Bartlett Public Library planning informational meetings on November referendums
Bartlett Public Library officials have scheduled six informational meetings to explain two upcoming referendum questions and why both will appear on the Nov. 3 ballot.
Library board President Peggy Deyne said attending any of the four in-person or two online sessions likely would help even voters who have seen a written explanation of the two mutually exclusive questions.
Deyne said she has noted confusion among people she’s spoken with regarding the questions, which seek funding to improve the library’s 43-year-old building at 800 S. Bartlett Road.
“I think it’s important for them to come and give their input,” she added. “I think it’s important for them to tell us how they feel. We’re trying to be as open and honest about all this as possible.”
One of the questions asks voters for the taxing authority to fund a $22.2 million expansion of the current building.
The other seeks $45 million in tax dollars for a new building that would be constructed on the open space immediately north of the current library.
If a majority of voters support both questions, the library’s board of trustees would decide which project to pursue.
Trustee Dave Barry cast the lone vote against putting the new building question on the ballot. He questioned the need for a building of its size, and whether having two ballot questions would confuse voters.
But the majority of the board disagreed, saying the district’s residents should have the ability to choose the library’s future.
“We’re cautiously optimistic that we have intelligent voters in our community,” Deyne said.
While members of the public are welcome at the board’s regular meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, Deyne said the informational meetings would be a better opportunity for residents to get their questions answered about the ballot measures because they won’t be sharing time with any other business.
The four in-person town halls will be held at the library at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 22; 9 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 26; 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 4; and 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 12.
The virtual meetings will be held over Zoom at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 30, and 10 a.m. Friday, Oct. 9. People can register on the referendum information page of the library’s website, www.bartlettlibrary.org.
The website also offers a tax impact calculator that allows property owners to calculate what the projects would cost them.
The $22.2 million expansion plan is estimated to increase annual property taxes by about $118 annually for 20 years for the owner of a $400,000 house in the DuPage County part of the district. It would add about $98 per year to the tax bill of a Cook County house of similar value.
A $45 million new library is estimated to increase property taxes on a $400,000 house by about $238 annually in the DuPage portion of the district and by about $199 in Cook County.
Officials said either option would take more than two years to complete, but with different impacts to ongoing operations in the meantime. If a new library is built, the existing library would be demolished when it is completed.
Deyne emphasized that people with questions or opinions should attend the informational meetings.
“I don’t want people to sit back after the election and say, ‘Maybe I should have gone,’” she added.
epeterson@dailyherald.com