilities as one reason few children in the area are available to attend daytime programs. "We didn't really have the budget to have that full-time children's librarian out there trying to market those services."
Also, there's been an increasing demand for the HCPL's Techmobile, a traveling bookmobile equipped with various types of media, including wireless Internet. While there have been requests for the Techmobile in Vernon Township, however, HCPL cannot authorize travel outside its district.
"Libraries aren't just about books anymore," Gard said. "Libraries play an integral part (in) education."
One drawback Bell finds to consolidation is the position in which it could place the Fortville library, which would essentially become an offshoot branch of the central office in Greenfield.
"Typically, branches are first to be threatened with cuts," he said. "All these communities have a little bit of identity that they're trying to maintain. There will always be a tension I think ... between the central branch and the outlying branch."
Among patrons, the tension doesn't seem to arise from the possibility of change so much as the fear the library could close all together. While the bill prohibits any library closures for three years, there's no guarantee of protection after the cut-off date.
In Fortville, patrons say they've grown accustomed to fewer resources in exchange for a more intimate atmosphere.
"It's definitely not updated like the Greenfield library," said 33-year-old Mikel Theobald, who lives in Fortville but is a patron at both libraries. "It feels small town versus big town. Maybe it's a little sentimental."
While Theobald takes her children to HCPL if she plans to be in the area, there's no beating a quick jaunt to the library just minutes away, she said.
Yet some Fortville-area residents opt for the longer drive to Greenfield. Between 2007 and 2008, HCPL reported a 15 percent increase in patrons from Vernon Township, a boost unequaled by any other area of the county.
It's too early to tell how the changes will be received should the bill pass and the committee vote for consolidation.
"Change is hard, and it's painful, and there are winners and losers," Bell said. "One of the anxieties we face is there may be more of that perception here ... in this community than will be experienced elsewhere in the county."