Library board meets with Pike commissioners

Agreement to be forged by January 29

By TOM KANE

MILFORD, PA — The problems between them are many and sticky. But both sides of the Pike County Public Library (PCPL) debacle—the library board and the Pike County Commissioners—expressed confidence that they will be able to iron out their differences by the end of January.

A meeting between the board and the commissioners was held on December 22. All three commissioners were present and six members of the library board attended, along with the board’s attorney, John Stieh of Milford.

Rich Caridi, chairman of the Pike County Commissioners, summarized four issues that had to be discussed and resolved. First, the composition of the library board must be resolved to each side’s satisfaction, which includes the number of members and how they will be chosen. Second, there is a need to change the library bylaws to reflect decisions that will be made. Third, it is necessary to set a time limit by the end of January to resolve the issues. And fourth, the county will commit funding of $200,000 but the board must clarify what part of it will be distributed to other branches that serve the population outside of Milford.

“Unless we solve these issues, I will refuse to release any funding to the library,” said commissioner Harry Forbes.

After the recent referendum on a library tax was roundly rejected by voters, the commissioners were inundated, they said, with objections about the current library board, the number of board members, the method for choosing board members, and that the rest of the county, outside of Milford, was not being represented on the board.

A few weeks ago, the commissioners surveyed Pike’s 13 townships to inquire if they wanted representation on the library board. The majority of responses they received said that they did. “My main concern is that the library is representative of the entire county and not just one part of it,” Caridi said.

The current board’s requisite of nine members was reduced to eight when one of the two members named by the county, David Farrington, resigned after the library tax vote.

Board president Maleyne Syracuse sent a letter to the local press suggesting that one solution to the question of wider representation was to appoint an advisory committee, which could have a larger number of members. The commissioners rejected that idea on December 22.

“We will continue to discuss the issues with our board and will come to the meeting with the commissioners on December 31 to continue to search for a solution,” Syracuse said after the meeting.

Even though the library is a non-profit organization that is constitutionally independent from the county, it must accede to the county wishes. “We are dependent on the county funds, without which we can not function,” she said.

Forbes said that the question of financial support of two other branch libraries in Hawley and Newfoundland also had to be decided. “The library also needs to focus its attention to Lehman Township, which is one of the most populated townships and contains a major school complex,” Forbes said.

“We are happy that the library board took our concerns seriously at the meeting,” Caridi said. “I appreciate the level of cooperation and the willingness to resolve the issues.”