MISSION VIEJO : County to Be Asked to Help With Library

Eager to move forward with plans to build a new library, the City Council on Monday agreed to push the county to fulfill a longstanding commitment to contribute about $1 million toward construction costs.

The county, which also owns and runs the existing facility, will also be asked for a commitment on staffing levels for the much larger building being proposed by Mission Viejo.

“It’s the county’s moral and legal obligation to provide library services to the city,” said Mayor Robert Breton. “In exchange for our willingness to step in and fulfill their responsibility, we’d like to get some of their past promises written up in contractual form.”

The county has agreed to sell the current library building, valued at about $1 million, and use the proceeds to help the city build a new library.

Although county officials agree that a new library is badly needed in Mission Viejo, they point to the county’s huge budget deficits of up to $60 million in recent years and plead poverty.

“Financing for libraries throughout the state have been tossed into the biggest mess we’ve ever seen,” said John Adams, director of the county library system.

Writing up a contract to commit proceeds from the sale of the current library to a new facility would not be a problem, Adams said.

But with state revenue slashed and new funding sources uncertain, committing to future staffing levels would be impossible at this time, he said.

The council also approved hiring a financial consultant to look over county budget records to make sure Mission Viejo property taxes earmarked for library services were all used for the local library.

Mission Viejo and the county earlier this year reached agreement on how to split city redevelopment revenue. The council also decided on Monday to ask the county to turn over their share of the redevelopment money to the library project.

“All we’re asking is that Mission Viejo money be allowed to stay in Mission Viejo,” Breton said.

Adams said the county has spent on the current library “slightly more than what has been paid by Mission Viejo residents.”

The council also made it clear Monday that building a new library is the city’s top priority, agreeing not to fund any other construction projects until the library is built. The city has already spent $2.4 million to purchase a site for the library at Marguerite Parkway and La Paz Road.