Comments on: Library Plan Needs Refining

By: Dtrain

Dtrain — Wed, 01 Feb 2006 17:35:56 +0000

Well I grew up in Boise in the 80s, West Boise actually. And we had to truck all the way down to Downtown to go to the library. Its years too late for me, but it sure would have been nice to ride my bike there. As it was, we went to the Maverick on Franklin Rd. to buy candy and later, see if they would sell us cigarettes.

By: Porcupine

Porcupine — Wed, 01 Feb 2006 15:50:30 +0000

Dtrain
Well you know what it was like growing up in Boise in the 50’s. Nothing to do, no where to go. I blame all of my wild oats days on my years at the U of I. It was the shock of moving out of Boise. Now they ( U of I) had a great library. You could even bring in your adult beverages with you. And lets not forget about Wallace Idaho… ahh the good old days!

By: Dtrain

Dtrain — Wed, 01 Feb 2006 14:19:58 +0000

Porc–
Maybe you should have gone to the library a little more often too – by staying there and out of trouble, you could have bypassed the parole officer situation.

By: Porcupine

Porcupine — Tue, 31 Jan 2006 21:41:43 +0000

Dtrain
I know what you mean about people remembering your name..heck my parole officer still remembers mine! Doesn’t make me want to vote for a new jail!

By: Dtrain

Dtrain — Tue, 31 Jan 2006 20:33:09 +0000

I suppose you all would have been happy if the Foothills Levy hadn’t passed – or if we all had to pay to use the Foothills every time we wanted to go running or walk the dog. Heck – why don’t we take it a step further and privatize the Sawtooth Mountains or the Grand Canyon?

We have public institutions so they can benefit everyone. I grew up with in a middle income family and I read more books at the Boise Public Library than my parents ever could have bought. In fact, when I go back there some of the librarians still remember my name from when I was a little girl. Now that is priceless.

By: dh

dh — Tue, 31 Jan 2006 18:00:00 +0000

Ah yes, another “It was great in Seattle, or Portalnd, or Boston, on ad nauseum. And you should see the dandy ###### that ******* California has.” No wonder so many tax increases and bonds get passed around here. That is another one of the sad things about the “Democracy” that we have become.
I agree with “lib Redneck.” Stay out of my checkbook! Regardless of what Hollywood Dirk says about his “friend’s” and Master’s opinions of taxes in Idaho, the rent to local gov’t. on my home in Ada county is already too high. The taxes on it are escalating faster than the inflation rate of the Weimer Republic.
(Do you suppose enough people will once again fall for Dirk’s simplistic ploy of holding up a penny and calling the one PERCENT increase in sales tax a necessity to save our 1. Children, 2.Schools, 3. Roads, 4. “Quality” teachers, etc. etc.?) Grinning Bob Smiley wore THAT line of bull out in the sixties before we had a sales tax.
Probably if rural Ada County needed libraries beyond the school libraries we currently fund, I imagine we would have them already. If I am willing to drive that far, Kuna, or Nampa, or maybe even Boise will sell me a library card.
NO change isn’t always “good.” Some of us loved the Idaho of our youth and will not willing support anymore extravagant “progress” that we have to pay for.

By: Porcupine

Porcupine — Tue, 31 Jan 2006 15:56:03 +0000

Please people. The city of Boise purchased the property at a dead end street (Parkcenter) from a developer (O’Neill) several years ago. The City paid top $ for this ground for a library! If you don’t vote for this it will really hurt the Bown Crossing Development! What will the city do if with the property if this doesn’t pass? Do you really think that a library could go into the shut down KMart building less than a mile away! Don’t you want your library employees to have a new building rather than a remodeled one? Even though the City could sell this and make enough money for the remodel, we have to keep up with the new libraries in other big cities… like Seattle! And you citizens that vote against this remember if it doesn’t pass the City will put it up again next year and it will cost you more money in the long run. Use your head Boise! We need a place for the homeless people to hang out on the East side of Boise….right next to Riverside grade school

By: lib.Redneck

lib.Redneck — Tue, 31 Jan 2006 13:43:55 +0000

Privatize. That would be our solution to libraries, schools, health care… If I don’t use it; I don’t pay for it. I’m tired of the free-market morphing into a socialist giant of apparent do-gooders. I don’t want to pay for other people. “The common good” Is there such a thing? “The schools need money.” Great, then people with kids in the school should give money. “We need libraries so our people can be an informed society.” You can lead a horse to water….

Parents are paying upwards or $700/month for infant care. Why can’t parents later pay $250/month for a good private education in a facility of their choice. Do you want your kids to learn about Intelligent Design instead of evolution in schools? Then pay for it.

Library lovers out there… Go buy a membership to a private sponsored library. Stay out of my checkbook.

By: Steve

Steve — Mon, 30 Jan 2006 23:50:54 +0000

If I were a betting man, I’d say the library vote is a sure failure. I’ll be surprised if it gets a simple majority, let alone the super-majority it needs to pass. People are fed up with property taxes, especially after Dirk declares it’s not a state problem… it’s a county problem.

Just a thought… there’s an ALBERTSON Library on the campus of Boise State U. What would be so bad about a “Steve Appleton Library,” or a “Joe Terteling Library,” or… dare I say it… a “Larry Johnston Memorial Library”? (Goodness knows, the man has the money!)

Or, if you wanted to go in the “Taco Bell Arena” direction with possible name-brand sponsorship… how about a “Starbucks Library”? Starbucks could put up the structure – and ply the $5 coffee trade in the midst of the city-owned-and-operated book stacks. I think it’s a natural!

I’d possibly be more in favor of a COUNTY-wide library. Or alternatively, the more outlying areas could implement a local improvement district and build a library in that way. They build sewers that way… why not a library?

By: john

john — Mon, 30 Jan 2006 20:19:06 +0000

I used to live in the “Northwest”, Seattle and Portland respectively. I did use the library alot more there. Why? because it rains so much. I love librarys and I think the County Library idea makes sense. If you ever want to experience a fantastic county library, check out the Pasadena County Library in Pasadena, California. Absolutly delightful. The periodical reading room was wonderful. I doubt Boise has the capability of designing anything but a cheap ugly foam building to match the rest of what gets dished up in this town. I don’t support the library bond because people who live in the county will not be able to use it.