Rocky Mountain football takes 1st state championship PAGE 4
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AN EDITION OF THE IDAHO PRESS-TRIBUNE // MYMERIDIANPRESS.COM // 11.27.15
inside SCHOOLS Recall organizers in all five West Ada School District zones have collected enough signatures to move on to stage two of the recall election process. One group is calling for the recall efforts to cease, while a trustee supports the recall of the other four board members.
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CITY The Meridian Fire Department gained a new fire engine this month, and the city approved the purchase of two more engines this budget year. Inside this week’s issue, see what the total price tag is and how many engines still need to be replaced.
LIBRARY LOOKS TO NEXT STEP
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ON THE TOWN Meridian is embracing the holiday spirit with festive decor and funfilled events that begin this weekend. We’re only one week away from the city’s feature event of the season: the Winter Lights Parade.
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Top: Meridian Library’s Nick Grove, left, distributes building blocks before the students worked in teams to build a bridge using only the blocks and sheets of paper at the “Teen Make it Thursday” event in 2013 at the Meridian Library. (Greg Kreller/MP) Bottom left photos: Large events at the Cherry Lane library branch, such as this presentation from author Elizabeth George (left) and the Dr. Seuss birthday party event (right) have to be held in the main section of the library because there isn’t another space big enough to hold an audience of 70 or more people, Meridian Library District programs manager Megan Egbert said. (Photos courtesy Megan Egbert/Meridian Library District)
Meridian Library revamps bond efforts for Hillsdale and north branches $12M bond failed by 7 percent in Nov. election
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PLUGGED IN Looking to participate in Giving Tuesday next week? Learn about this local group seeking donations for West Ada students experiencing homelessness and financial needs.
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LOCAL Flooding caused an evacuation at Village Cinemas on Sunday night. The theater bounced back into normal operations by Monday. Customers who evacuated or had a ticket to a canceled show may seek a refund.
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fter falling short of the two-thirds voter approval needed to pass a bond this month, the Meridian Library District board is considering another bond election in May or next November. The $12 milby Holly Beech lion bond garhbeech@mymeridianpress.com nered support © 2015 MERIDIAN PRESS from 59 percent of voters but needed 66 percent of votes to pass. Half of the funding was slated for a new library branch to serve both the community and students at the future Hillsdale Elementary and YMCA facility in south Meridian. The other $6 million would have paid for land and construction of a new branch in north Meridian. The three precincts with the lowest support for the bond were on the northern and southern edges of the district — the areas that would be getting a new branch. The library district’s next step is to meet with the team of volunteers who helped support the Nov. 3 bond election and discuss ways to educate the public next time around. Library district Director Gretchen Caserotti will also look at possible sites in north Meridian that the district could purchase or receive as a donation. Board members said not having a more concrete plan for the north branch hurt the bond election. “We had made the choice that we would not spend a lot of time and money developing the specifics until we knew if this is what the citizens wanted,” she said. “Fifty-nine percent turnout tells me that it’s a good idea, the projects are a good idea.” The 20-year bond would have addressed the library’s need for more space, parking,
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We had made the choice that we would not spend a lot of time and money developing the specifics until we knew if this is what the citizens wanted. Fifty-nine percent turnout tells me that it’s a good idea, the projects are a good idea.” GRETCHEN CASEROTTI, Meridian Library District director
computers and availability of programs, Caserotti said. Library programs are growing in popularity, including childhood reading programs, technology projects for teens and fit-and-fallproof classes for senior citizens. Total program attendance grew from about 53,000 last year to an estimated 83,000 this year. The district owns one branch, an almost 28,000-square-foot facility on Cherry Lane built in 1996 for a population of 40,000. The district new serves a population of 88,000 and has more than 51,000 card holders, Caserotti said. The district leases a 4,500-square-foot branch in the Silverstone Plaza near the Eagle Road Interchange. The roughly $100,000-peryear lease expires in 2017. The district also leases 2,700 square feet in downtown Meridian for a digital services branch called unBound, which specializes in technology and digital tools.
MOVING PIECES WITH PARTNERSHIP The vision for the new Hillsdale Elementary school is for the YMCA and the Meridian Library to be located in the same building as the school, near the corner of South Eagle and East Amity roads. The library bond would pay for a 20,000-square-foot branch that would serve not only Hillsdale students but the public at
large. If the library is unable to build a branch there, Hillsdale will have a temporary library ready for students when the school opens next fall, West Ada School District interim Superintendent Joe Yochum said. The details of the YMCA’s plans are fluid as the organization seeks to raise money for construction. The Treasure Valley Y is also experiencing a leadership change, as CEO Jim Everett is retiring. His replacement, David Duro, started Nov. 16. Part of the Y’s funding depends on whether or not the Western Ada Recreation District will run a bond. The district announced plans to run a $16 million bond in the Nov. 3 election, but it later backed out. Half of that money would have gone toward the construction of an aquatics center at the new YMCA facility. The recreation district has not discussed any further plans for the bond, Secretary/ Treasurer Carol White said Nov. 20. The Y has raised $7.6 million, Treasure Valley YMCA Senior Vice President Scott Curtis said. “The difficult questions to answer are … how much more we need to raise and the timeline of the project,” he said. Those answers depend on how big the facility will be and if construction will be completed in phases.
Please see Library, page 7