First Avenue prime spot for new library in C.R.

I spent 35 years as a library director and library building consultant, assisting more than 100 library building projects in the Midwest. Site selection was one of my most important roles.

Andrew Carnegie, the great library philanthropist, asked the city to do two things: provide a site and provide a portion of operating costs. He and his staff recommended that the site be near the business district and on the busiest thoroughfare in town.

One site being suggested (for a new Cedar Rapids library) near Greene Square is not on a main traffic path. The best site now being considered is First Avenue between 7th and 8th streets.

First Avenue is without question the best traffic mover in the downtown area and the one-way streets taking you to and from I-380 would lead you right to the library and back out of town. And remember, that block was high and dry during the flood. It would be a part of a cultural district comprising the Masonic Library, Public Library, Carl and Mary Koehler History Center, Cedar Rapids Museum of Art, Theatre Cedar Rapids, and U.S. Cellular Center. That location would be a boon to all of those institutions, and a great convenience to families and tourists.

I believe this site would be the less expensive choice, and one that would permit free parking for library users. I hope that reason and not politics will prevail when the final decision is made.

James W. White

Shellsburg