Small turnout for discussion in advance of library vote

An afternoon forum on the future of the downtown library didn’t draw a crowd. The League of Women Voters had table settings at Drusilla’s Seafood for 45, but just 16 people besides panelists, media and League volunteers showed up. The panel itself was decidedly one-sided. Downtown Development District Executive Director Davis Rhorer declined an invitation, saying in a letter there have been “extensive public discussions and public input sessions regarding the downtown library.” The East Baton Rouge Parish Library Control Board sent no official representatives either. Board member Stan Bardwell, who has openly opposed plans to build a new library, was a panelist, but was not there in any official capacity. The other two panelists were Tom DuBos of the Greater Baton Rouge Federation of Civic and Homeowners Associations and John Berry of the Citizens for Main Library Independence, both of whom are vehemently opposed to expansion of the River Center Branch. “We have had multiple calls from citizens who have not been heard on this issue,” says League President Jean Armstrong. “Yet the Downtown Development District and the Library Control Board are not here to answer the very questions for which we had this forum. It’s a shame.” DuBos referred to the three options proposed for the downtown branch—renovate the facility, expand the existing library or build a new one—as “dumb,” “dumber” and “dumbest.” Berry referred to the River Center Branch as “oversized and underused.” The Library Control Board is set to vote today on the future of the branch. —Penny Font