Questions?
We’re happy to answer any and all questions surrounding the new Grand Forks Public Library project and the upcoming vote on May 3, 2011.
Leave a comment here with your question, and we’ll respond. And if we don’t know the answer, we’ll find it. Promise!
speak up for your library 
Where do I vote on May 3rd? What are the voting hours? Thanks
Hi David,
Sorry for the delay. We’ve been working to find you an answer.
The Grand Forks City website is currently being updated, but for now you can visit: http://www.grandforksgov.com/. On the main page, there is a link to the absentee ballot application.
Finding your voter location is a bit more cumbersome until the website changes are made (soon!). You would need to go to the search box on the top right corner and type in voter information. It will give you results, and if you choose the “Voter Information” choice it takes you to the page where you can look up your polling site by address or view ward and precinct maps.
Should be easier soon! We’ll post a link when the change is made. Thanks!
The new link:
http://www.grandforksgov.com/gfgov/home.nsf/Pages/Special+Election
And hours are 7 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Thanks!
I have a problem with this, around 1979 Grand Forks raised are taxes for a new water plant they never did take that tax away and now this, am on a budget at my home if I need something I save or sell something.
Nobody is there to save me,now days everyone has a computer.Have some fund raising it would make you feel better then taking from the low & middle income pleople.We are taxed way to much in this town. 1% is 1% they might as well go to Fargo.
We talked to Saroj Jerath, GF City Finance Director, and you are correct: GF voters approved a city sales tax to pay for construction of a new water plant sometime around 1979. When the plant was paid for, the city sales tax was retired.
Shortly thereafter, an ongoing 1% city sales tax was approved by the GF voters. The money generated by this tax is allocated for property tax relief, infrastructure and economic development. The current allocation is 49.5% for property tax relief, 30% for infrastructure and 20.5% for economic development.
Another 0.75% city sales tax was imposed when the Alerus Center was built. This tax has a sunset clause, and it will come off when the Alerus Center debt is paid in 2029.
Sales tax currently being collected in the City of Grand Forks consists of 5% state sales tax and 1.75% city sales tax – for a total of 6.75%.
http://www.grandforksgov.com/gfgov/home.nsf/Pages/Sales+Tax
In Fargo, consumers pay an additional ½-cent county sales tax recently levied by Cass County. http://www.fmchamber.com/blog/blog/2011/03/18/cass-county-tax-takes-effect/
The breakdown of Fargo tax collection as of April 1, 2011 is as follows:
5% state sales tax, 2% city sales tax, and 0.5% county sales tax — for a total of 7.5%.
http://www.cityoffargo.com/CityInfo/Departments/Auditor/Citysalestax/
In Grand Forks, the proposed 1-cent city sales tax that will be voted on at the May 3 special election Is to be used specifically for construction of a new public library. If approved by the voters, the sales tax will go into effect on October 1, 2011, and will continue until the $20.8 million is raised OR for the period of 36 months – whichever happens soonest.
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Will something be done about the drug deals and other unlawful activities that go on at the library now. I don’t feel safe letting my child walk in the current library alone. Wish we had a safe place to go. Thanks
Dennis,
As the Director of the Grand Forks Public Library, I am very concerned about your impression of the Library. We place a high priority on patron safety and do everything we can to ensure that safety.
I am aware of only two illegal activities occurring on the Library premises in the two years that I have been the Library Director. In the first incident, a bike was stolen. In the second incident, the Library itself was broken into. The only thing taken was the Friends of the Library’s donation box, which contained less than $100.
A quick call to the Grand Forks Police Department confirmed that they have no reports of drug deals or other crimes occurring on library property. In the past year, the department has visited the library to investigate a couple suspicious vehicles, several accidents, three animal-on-the-loose calls and two fire calls due to faulty wiring in the library’s lighting system.
As always, if you witness a crime being committed on Library property, please contact the nearest staff member so that they can take appropriate action.
Some of my dearest memories as a child were spent dreaming away in books… thank you for reminding your community just how wonderful literature is! Best of luck to you all on May 2nd.
Thanks for your encouraging comment! We couldn’t agree more.
Yes to a new library! I’ve heard that an out-of-town architecture firm will be hired/has been hired to design the new library? It seems we have many qualified firms IN Grand Forks that could do this project, right?
Great question, Jessica!
Hiring the architecture team was a VERY important decision for the GF Library Board. Planning, designing and building a public library requires a very specific skill set and significant industry experience, since the process does not happen very often in a community. Good libraries are built to last for 40-50 years, and most people don’t participate in a public library construction project more than once in their lifetime. Because the professional expertise was so important, the Library Board assembled an Architect Selection Committee to establish the necessary qualifications and criteria, review the proposals and interview the finalists before selecting our library architect.
Eight local volunteers with specific professional knowledge in architecture, engineering, library operations, finance and city government were recruited. In April of 2010, when the Committee distributed the RFQ (Request for Qualifications) for our GF Library Project, qualified responses came from 14 different firms located across the U.S. In most cases, the responding architectural firms that had significant library design experience were from outside the region BUT they submitted their proposal in partnership with a local architectural firm from Grand Forks. This provided us with the best of both worlds: an architectural team comprised of experts in library design, as well as a GF firm that provides the very important knowledge of local construction processes, experience with GF environmental and weather-related issues and existing relationships with the local contractors, subcontractors and city staff.
Our Selection Committee members reviewed all proposals and chose four finalist teams to participate in a two-hour presentation held at City Hall the last week in May. Each of the four participating teams included a firm with library experience, partnered with a local firm. At the end of the day, the decision of the committee was unanimous. The architect team selected for the GFPL project was PSA Dewberry (http://www.dewberry.com/) partnered with Widseth Smith Nolting (http://wsn.us.com/).
Rick McCarthy of PSA Dewberry is the lead architect for the proposed GF Library project. He has significant experience in the library design industry, having worked on more than 60 library projects throughout his career. Rick is also the president of his local public library board in Elgin, Illinois, and has written numerous publications and given many presentations on the subject of public library design. This is a man who is extremely knowledgeable about public library construction projects, and from a variety of different perspectives.
The GF partner is Widseth Smith Nolting, a firm located on South Washington Street and 28th Avenue S. Since 1975, WSN has grown from a small group of engineers to more than 150 professional engineers, registered architects, land surveyors, environmental scientists and support staff working from seven offices in North Dakota and Minnesota. In addition to their professional expertise, the WSN employees are active in our community and are familiar faces in our businesses, schools and churches.
The Library Board and Building Committee have worked in tandem with the architect partners for the past year, making important decisions regarding project scope and feasibility, budget and site selection. The last week of March 2011, a series of community input sessions was hosted by the architectural team to provide the necessary “vision” to design a public library that is specific to the needs of the citizens of Grand Forks and surrounding area. A “yes” vote on May 3 will make that vision a reality!
Hello,
I am in favor of building a new library but I have some concerns about your publicity campaign, specifically the yard signs. These signs make absolutely no sense to anyone that is not familiar with the campaign. I have been following the process in the news and consider myself fairly familiar with the issues. The first time I saw a “Hobbit” sign I thought it was advertising for an upcoming childrens activity or something. It was not until several weeks later that I happened to read the small print and realize that the signs are promoting the library tax. I have since talked to many people and almost all of them either did not know what the signs are for or thought they were not effective. I hate to say it but at this point the anti-library tax folks have completely stolen the show as far as visibility goes. Somebody needs to change the posters to a straight forward slogan that people can easily understand.
Hi Darin,
Thanks for voicing your concern. Please let us explain.
The GFPL Mission Statement is: Connect the community, Enrich the mind, Inspire the imagination.
The marketing committee for the library campaign chose to inspire the imagination and invoke emotion by focusing the messaging on the positive benefits of the library rather than the deficiencies. In the arsenal of marketing tactics, yard signs and billboards are meant to be attention-getting devices. We’ve certainly captured our share of attention! The yard signs and window decals were designed to draw people in and to remind them of the issues, not as an opportunity to educate and inform. After all, you need only to read and understand the signs once. From that point on, they serve as triggers. There are massive amounts of research, studies and usage data that support the premise of this project. In order for voters to “get the facts” it will need to happen via more in-depth media such as websites, brochures, newsprint, radio and TV. That information is readily available for those who choose to study it in-depth.
As with most marketing campaigns, design work on the yard signs was completed 6-8 weeks in advance in order to have ample time for production and distribution. We do not have an opportunity to change the messaging on our signs at this late date. (Nor do we have the budget.)
You are not the first person to express disappointment with the signs, Darin. Although others have made similar comments regarding the ambiguity of the Hobbit reference, we have also heard from approximately the same number of people who say they “love” the signs. Some who are SERIOUS Lord of the Rings fans have made a thoughtful parallel between library supporters and the personality traits of the hobbit nation.
In case you haven’t read the books, here is some hobbit history. Hobbits are the creation of J.R.R. Tolkien and were first introduced in their self-titled book, “The Hobbit.” They are relatives of the human race who live in the middle earth and played a prominent role in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, which is also a popular movie and stage adaptation. Hobbits have brown curly hair on their head and feet. Their ears are slightly pointed. They are small creatures – just 3½ feet tall – and tend to be a bit plump. Typically very shy, Hobbits are capable of great courage and amazing feats under the proper circumstances. Hobbits are known to be adept with slings and throwing stones.
It’s very easy for the opposition to say “vote no” when they are not offering any solution for resolution of the problems at the Grand Forks Public Library. The Library Task Force members have worked diligently for three years to come up with a viable solution to ALL the current problems, with thoughtful consideration to future needs. The proposed project and funding source are what voters will approve or disapprove on May 3. Funding options for the project were basically limited to two options: property sales or sales tax. The 1% sales tax solution was chosen for a reason: to allow local property owners some respite and to generate the necessary construction budget in a shorter period of time, thus eliminating the costs for interest and financing.
Again, thank you for your comment, and for giving us this chance to better explain ourselves.
How do I get a yard sign? I agree with Darin’s comment that they are not the clearest, but if that’s what we have, I would like one to help counter the numerous “No” signs.
Hi Ron,
Signs are available at SimmonsFlint (downtown Grand Forks – 33 S 3rd St. Ste. D) or at the Widseth Smith Nolting office (intersection of Washington St. and 28th Ave. S), both during business hours (8-5). Thanks!
Vote yes to the Hobbit signs are also available in the vacant lot across the street from the entrance to the GF Public Library. Grab a sign the next time you visit the library. Please remember to place the signs on private property only — not on the berm, in alleyways, in parks or right-of-ways. We are trying very hard to educate our citizens regarding political campaign restrictions. Thanks for your help!
Where can I find the actual wording of the measure we are voting on? I am all in favor of an additional tax for the library – I think a library helps to define a community, but the naysayers often bring up the fact that the measure doesn’t specify how the money will be spent.
The exact working of the special election ballot is as follows:
Shall the Home Rule Charter for the City of Grand Forks be amended to empower the City Council to impose, by ordinance, an additional sales tax of one percent (1%) gross retail sales tax, the proceeds of which shall be dedicated to the design, acquisition, renovation, construction, improvement, and furnishing of a public library, including related infrastructure, beginning October 1, 2011 and shall terminate on September 30, 2014 or at such time as it is reasonably expected that the sum of $20.8 million in such sales tax proceeds will be remitted, whichever occurs first; all as provided in the Notice and Proposal to Amend Home Rue Charter as published in the Grand Forks Herald on the 26th day of February, 2011?
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Vote for one choice only by placing an “X” on the line to the right of your choice.
YES __________ NO ___________
Yes means you approve of the authority to impose a 1% sales tax for the public library.
No means you disapprove of the authority to impose a 1% sales tax for the public library.
Hope this helps!
One of the shortages cited was about meeting rooms. What kind of groups can use these meeting rooms and is there a charge for any or all groups. It seems if there is a charge maybe we should be sending them to the Alerus. They could use the income.
For the past 40 years, the Grand Forks Public Library has offered its meeting room to the public for a nominal fee (currently $10), provided there are no library events taking place. Of course, library events take precedence, since that is the primary purpose of the meeting room. These library events include story times, book clubs, Library Board meetings, author events and much more. If there are no scheduled library events, members of the public may reserve the room.
Meetings held at the library must be of a non-commercial nature. For example, a Boy Scout troop or the VISTA workers who do volunteer tax preparation are more than welcome to rent the room. On the other hand, a salesperson may not hold a product demonstration event at the library. These commercial groups are referred to meeting centers such as the Alerus Center.
The challenge the Grand Forks Public Library faces is that there is more demand for the small meeting space than we are able to provide – even within the library itself. It is a challenge to orchestrate library events so that only one event occurs at a time without overlap. Once that is done, the room is then available for the public. However, we often have more than one group that needs the room. We have tutors who use the library on a regular basis and need space to interact where they will not disturb other library patrons, homeschooled children who need to work on group projects, and nonprofit groups without a penny to spare that want to offer information to the public. Paying a large meeting room fee is just not feasible for them.
The meeting room at the Grand Forks Public Library is used to help accomplish the library’s mission: to connect the community, enrich the mind, and inspire the imagination. More meeting rooms of various sizes will enable the library to better fulfill this mission while supporting other community resources.