As the executive director of the Jackson Hinds Library System, I am writing to correct the inaccuracies in the article entitled, “Double Taxed” by Anthony Warren in the Thursday, October 12 edition.
In the article, Mr. Warren stated that I had “personally asked [Mayor Phil Fisher] for financial assistance, and that Clinton officials had refused to help.” This statement is totally and completely untrue. I have never asked Mayor Fisher nor any other political official of the city of Clinton for funding for the Jackson Hinds Library System. I could not do so, as I am required to sign a budget agreement each year from the Board of Supervisors that prohibits me from asking any other municipality in Hinds County, other than the city of Jackson, for funding.
Mayor Fisher and I did begin work on a usage agreement shortly after I arrived in 2013. Although we emailed back and forth about the agreement several times, the agreement was never finished or signed. Mayor Fisher and I had no further contact by email.
I also wanted to address Warren’s statement that, “the library buildings are falling apart.” When I came to Jackson four and a half years ago, the library buildings in both the city and county had not received the detailed care and repair that these buildings needed. Year by year, and building by building, we have consistently worked on the problems that we found at the libraries. Most of the county library buildings are in good repair, and we have made substantial improvements at the city branches. We have remodeled much of the interior of Eudora Welty, Margaret Walker Alexander Library, Richard Wright and Medgar Evers Libraries, and we will continue to improve libraries as funds allow.
Do we have serious problems with mold at Tisdale and Welty Libraries? Yes, we do, but everyone should remember that these problems did not start recently. When a building like Tisdale has a basement that has chronically flooded for decades, mold should not come as a surprise. Similar leaks in Welty Library are clearly due to this library starting life as a Sears store in 1947. Seventy years of wear and tear on the building and a failed roof project have certainly taken their toll. Many Welty supporters wonder if a new home for this library might be the wisest course. Our 69,000 Tisdale customers continue to ask us when and if they will have a library to use again.
In the meantime, I know that both our city and county funding authorities are following the situation closely. I can reassure everyone that the current open public areas of Welty Library have been tested and found to be mold-free. It is safe for library patrons to return. All 14 JHLS libraries, except for Tisdale, are currently open and serving hundreds of thousands of Hinds County residents each year with a large selection of print materials, DVDs, e-books, downloadable audiobooks, e-magazines and many other services. The public is already enjoying free access to over 220 new public access computers, and one of the fastest fiber networks of any library system in the state.
As Mr. Warren’s article asserts, would more support from other municipalities be helpful? Certainly it would, but those decisions are certainly not mine to make. I remain deeply appreciative of the support that our new mayor, the Jackson City Council, and the Hinds County Board of Supervisors provide to the Jackson Hinds Library System. I will continue to allow the question of receiving additional support from other municipalities for our funding entities to consider.
Patty Furr, Executive Director
Jackson Hinds Library System
