Ronan Library pays off loan
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RONAN — At the end of May the Ronan Library District paid off a loan that library officials say did more than keep the light bill paid during the last several months; it kept the heart of a vital community asset pumping.
“If the City of Ronan had decided not to support us, the library would have shut,” Ronan Library District Trustee Mary Adele Rogers said. “We would have more than likely lost (our librarian) completely. It wouldn’t be the same.”
The City of Ronan agreed to provide a $32,500 loan to the library in December, as the financially flailing public resource awaited funds from a taxpayer funded mil levy imposed by a public vote in June 2013.
The mil levy was seen as a saving grace that the library district board was appreciative for, but because tax payments are doled out twice per year, it left a long half-year stretch for any funds to make it to the library’s coffers.
In that six-month stretch the library held spaghetti feeds and other fundraisers to keep the doors open, but it was clear more funds were necessary.
Loan options were pursued to no avail.
“We had no credit history,” Rogers said.
The library board went to the Ronan City Council with a request for a $32,500 loan. It was a large sum for the council to approve. The city’s latest budget was so tight it resulted in a staff cut. After much back and forth, the council decided to grant the loan, with the caveat that it must be paid back before the end of the fiscal year.
In December, the library received its first tax revenue. Finances began to look up. In May the loan was paid off in full, well before the deadline.
“It’s just a good deal,” City Councilmember Cal Hardy said of the loan being paid off.
The library has been able to hire two-part time employees and extend hours by 18 hours per week since it weathered the financial troubles.
“We actually will have a book budget,” Librarian Michelle Fenger said. “We will be getting brand new books on a very regular basis. It just means we are going to be able to offer a lot more to our community and it’s all thanks to our community.”
