New library could call for residents’ vote

This corrects an earlier version.

Costa Mesa residents may be asked to vote on a bond issue that would fund the construction of a new city library, following the City Council’s 3-2 rejection of a proposal to charge local developers impact fees to help pay for it.

The council could consider many scenarios to pay for a new library, but nothing has gone beyond the talking stage at this point. Council members on Tuesday asked their staff to analyze various ways to pay for a new library. One of those ways could be the sale of bonds to finance construction.

Cities may impose a small fee when approving development projects if the cost does not exceed a reasonable estimate of the project’s fiscal impact on city services. The revenue must accommodate the rising population that may accompany constructing homes.

Three libraries — Dungan/Costa Mesa, Mesa Verde, and a Technology branch — currently service the city, Friends of the Costa Mesa Libraries member Mary Ellen Goddard said, though the increased crowding and diminishing shelve space crunch have been felt by residents.

“Part of what happens is, if they can’t get what they want [in Costa Mesa], people go somewhere else,” she said. “There is always a steady stream of people that go to Mesa Verde, and the computers are always full, with a steady stream of people checking out books.”

Goddard added that a particular crunch has been placed on those libraries built before the digital era, with many pieces of new library hardware taking up tremendous space.

The proposed fee would’ve placed a $500 fee on each single-family unit and $510 per multi-family unit built in the city — hardly enough to cover the $50 million estimated cost of a new library, Mayor Eric Bever said. Staff estimated the revenue would total about $600,000.

“I voted against the impact fees and supported Mayor Pro Tem [Mansoor’s] motion to consider other avenues of funding,” he said. “The fee would raise kind of a puny amount compared to the number of dollars needed to create the library that was desired.”

Councilwoman Katrina Foley, who voted for the proposal, said she was disappointed with the council’s vote.

“From my perspective, there are certain capital improvement projects that bring up property values — amenities that residents in Costa Mesa deserve,” she said. “Over and over and over again, we are missing out on those opportunities.”

Bever said he wasn’t opposed to building a library, but wanted to ensure the city went about securing funding for the project in a prudent way.

“It seemed to me that, if we are going to get behind the library, we should get behind it all the way and fund it in its entirety — not just nickel-and-dime developers,” he said.

CHRIS CAESAR may be reached at (714) 966-4626 or at chris.caesar@latimes.com.