Library costs cited in the KCLS letter of July 2, 2012, should not sway Renton voters, who have final say on site selection.  “Hard costs” (from supporting documents cited by Bill Ptacek’s letter) are:

• $8.1 million for Cedar River upgrade (22,500 square feet),

• $10 million for the Big5/Piazza site (15,000 square feet).

In his letter, Director Ptacek of KCLS  included $5 million in “soft costs” for Cedar River work, and thus somewhat wishfully reports a total project cost of $13.1 million. The actual cost is a work in progress, a test of wills in progress between the council and the county and can be whittled down. The Renton Reporter (in a Jan. 22, 2010, article titled “KCLS Asking for More Money”) reported, “KCLS has a troubled past in terms of campaign behaviors.  In 2005, the state PDC determined that the organization, under the guidance of Ptacek, used $124,000 in library resources to promote a 2004 [measure, whereas …] state law prohibits the use of public facilities in election campaigns.”  Ptacek’s mass mailing to Renton voters cost KCLS $10,000, so far. The 2010 KCLS/Renton library measure passed by 53 out of 12,760 votes cast (out of 45,000 registered voters); thus a shift in a few votes due to Ptacek’s letter could irreparably alter Renton’s future.  We should not let that happen; Renton volunteers worked hard to gather signatures for Proposition 1.

Big 5/Piazza costs (above) include buildout plus $1 million for consultants and site acquisition, plus negotiated fees to KCLS. Cedar River costs (above) include renovation, seismic retrofit, contractor markup, non-binding improvements proposed by KCLS, but not negotiable fees to KCLS.  However, costs for Cedar River renovation, which might total $6.7 million if the building is repurposed, cannot be ignored, they are an unfunded liability on the city’s books, and only passing Proposition 1 makes them go away!

Kal Lambert

Renton