Library Expansion Project Update

In an example of one of those coincidental "Aha!" moments arranged by the universe to make us chuckle, I received the third confirmation I was looking for last night on my previous thread regarding a change in the library expansion plan.

The confirmation came from the library itself.

TODAY.

Ahhh, coincidences.

The following is directly from a leaflet distributed by the library:


LIBRARY EXPANSION PROJECT UPDATE

Phoenixville Planning Commission Meeting
Thursday October 8
7 p.m. at Borough Hall
140 Church St.

PLAN TO ATTEND

*Site engineering, land development and a parking study are in process and the results will be presented to the Phoenixville Planning Commission.

*A traffic study was completed for the expansion project and presented to Phoenixville Borough.

*The new library addition will extend only to the south curb of Second Avenue.

*The new library addition will significantly improve access to information, preserve our historic Carnegie Library and enhance the neighborhood.

~~~~~~

The Phoenixville Public Library is at the heart of our community, providing a broad range of services and activities to improve community life.

END

The piece continues to appeal for support and requests contact with elected representatives.

The reverse side lists Council members, School Board members, Chester County Commissioners, Pennsylvania Legislators, and U.S. Legislators.

Taking a look at some of their chosen words, highlighted above, I offer a few comments.

Apparently, the library board believes closing Second Avenue, blocking the centuries-old grid layout of the borough, changing the traffic patterns which would divert hundreds of cars on to the children attractive Third Avenue, adding thousands more visitors to this small neighborhood, creating a parking nightmare for blocks in all directions, potentially delaying the response time of emergency responders, depreciation of property values, negatively impacting the quality of life for all neighbors, and building an out-of-proportion, monstrous sized building right in the middle of Second Avenue will "enhance the neighborhood".

Frankly, I'm almost at a loss for words. Where is the commonsense in this project?

"The Phoenixville Public Library is at the heart of our community...to improve community life."

For many years Reeves Park has been considered the showcase for the heart of the community. Our annual Dogwood Festival is held in it's confines, Flag Day celebrations, the Summer Music Concerts, the Community Day, weddings, birthdays, family picnics, romps in the playground area, baseball games, quiet time in the gazebo and the Sesquicentennial Pavilion, political visits and speeches from the bandshell, and much more.

In perpetuity, the Reeves family donated the gounds to US, for OUR enjoyment, and was never to be impinged upon by anyone or anything.

The Park never was and is not meant to be inaccessible from one corner or be hidden by a huge building. How does the above list of unalterable, valid concerns, the destruction of a neighborhood, and destroying the symmetry of Reeves Park improve Phoenixville's community life?

NOTHING about this plan resembles the benign, spoon-fed pablum from the library board.

After all that has been said on this issue, after all the words which have been written, there still remains the question, "WHY?"

This is one time I suggest we all take the libary board's recommendation.

Attend the Planning Commission meeting on October 8, 2009.