Rockrimmon Library to permanently close before the end of the year
Despite a large community turnout for the library and a late offer from the building landlord, the Pikes Peak Library District Board of Trustees voted 5-2 on Wednesday not to renew the lease for the Rockrimmon branch.
"This takes a lot out of us, emotionally and otherwise," said board President Dora Gonzalez, who said in a statement before the vote that the branch would close its doors at the end of November.
Rockrimmon Library is at the intersection of Vindicator Drive and South Rockrimmon Boulevard in the northwest part of Colorado Springs. It, along with the Ruth Holley branch, were identified in a facilities master plan as branches that might close if property tax revenue for the library district remains the same going forward.
Rockrimmon is in a leased building and on the west side of town, where there are more libraries by population, both factors that worked against it in the calculation for the cash-strapped district. In the meeting, PPLD Chief Financial Officer Randy Green said the district would have no money next year for capital projects and was sustaining its budget partly due to chronic staff vacancies.
Gonzalez said that the Rockrimmon branch was the most expensive lease for the district, which also incurs maintenance and cleaning costs.
Those reasons were not persuasive to many in attendance, who spoke for hours on the impact of the branch on the surrounding community.
"We've been to other locations, but Rockrimmon feels like family," said audience member Hannah Sutton, who said she brought her children to the branch at least twice a week.
Other audience members touted the branch's impact as a safe space for children after school, a meeting place for seniors and a location for needed services.
Building owner Ismet "Matt" Sahin, who said having a library helped him achieve a scholarship in America as an immigrant, unsuccessfully offered the board reduced rent on the property of about $28,000, a shorter lease term, an option to buy, and a guarantee to cover any continuing costs of flooding and sinkhole issues that have previously plagued the location.
"If anything should happen in the future, I would bear the responsibility," he said in the meeting.
City Councilman Dave Donelson attended the meeting in support of the library, saying he was surprised the decision had come so soon and that he had previously dissuaded community members from organizing before when he thought it would come next year.
Board member Debbie English who, along with Vice President Scott Taylor voted against the nonrenewal, echoed the sentiment that the decision came too soon for the public.
"I just want to pause for a year and make sure we're doing the right thing," she said.
Gonzalez said that the decision has had her in "angst," though she did not see another solution without long-term funding plans. She said the district was underfunded by 30% compared to the state average for library districts, and that the Rockrimmon branch had been under discussion for closure for years.
While no district employees are planned to be lost in the closure, Gonzalez acknowledged that the uncertainty and ongoing understaffing issues was "horrible on the staff."
