Plans to enclose two terraces at the Highland Beach Library are estimated to cost $150,000.
2013 file photo Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star
By Rich Pollack
Long-discussed plans to enclose two terraces at the Highland Beach Library may be stalled once again after Town Commissioners rejected a selection committee’s choice to award a design and construction contract to a Jupiter firm.
During a workshop on April 28, commissioners heard a recommendation from town staff to hire Architectural Building Corp. of Jupiter at an estimated $150,000 to enclose the terraces.
Commissioners, however, turned down that recommendation. Two commissioners said they favored the second choice, West Construction, while two others said there was not enough information in any of the bids to make the right decision.
After considering a number of options – including asking each of the three bidders to make presentations to the commission – commissioners agreed to postpone a decision until their next meeting in early May.
In the interim, Town Attorney Glen Torcivia and Finance Director Cale Curtis, who led the selection committee, will be meeting in an effort to bring a recommendation to the commission on how to move forward.
Commissioners have been struggling to find contractors for the project since late last year, with two prior bids and a recommendation from town staff rejected.
While it appears that the project, budgeted for $150,000, will go forward with the support of a majority of commissioners, newly elected Vice Mayor Bill Weitz has questioned if a need for the terrace enclosures exists.
At a meeting earlier in April, Weitz also questioned why the town would be footing the entire bill for the project.
Weitz said that during his campaign before the March 10 municipal election, he spoke with many residents and the issue of the enclosures did not seem to be a priority.
“The bottom line is there was not an outpouring of support,” he said. “We’re considering a project at the whim of a few at the expense of many.”
The vice mayor also said he doesn’t believe there is any documentation to indicate that a need exists to enclose the terraces.
Weitz said he would support the project if he knew residents favor the renovations.
“If we did a survey and 80 percent of the people said they were for the enclosures, I would be the first one to raise my hand in support,” he said.
Funding for the project, supported by the town’s library and the nonprofit Friends of the Highland Beach Library, is included in the town’s budget but Weitz questioned why the town is planning to pay for the entire project.
Weitz said the project’s cost was originally going to be split between the town and the Friends of the Library but that it now appears the town will be covering the cost of the entire project.
According to minutes from a June 2014 workshop meeting, then Town Manager Kathleen Weiser said that the Friends of the Library planned to raise money to fund half of the enclosure project. She told the commission that it would have to budget the entire $150,000 in case the nonprofit organization was unable to raise enough money.
Town officials say they have met with the Friends of the Library and it appears the organization does not have money for half the enclosures.
Weitz said he and several of the other commissioners recently attended a Friends of the Library business meeting and learned the organization recently bought two paintings from Library Director Mari Suarez for $25,000, with Suarez donating $5,000 back to the Friends of the Library.
The paintings, from Suarez’ personal collection, had been hanging in the library for several months, Weitz said, but the library director recently decided to take them down.
“The board of the Friends of the Library independently made a decision to bring them back,” he said.
In an April 10 letter to commissioners, the Friends of the Library pointed out the many contributions the organization has made to the library and reiterated support for the enclosures.
“Comments made by the vice mayor at the Town Commission meeting of April 6 lead us to believe there is a lack of understanding of our mission to enhance the library and its offerings,” Co-President Marjorie Lanthier wrote on behalf of the organization’s board. “The main purpose of enclosing the terraces is to provide more meeting space for the community.”
In an effort to resolve concerns listed in the letter as well as other issues, Town Commissioner Carl Feldman, Town Manager Beverly Brown and Torcivia are planning to meet soon with Friends of the Library representatives.
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