Date: Fri 17-Oct-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: STEVEB

Quick Words:

library-construction-Booth

Full Text:

LIBRARY CO STILL PENDING: BOROUGH APPROVAL ON LIBRARY LANDSCAPING IMMINENT

BY DOROTHY EVANS

Finally, there is evidence of breakup in the logjam of problems preventing

sign-off and completion of the Cyrenius H. Booth Library's renovation and

addition project.

While the certificate of occupancy (CO) must be signed by both the borough and

the town, the borough side appeared ready Wednesday night to do so after a job

meeting held with the library board and the contractor.

As for the town side, approval is "only five or six days away," Library Board

member William Lavery predicts.

"We're as close as we can humanly get without actually being there," Mr Lavery

said Thursday morning, relating details that were worked out during Wednesday

night's meeting with the borough, especially concerning the landscaping plans

at the site.

Although they did not actually walk out with the borough's signature in hand,

Mr Lavery said he felt confident it was imminent, that they would get it

sometime Thursday or Friday.

"Last night, the Borough Zoning Commission approved the modifications of site

plan, especially concerning trees that would have been too close together," Mr

Lavery said.

At issue had been the planting of bulbs and dogwood trees still remaining to

be completed by the contractor.

Also, a point of contention had been the proximity of a row of white pine

trees between the parking lot and the northern property line that would,

within a very short time, have grown so large as to "completely suffocate" a

neighbor's established landscape garden, Mr Lavery said.

Permission was granted, he added, reinstate the original terms of the

landscape contract and to plant Russian olives and bushes that would be lower

to the ground.

It was also explained that the planned linden and pear trees could not planted

immediately, because the best time to put them in the ground was only after a

"very hard frost."

After clarifying these details to its satisfaction, the borough agreed to

grant the library its CO pending receipt of written documents confirming the

agreed-upon changes.

Town Punch List

Mr Lavery said the town's signature on the CO was pending completion of a

"punch list" of final safety and cosmetic details that were being checked off

"on a daily basis," and which he felt could be completed within less than a

week.

"The painters are back finishing the inside work. There were four there

[Wednesday]," Mr Lavery said.

When the weather clears, they will finish the outside painting, he added.

The emergency outside lights are almost all installed and the contractor is

awaiting delivery "any day now" of a picket type iron fence leading down to

the children's room, as well as some bathroom doors that had to be reordered

when the original supplier went out of business and did not inform the

contractor.

"The cleaning will be done with the final punch list along with a little spot

painting," Mr Lavery said.

The town is retaining five percent of the total payment for the library

construction contract, or $135,000, until the contractor completes all of the

punch list items, Mr Lavery added.

"We'll see that it gets done right."

Grand Opening Planned

With their fingers crossed and their erasers handy just in case, the library

board is pencilling in a schedule of opening events.

They hope to be able to open the Cyrenius H. Booth Library to the public the

weekend before Thanksgiving and to mark the occasion with a ribbon cutting and

grand opening ceremony with free refreshments to all comers.

In addition, they are discussing plans for a gala event to be held at 45 Main

Street the night before the grand opening, to which a limited number of guests

would be admitted on a first come, first served basis and only after they had

signed up and paid to attend.

But without the CO being signed by both the borough and the town, no

invitations will be offered and no formal grand opening announcements will be

made.

Library Director Janet Woycik has maintained all along that she will not open

the library doors until everything is in good order. She has stated that the

staff will need at least three weeks following the CO to move in and get

ready.

Reporter Steve Bigham contributed to this story.