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Community Corner

Library Task Force Discusses Inviting Guest Speakers

Members of the Saucon Valley Library Task Force's consolidation committee discussed inviting representatives from the Office of Commonwealth Libraries and Bethlehem Area Public Library to speak and answer questions.

Members of the Saucon Valley Library Task Force's consolidation committee met Sept. 8 and discussed the possibility of inviting representatives from both the Office of Commonwealth Libraries and the Bethlehem Area Public Library (BAPL) to speak and answer questions at a future task force meeting.

Hellertown Public Library Director Robin Rotherham advocated for the idea of having guest speakers at the meeting.

"The Access PA program keeps coming up and I don’t have the answers to that, so it might be wise to invite someone from the Commonwealth Libraries to come to the task force," she said.

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The idea was well-received by other committee members, who agreed to work on compiling a list of questions to be addressed by the state’s library experts.

Both members of the public and the committee have also raised questions that are difficult to answer without a representative from the BAPL being present.

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Task force member Lynn Koehler is Lower Saucon Township's representative to the BAPL and a library trustee, but has not been present at the last few meetings.

Linda Robertson, a member of the BAPL board, suggested inviting an official representative of Bethlehem’s library to a meeting to address various questions and concerns that have been brought up. The committee was receptive to this idea and planned to review past minutes and notes in order to formulate a list of questions best directed toward the BAPL.

Hellertown Borough Council member Gail Nolf voiced some concerns about Bethlehem Area Public Library’s involvement to date in the process, however.

"I get the feeling that Bethlehem wasn't receptive to committee requests," she said. "If Bethlehem comes to sit on this board they need to objectively sit on the board and not come in with this ."

Nolf further explained that, in her opinion, the financial issues being discussed pursuant to the task force's mission have raised the stakes for representatives of the Bethlehem Area Public Library.

"I'm feeling animosity from Bethlehem to Hellertown because they stand to lose almost $200,000 (in annual per capita contribution), and this is an emotional issue and a financial issue," Nolf said.

"I think we do need someone officially from Bethlehem so we can work those issues out and have some direct communication," she added.

Lower Saucon Township Manager Jack Cahalan offered a different view of the BAPL's involvement, stating that, "from the position of the township, Bethlehem has always been cooperative, and when we've made requests they've been responded to."

A Lower Saucon resident named Eileen who spoke at the meeting said she is concerned about the potential loss of the BAPL's Bookmobile service, which makes regular stops in township neighborhoods.

“If we were to get a bookmobile, would that address your issue?" task force member and HAPL representative Jessica Goedtel responded.

"If residents need a service, the Hellertown library is committed to providing it," she said. "I think that is the most important point--that everybody has access to what they need."

Chairperson Kim LaBrake said she would like to better understand the dynamics of the bookmobile service currently provided to township residents.

"What are the bookmobile stops and radius?" she asked.

LaBrake said "it would be interesting for the building committee to look at the coverage for each stop and to see how far people are walking and such, to incorporate into the plans."

With regard to the Bookmobile discussion, Assistant Hellertown Borough Manager Tina Krasnansky reiterated what LaBrake emphasized in a recent . 

“It's important that we're hearing things from the public, (since) we're trying to get a complete idea (of what residents' views are),” she said.

The next Saucon Valley Library Task Force meeting will be held on Oct. 13 at 5pm at Lower Saucon Town Hall.

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