A new Madison central library would boost use, be a civic symbol and inspire economic development — like other new libraries rising across the nation, supporters say.

And the developer proposing the new library says it can be done for $1.25 million annually for 20 years — just $5 per city resident a year added to their current $50 per capita cost of running the library system.
So far, cost seems by far to be the big concern about the project.

Mayor Dave Cieslewicz said he’ll take the summer to decide whether to pursue the Fiore Cos. proposal for a $43.6 million, six-story, glass and stone building that would be part of a larger, more ambitious redevelopment.

“I would like to find a way to make the Fiore proposal happen,” said Cieslewicz, who will propose a capital budget in September. “I’m also very aware it comes with a very stiff price tag.”

There’s a less-costly option to renovate and add a floor to the existing library at a cost of up to $19.8 million.
The current city budget commits $1.7 million to a library this year and a non-binding five-year plan foresees spending $18.3 million more in 2010. For a new library, the city would commit up to $23 million more.

“Most people believe the central library deserves to be housed in a strong, free-standing civic building,” said Ald. Mike Verveer, 4th District, who represents the core Downtown “The whole issue is how do we afford it?”

The mayor and City Council have set a special informational meeting to hear presentations and gauge council interest at 6:30 p.m. on Monday.

“I’m very conscious of the fact that whatever decision we make we’ll have to live with for the next generation,” Cieslewicz said.

Despite being in a dated, worn building, demands on the central library are up. From 2003 to 2008, circulation rose from 780,600 to 886,300, visits from 424,000 to 459,800, and computer use leaped 216 percent to 135,900 individual uses.
Now, Madison must decide whether to build new facilities like Minneapolis, with a cost of $139 million, Des Moines, $33 million, Austin, Texas, $90 million, and Seattle, $165 million.

“Madison is one of the most literary, creative, engaged communities in the country,” said Sari Feldman, president-elect of the national Public Library Association who got her master’s degree at UW-Madison. “The Madison public library should be the best library in the United States.”

After months of study, a special committee and the Library Board this spring recommended the proposal by Fiore and Ingrens Development Partners of Milwaukee to demolish the worn, 95,000-square-foot library on the 200 block of West Mifflin Street and build a 105,000-square-foot facility at the corner of Henry Street and West Washington Avenue.

Fiore would also build a 380,000-square-foot mixed-use project with an upscale, 250-room hotel, retail space and 425 parking spaces on the current library site. The cost of the full redevelopment is estimated at $80 million.

“This is a really unique opportunity,” Fiore executive vice president Bill Kunkler said, adding that costs can be offset through use of federal tax credits and bonds, low construction prices and property and room tax revenues.
The Library Board has been trying to renovate but long preferred a new, state-of-the art facility, board president Tripp Widder said.

The Fiore proposal would let the library display more of its collection, offer spots to browse or relax like a modern bookstore, accommodate tutoring and group study, increase computer capacity, and provide attractive spaces for children and teens and for public events, library director Barb Dimick said.

“A 21st century library should help people come to grips with the outside world,” she said.

New libraries elsewhere have been successes but not without controversy.

The Des Moines library, opened in 2006, saw circulation more than double and computer sessions soar 428 percent.
In Minneapolis, opened in 2006, circulation doubled but the design let ice slide off a roof forcing  an entrance to be closed, and borrowing costs have complicated budget troubles.

Seattle’s library, opened in 2004, is described as perhaps the city’s most striking and imaginative piece of architecture since the Space Needle and has become a destination.

In a year, circulation rose 73 percent and visits jumped 246 percent. The facility also generated $16 million in new spending and became an economic catalyst, a consultant’s report says.

So far, Fiore’s proposal hasn’t generated much controversy about site or design.

With a two-story entry, tall floor-to-ceiling heights, lots of glass and a rooftop patio, the architecture is handsome but less daring than in Seattle.

“It will have stature without being showy,” Kunkler said. “We think this new library will be a compelling place to visit because of the fantastic views it will provide of Madison, not because of expensive gold-plating and marble finishes.”

A new library wouldn’t need a bigger  staff or draw funds from branches, Dimick said.

To lower costs, the city can use federal New Market Tax Credits to cover up to 25 percent of the project cost, or $9 million, and federal Recovery Zone and Build America bonds to lower borrowing costs another $2 million, Kunkler said. Also, construction prices are low and a new, green building would deliver savings, he said. The city would get $228,000 in property taxes and $798,000 in room taxes annually from the private part of the new development, he said.

“This is not a commitment to spend $43 million next year,” Kunkler said. “It’s a commitment to spend about $1.25 million every year for 20 years — beginning around 2012.”

Also, the Madison Public Library Foundation said it can raise up to $10 million — after the economy improves and over five years.

Ald. Larry Palm, 15th District, also a Library Board member, wants new facilities but fears a political fight over costs might jeopardize chances for even a long-sought renovation.

Cieslewicz said he intends to explore every aspect of Fiore’s proposal.

“The easy political decision is to rehab the current building,” the mayor said. “The question is, is that the right decision?”