The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1903-06-25
Library Boards Action Does Not
Meet Approval of Town Board.
THE NEW LIBRARY NOT LOCATED
Board Proposition for Sit IncIuGs
ing BeausOliel and Mitchell Property
Not in Favor.-Other Propositions
for Site are Being Considered.

dIu the cOnuluOnS surrounding the
new library to be erected with the
money donated by Andrew Carnegie
are.such, that it begins to look very
doubtful whether it will be possible
to erect the building this season. A
few weeks ago the Library Board
selected the Beausoliel corner and the
DR.. Mitchell lots as site and figured
that the town board would vacate
the avenue in between and that the
new buildidg would be in progress
soon. But the town board and the
library board do not seem to agree,
and the town board can find no reason
according to their way OF thinking for
the vacating of the entire avenue
Neither do they approve of the pur-
chase of the Mitchell corner. The
present condition leaves only the
BeauSoliel corner agreed upon between
the town board and library board, and
the whole matter is at a stand still.
The architect who has been working
on. the plans finds that the Beausoliel
site alone cannot accommodate the new
building. The condition is a dead
lock between the town board and
library board. The latter are all
appointees of the town board but
Notwithstanding this fact are inclined
to believe that they should have full
sway in selecting a site. The OBJ
lection of the town board is to be
based mainly upon what they claim
to be the excessive amount the pro-
posed site will involve and the addition
of large sum expended for site upon
the tax roll. Just at present there is
good deal of talk of abandoning
the BeausolieI site entirely and to
take in its place the William Olson
property on Washington avenue. 1t
is pointed out that excellent ground
could be secured at this point and
that it would be a more desirable
spot than the Beausoliel property.
The arguments that have all along
been used in favor of the Beausoliel
propertyis the location in Ia central
part of the town, and that it would
remove lot of eye-sores off prin-
cipal corner of the town. But the
property itself seems to be valueIess
according to the library board unless
the avenue can be secured and a part of
the board also insist on the Mitchell
property.
THE TIMES has believed from the
start that the Beausoliel corner, the
avenue and the Mitchell property, the
site selected by the library board should
be the Site for the new library. But
the proposition to divide the building
site ntohalf thatamount of land ought !
not to meet with favor. The only |
value that could attachto the Beausoliel
and other property selected by the
library board would be that it would |
give beauty spot for the city, and |
that by maintaining nice grounds it |
would become virtually a park. Ii
would be forever spot that citizens
Wouldpoint out Withpride. If half the |
amount of ground originally contem-
plated is used then, according to many |
and THE TIMES included, the corner
should be abandoned. The reason
advanced for that is that the corner is
library unlessthere was such
a consideration as providing beauty
spot to offset the drawbacks advanced I
against the site-and there never will
bea beauty spot with the use of the
BeauSoliel corner alone, or even half
the street with it. Other places that
have built new libraries of late lyears
nave located them off the main thor
very much as school build
ings are located, and in doingthis have
followed out the idea that the isolation
of the libraries provides against loafers
congregating about the rooms and the
of a place where everyone is
in ,lined to "drop i'm whether they
have anything to do at the library OF
not. The theory is that libraries
should be off themain thoroughfares,
and that they should be visited only
by persons who have reasonableexcuse
10 enter the building or arein search of
reading matter. The Olson site seems
10 meet all the objections entered
against central location, and the Hotel
property might also be con-
sidered under this way of looking at
he question.
1t is time that the question was
settled definitely in some way or an
otherand work commenced if thenew
istobe erected this year. The
own board and the library board
should get together at once, or in case