Parents tick off joint-use library worries

Deirdre Newman

NEWPORT BEACH -- A small group of Mariners Elementary School parents

voiced concerns at Tuesday’s school board meeting about a proposed

library that would be shared by the public and the school, and also what

it would take to alleviate those concerns.

As the June 14 fund-raising deadline draws near, the parents continued

to express their fears about having students intermingle with the public

during school hours. But they also proposed a panacea: Change the

proposal from co-location to joint venture, which would eliminate the

school and branch library being housed under the same roof and create a

partnership instead.

As the proposal stands now, a new 14,000-square-foot library would

replace the existing Mariners Branch Library and would be on city

property adjacent to the school. Students would no longer use their own

school library but would go, with their teachers, to the children’s

section of the public library instead.

The effort to build the joint-use library started in the fall as

Newport Beach City Council members joined with library and school leaders

to obtain state money for the project.

But the Proposition 14 funds earmarked for building joint-use public

libraries would cover only 65% of the project’s $3-million price tag. The

remaining million must be raised by the community. As of earlier this

month, supporters had raised more than $300,000.

Most of the seven parents who spoke at the meeting charge the

joint-use proposal is inherently unsafe for schoolchildren and should be

nixed.

“I don’t see any reason why we should put our children at risk when

there’s absolutely no reason to do that,” said GailStroth, who has a

fourth-grader at the school. “I would love for the school to keep its own

library.”

And that option is a viable possibility, said parent Linda Duffy, who

said she has been elbow-deep in research about joint-use library safety

since the proposal emerged. Duffy and other parents formed a Web site in

earlier this month to educate the community about the risks they believe

are rife in the proposal.

Duffy’s homework paid off, as state officials have confirmed her

research is correct.

Richard Hall, library bond act manager for the state office of library

construction, said the Mariners school can keep its own library and still

qualify for top-priority Proposition 14 funds as long as it is involved

in a joint-venture with the new Mariners Branch Library. That would

entail the branch library incorporating some kind of service that

benefits students in kindergarten through 12th grade, such as a computer

center, a family literacy center or a homework center.

School board members acknowledged that children’s safety comes first

and said they will take the parents’ concerns and suggestions into

consideration when they vote on the proposal on June 11.

“The health and safety of our kids is one of our major

responsibilities,” said Judy Franco, school board president. “Without

having that factor, no matter how high our educational standards are,

it’s not going to happen.”

Supporters of the project spoke Tuesday at the Newport Beach City

Council meeting, which takes place at the same time as the school board

meeting.