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Leaders should consider potential problems before siting library at Jackson Plaza
The library site selection committee, made up of equal parts county and Town of Sylva officials, has completed its charge and made a recommendation that a new Jackson County public library be constructed on the former Western Sizzlin’ location in Jackson Plaza.
That decision surprised both our news staff and Sylva Police Chief Jeff Jamison.
Jamison said several of the businesses located there cater to young people and that the shopping center is the scene of frequent fights, drug use and alcohol consumption.
The site itself is not a bad one. There’s plenty of room for the one-story library consultants have recommended, and there’s lots of parking. Jackson Plaza needs a boost, and a library located there could be a first step towards its revitalization. A public library would fit in with the ideals of BraeStone, a proposed mixed-use community of housing and retail shops, that’s planned for the area around the shopping center. But the new post office proposed for Jackson Plaza could accomplish those same goals whether the library moves there or not.
The argument could also be made that the businesses that have already located there are the engines that will drive the area’s future development, and they would not seem to be conducive to the child-friendly atmosphere a library should foster.
We will admit to a preference for the old Sylva School site at Mark Watson for a number of reasons.
There would be no initial cash outlay to purchase property for a library, because the county already owns it.
While a library could be built either place, the Jackson Plaza site could host any number of retail shops or destination restaurants (think Olive Garden, Outback Steakhouse, Red Lobster) – options that cannot be considered at Mark Watson.
Admittedly the old Western Sizzlin’ site is near downtown, but is it really a walkable option for small children and senior citizens? The old school site, on the other hand, is practically an extension of downtown, and Commissioners’ Chairman Stacy Buchanan has already announced a plan that would connect Mark Watson and Main Street with a wide, level walkway.
We do agree that the Jackson Plaza site is probably the only one with the space to accommodate an expanded one-level library. But we don’t have to build on one level just because that’s what some “expert” recommends.
Sylva and Jackson County are unique, and we don’t need to settle for cookie-cutter approaches, and besides, most large libraries are multi-story. Thousands of local citizens were educated in the two-story old Sylva School, and thousands more are successfully attending classes in two-story portions of Smoky Mountain High and Scotts Creek Elementary. Everyone talks about “thinking outside the box,” but we don’t see much evidence of it.
And while property cost should not be the overriding issue, it should be considered. If Mark Watson is the next best spot, and if no money is required to purchase it, and if a family-centered, wholesome atmosphere is already present, shouldn’t that be enough to move it to the top of the list?
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