EXCLUSIVE: Library president talks about challenges inherent in developing a new library and affordable housing in one development

Saturday, December 7, 2024

An amazing 60 percent of San Juan Island’s nearly 7,000 residents carry a library card in their wallets. The library has robust book checkouts and runs tons of popular community programs, but it has outgrown its building and parking is difficult.

The library trustees bought 2-1/2 acres in a better location. Currently, the shell of the old one-story assisted living facility (unoccupied for more than five years) sits on the space the trustees want to build a new library.

Many residents want to see the library develop some affordable housing units on the 2-1/2 acres whenever the library starts building there.

This video is a discussion between host Jeff Noedel and guest Boyd Pratt, president of the San Juan Island Library Board of Trustees.

Beginning to (1:40) – San Juan Island has some of the highest per capita usage of all small town libraries in the State of Washington.

(3:00) – Two years ago the San Juan Library submitted a bond issue to voters to build the new modern library. Voters rejected the bond issue

(4:00) – Boyd hits the high points of the history of the San Juan Library, including the 1983 establishment of a junior taxing district for the library. The current library is now 9,800 square feet. In 2018, the Board began looking into another move to accommodate growth.

(7:40) – First mention of the 660 Spring Street property, 2-1/2 acres, which the library did buy. Standing on the property still is the former assisted living facility, which has been gutted.

(9:00) – Explanation of the pipe freeze in 2022 that created damage to the existing structure.

(10:18) – The former assisted living structure will be torn down; Boyd explains the reasons.

(11:55) – Was the water pipe break in 2022 a case of mismanagement of the property? Could the property have been more easily converted into housing AND a library before the water damage?

(13:40) – The insurance proceeds provided funds that were used to remove asbestos, a necessary and costly step in the demolition process. The asbestos removal project has been completed.

(14:20) – When will the old assisted living building be torn down?

(15:20) – Boyd says, “When you get into issues like… could we do affordable housing on the site? Yes, we’d really like to pursue that option and examine that. But we are obligated under the terms of the bond to pay it off and have full ownership before we can proceed with things like that.” (The bond balance is approximately $2 million.)

(16:00) – Where will that $2 million come from?

(16:25) – Boyd talks about the bond that failed in 2022. Why trustees feel it failed. Donations will play a bigger role. And the new building can be built incrementally, in stages, instead of all at once.

(18:00) – Boyd describes the trustees’ current deliberations, steps being taken to build a development plan for the Spring Street property. “Many ideas are being explored,” he said.

(20:00) – Are these meetings being held in public? (Boyd mentions a web page: https://www.sjlib.org/library-building-project/)

(21:30) – After the bond issue failed in 2022, the trustees held public meetings and learned citizens still want a new library. About that time, discussions with San Juan Community Home Trust for potential collaboration on the 2-1/2 acre site. (https://www.hometrust.org/)

(23:00) – Is it true that the beautiful library in Eastsound (Orcas Island, one of San Juan Island’s sister islands) was built with donated private funds?

(24:00) – But when talking about a new library coexisting with affordable housing units in the same development, Boyd says, “I will caution that we bought the property for a new library, and we cannot go beyond our mission of being a library board. We as a board cannot do affordable housing as as our own initiative. However, we are certainly partnering with other organizations on how to get there.”

(27:00) – On a wide spectrum of possible ways a library could coexist with affordable housing is the concept of the library being on the ground floor, and affordable housing being on one or more floors above. Joint ownership of a building gets very complicated.

(28:45) – Jeff mentions other challenges in building a multi-use building, including increased foot and vehicle traffic on the site as well as the complexity of financing virtually two buildings in one.

(32:00) – We have to mesh the different missions of the library and the Home Trust.

(32:15) – Regarding the pressure on the library trustees to include affordable housing, does some of the pressure derive from the fact that the building once did house people? And it still looks like a residential building.

(35:00) – When it comes to design and appearance from the street, Boyd says, “When we talk about the order of things, the library (visually) ought to be front and center.”

(37:30) – Boyd respects and appreciates proposals on how to repurpose the existing building, but proposals received so far have been either unrealistic financially, or unrealistic in subordinating the library’s needs to housing.

(38:45) – What is the timetable? When will we hear of major progress in this project?

(40:00) – The future library project is discussed in most every trustee meeting. The public can be deeply involved in the deliberations.

(41:00) – Back to the insurance settlement, can even more money be coming to the Board?

Jeff thanked Boyd for quickly agreeing to this interview, with no restrictions or conditions.

This video is 43-1/2 minutes in length.