Grafton receives key OK in bid to save library

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction has approved the Village of Grafton’s decision to take sole ownership of the Grafton library, paving the way for continued operation of the service.

Village Administrator Jesse Thyes said he received a letter from the DPI Monday approving the change.

“We’re pretty excited about that,” he said, noting that the village had been warned that it could take as long as 60 days for the approval to come through. “The best part is the continuation of service for the village, its residents, library patrons and the library staff, who understandably have been a little nervous with the uncertainty.”

Now, Thyes said, the village will finalize the needed paperwork with the Monarch Federated Library System to reflect the change in ownership.

“It’s very important we get all that updated,” he said, noting the library system provides everything from internet access and databases to inter-library loans and the ability to check out any items to the public.

“Monarch is ready and willing to help us out,” Thyes added, noting they have been following the situation.

On Monday, the Village Board took another step in the transition, appointing five members to three-year terms on the new Library Board.

They are Village Trustee Andy Schwartz, community members Charles Kramer, Marie McFaul and Jaclyn Trate and Wendy Sprenger, who represents the Grafton School District.

Two additional members of the seven-member board will be appointed at the Village Board’s next meeting, Village President Dan Delorit said.

Those members will replace the two Town of Grafton representatives on the board whose positions will end on June 12, when the joint library agreement between the village and town expires.

The Town of Grafton last year notified the village it planned to leave the joint library, citing the budget impact — a process that takes a year to implement. In the meantime, the village and town agreed to continue negotiating toward a new agreement.

But little progress had been made, and while the village sought a one-year extension of the agreement that would have allowed negotiations to continue, Town Chairman Lester Bartel said that without an agreement in principle the town was not likely to sign the extension.

So last week the Village Board unanimously agreed to withdraw from the agreement and take sole ownership of the library.

Thyes said Bartel’s comments were part of the reason for the board’s action, but said the larger reason was to ensure the library operations were stabilized and operations for the staff and community remained untouched.

“At the end of the day, the Village Board and myself understand that on this one issue we didn’t see eye to eye,” he said. “There was a significant piece of negotiations that remained unsettled. That was the cost-sharing piece.”

Despite the change in ownership, library operations will continue as they are now, with town and village residents being served by the Grafton library, Thyes said.

The library will continue to be funded by the town and village this year, he noted, since both boards allocated and budgeted money for that purpose — something required by state statute.

“Both the village and town, we’re obligated to cut those checks,” Thyes said, regardless of the status of the library agreement. Beginning next year, however, town residents will pay for library services through the county library tax, which is imposed on communities that don’t have a municipal library.

County Administrator Jason Dzwinel said the library tax this year is 22 cents per $1,000 equalized valuation. That would have brought in about $215,000 in revenue, some of which would go to other libraries based on use, he said, adding the town will pay a little more than $180,000 this year per its agreement with the village.

Bartel said the effect on town tax bills will “essentially be the same. We will continue to provide funding, just through a different taxing vehicle.

“The difference is that the Grafton library will receive less money via county taxation than it would have had we come to an agreement.”

The county tax, he noted, will be offset by a reduction in the town tax to support the library.

Thyes said that he expects there will be some budget adjustments on the part of the village due to the change in ownership of the library, adding the revenue the village receives from the library tax will help offset some of that cost.

Although the town and village have parted ways on ownership of the library, Thyes said, he doesn’t believe this should impact other joint ventures.

“I understand where the town was coming from,” he said. “At the end of the day, we had a longstanding partnership. This doesn’t necessarily close the door if, a few years down the road, the town wants to enter into another joint agreement.”

Bartel , however, said this is unlikely.

“Historically speaking, once these agreements terminate, it is difficult to revisit them,” he said. “The relationship between the town and village in providing joint library services has existed for decades and it is troubling that it is now dissolving.”