Library system to ask LR voters for bond refinance

Little Rock voters will be asked this summer to authorize the Central Arkansas Library System to refinance bonds for the second time in three years, which would reduce the overall millage that property owners pay while also extending payment on the bonds by a few years.

If approved by voters in a special election, the refinancing would generate about $15 million to $17 million for projects in Little Rock, said library system Director Bobby Roberts. The bond issue would not extend to the library system's other areas of coverage in Pulaski and Perry counties.

The revenue would be used to expand three Little Rock library branches, make improvements to two others, increase the Internet bandwidth and purchase new books, DVDs, e-books, CDs and computers.

The bond issue would refinance a series of 2008 and 2009 bonds for which Little Rock property owners are currently assessed 1 mill. The rate would decrease to 0.9 mill after refinancing. A mill is one-tenth of a cent, with each mill producing $1 in tax revenue for each $1,000 of taxable property.

The current bond payoff of 2028 would be extended to 2032 if the refinancing is approved. In reality, the bonds are already scheduled to be paid off about six or seven years sooner than the current end date, Roberts said Thursday.

Library bonds have a mandatory pay clause, meaning the library system must use revenue from the millage solely to pay off the bond and not for operations. Based on current payments, approval of the refinancing would most likely extend the tax about three years, Roberts said.

The library system's board of trustees unanimously approved moving forward with a special election in July or August at a meeting Thursday afternoon.

The system ran a similar campaign in 2012, asking voters in a March special election to approve refinancing of a 2004 bond issue. That also brought the 1 mill assessed on that bond down to 0.9 mill.

It raised about $26 million to build the Ron Robinson Theater and improve the Main Library, both in the River Market District; purchase land in west Little Rock; expand Sidney S. McMath Library on John Barrow Road; to buy books; and to increase Internet stations.

Little Rock property owners currently pay 5.1 mills for library bonds or operations. That total would be decreased to 5 mills if the current refinancing proposal is approved. For a homeowner with a $100,000 house, his library taxes would be reduced by $2.

Roberts said Thursday that $7.5 million of what would be raised would go toward building upgrades.

At least 2,000 square feet would be added to the John Gould Fletcher Library on North Buchanan Street in the Hillcrest area, the Dee Brown Library on Baseline Road in southwest Little Rock and the Roosevelt Thompson Library on Rahling Circle in west Little Rock for additional programming and meeting space.

Improvements also would take place at the Main Library on Rock Street and the Sue Cowan Williams Library on South Chester Street downtown.

Another $2 million would be used to upgrade technology, such as Internet bandwidth and digital equipment, including computers. The remaining $5.5 million to $7.5 million would support expansion of the library system's collection, including books, DVDs, CDs, databases and e-books.

"The book business is not a dynamic part of the library anymore, but they are still a big piece of what we do, and we need to upgrade that," Roberts said.

This would be the last millage election Roberts oversees as head of the library. After 26 years as the agency's director, Roberts announced in February that he will retire early next year.

The board of trustees appointed a transition committee Thursday that will meet for the first time Tuesday to set qualifications for a new director. The committee also will decide whether to do a national search with a hired firm or do a smaller state or local search.

Roberts, who will be an ex-officio, nonvoting member of the committee, said he's "a hire-local-if-you-can guy."

"It helps to have someone who understands the community. Background in libraries is also helpful. The big skills that I think are important now are big community networking and if you can do numbers, if you understand budgets, then you can figure it out because that drives everything else you do," he said.

Metro on 03/27/2015

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