MISSION VIEJO : New Library a Focus of Council Campaign

Candidates for City Council have made city spending the election’s main issue, and a proposed $5-million bond issue for a new library has become central to their campaign debates.

Even though Mission Viejo voters overwhelmingly rejected a proposed $18-million City Hall project four months ago, library backers are not discouraged about their chances for passing a bond measure Nov. 3, which requires a two-thirds majority.

The main reason, they say, is that the need for a new library is easy to demonstrate.

The current county facility has served this community of 73,000 since 1971, when fewer than 12,000 people lived here. The library has just 37 parking spots.

“The word that comes to mind is pandemonium --the idea of a city of 80,000 trying to fit into 37 parking spaces,” said Lupe Green, who heads Partnership for a New Library.

The city is considering a 20-year bond issue that would cost about $9.1 million including interest. City finance officers say the cost to the average homeowner would be $5.13 per $100,000 of assessed value of their property.

But most candidates for City Council say the library should be paid for out of the city’s $16-million reserve fund.

“The need (for a library) is not the issue. I’m very supportive of a new library,” said Councilman William S. Craycraft, an incumbent who is seeking reelection. “But I oppose raising property taxes to fund it. Government needs to stop adding more debt and live within its means.”

Craycraft and other candidates propose finding other ways of funding the library. They favor alternatives such as a private donation drive or asking other communities that would use the facility jointly--such as parts of Laguna Hills--to help finance construction.

However, Councilman Robert D. Breton, who has championed the library in the City Council, said financing it through a bond measure is cheaper than paying cash out of city reserves.

Council candidate Gary Manley also wants to reduce the size and cost of the proposed 25,000-square-foot building.