Lolwut? Six-week-old $5M library to be closed

[NFS4]

Grand opening... grand closing -- Chris Rock

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Hickory Grove branch of the Mecklenburg County Library system opened with fanfare Feb. 6. Its doors will be padlocked -- along with 11 others -- April 3.

"To me, that's wasting taxpayer money," Duane Hill, a patron, said Thursday. "This is awful. They have to change this. This can't stay."

The 5,100-square-foot branch was a $4,956,400 project to replace a much older, much smaller library just across Hickory Grove Road. The building is LEED certified and outfitted with a new computer lab, larger and improved meeting rooms for the community, and resources to encourage early childhood reading and school curriculum.

"I heard about the cuts," mom Tabitha Jones said, "but not this one!"

In making the tough decisions to cut half of the library branches in Mecklenburg County, the Library Board used four criteria: cost of operation, usage level, proximity to other libraries, and size.

Robin Branstrom, chairwoman of the Mecklenburg Library Board, said those criteria--and those criteria only--were applied in order to be fair. Recent investment, she said, was not on the list.

Mecklenburg County Commission Chairwoman Jennifer Roberts, who helped cut the ribbon on the Hickory Grove branch six weeks ago, said she was confused to see it and the Beatties Ford library on the list of closures. (Beatties Ford is currently being renovated.)

"To turn around and close it surprised me," she said. "They have a longer life span. We just invested, so the maintenance is going to be really low right now. The efficiency is higher."

http://www.wcnc.com/news/local/Six-week-old-library-to-be-closed-88511967.html

 

[Locut0s]

Government = penny wise pound foolish. They always manage to cut useful programs and services that cost a few million tax payer dollars to operate yet keep others that suck down tens or hundred of millions but would be missed by few. Although in this case it sounds like they chose a poor library to upgrade if it was on the low end of their usage stats.

 

[alkemyst]

probably padded quite a few pockets when being built. This is how most projects are planned today...not how good or long lasting they will be, but by how much money those behind the project will make.

Easier to hide a $50k payout on a 5 million dollar project than a $300k one.

 

[Locut0s]

probably padded quite a few pockets when being built. This is how most projects are planned today...not how good or long lasting they will be, but by how much money those behind the project will make.

Easier to hide a $50k payout on a 5 million dollar project than a $300k one.

This too. I often wonder what % of oft touted government expenditure figures go to behind the scenes kick backs. For example the security for the Vancouver winter Olympics was said to have cost a Billion dollars alone? Hello a billion! Yeah I saw a lot of extra cops on the streets but not a Billion dollars worth. Not saying this example by itself was such a case, I have no idea, but it illustrated the general idea. I'm sure 9/11 and its subsequent fallout has lined the pockets of a shit load of people who basically road the scare tactics money waggon home.

 

[techs]

probably padded quite a few pockets when being built. This is how most projects are planned today...not how good or long lasting they will be, but by how much money those behind the project will make.

Easier to hide a $50k payout on a 5 million dollar project than a $300k one.

Yeah, too bad we don't have laws to prevent corporations from bribing, er, donating, to politicians to prevent this from happening.

Wait, we did. Just not anymore. Thanks Supreme Court.

 

[Locut0s]

Yeah, too bad we don't have laws to prevent corporations from bribing, er, donating, to politicians to prevent this from happening.

Wait, we did. Just not anymore. Thanks Supreme Court.

Yeah I thought that passage was pretty lol-worthy if it weren't also shit your pants scary in its possible implications.

 

[BarneyFife]

Unfortunately like others have said, a lot of these new buildings are to put money in a contractor's pocket and I'm sure the politician is getting something in return. This leads to all civil servants being labeled incompetent etc... although we have nothing to do with these decisions.

 

[Krazy4Real]

Wow... that's frickin' nuts! What a waste.

 

[TallBill]

Yeah, too bad we don't have laws to prevent corporations from bribing, er, donating, to politicians to prevent this from happening.

Wait, we did. Just not anymore. Thanks Supreme Court.

Last I checked, the Scotus' job isn't to determine right and wrong.

 

[alkemyst]

Unfortunately like others have said, a lot of these new buildings are to put money in a contractor's pocket and I'm sure the politician is getting something in return. This leads to all civil servants being labeled incompetent etc... although we have nothing to do with these decisions.

There were a few civil servants at a local DMV operating a multi-million dollar fake license scam. About the whole staff.

 

[lxskllr]

Yeah, too bad we don't have laws to prevent corporations from bribing, er, donating, to politicians to prevent this from happening.

Wait, we did. Just not anymore. Thanks Supreme Court.

Instead of legislation donations, elect better politicians. I'd take money from anyone for my political campaign, and it wouldn't affect my voting in the least. Morally corrupt politicians are the problem, not corporate money.

 

[TallBill]

There were a few civil servants at a local DMV operating a multi-million dollar fake license scam. About the whole staff.

There was a huge scam in Illinois a few years ago with commercial truck licenses. Of course in Illinois there are always scams. That's how our state government works.

 

[BarneyFife]

There were a few civil servants at a local DMV operating a multi-million dollar fake license scam. About the whole staff.

Yeah but you're talking about 15 employees out of thousands. Their are crooks everywhere.

 

[TheWart]

Yeah, too bad we don't have laws to prevent corporations from bribing, er, donating, to politicians to prevent this from happening.

Wait, we did. Just not anymore. Thanks Supreme Court.

I know, as soon as the SCOTUS ruling came down, it allowed this to happen!!!

lol

 

[3chordcharlie]

Last I checked, the Scotus' job isn't to determine right and wrong.

It is their job to uphold the constitution.

The more the courts are willing to swallow of the 'corporate personhood' lie, and the more they shelter coersive behaviour under the umbrella of 'free speech', the fewer checks will exist against corruption.

 

[Genx87]

It is their job to uphold the constitution.

The more the courts are willing to swallow of the 'corporate personhood' lie, and the more they shelter coersive behaviour under the umbrella of 'free speech', the fewer checks will exist against corruption.

Since corporations are considered citizens they did uphold the constitution. Just because your left wing blog told you to not like it doesnt make it unconstitutional.

 

[dmcowen674]

Awesome South Carolina

 

[TallBill]

It is their job to uphold the constitution.

 

[NFS4]

Awesome South Carolina

It's North Carolina

 

[CPA]

Yeah, too bad we don't have laws to prevent corporations from bribing, er, donating, to politicians to prevent this from happening.

Wait, we did. Just not anymore. Thanks Supreme Court.

Wut? Chances are several small, mom and pop shops, built that library and lined their pockets....but, hey, we all know your disdain for corporations and the millions upon millions of people they employ, so no surprise that you would believe some major corporation lined their pockets on a $5M library project

 

[fatpat268]

Kinda reminds me of Circuit City. We got a new Circuit City in our town that was just finished, and then three months later they were out of business.

 

[TehMac]

You guys realize this is the "bailout" in action, right?

All you suckers who voted in the democrats and Obama into office, I hope you're enjoying yourselves right now, because I can confidently tell you, not many other people are.

 

[newnameman]

Yeah, too bad we don't have laws to prevent corporations from bribing, er, donating, to politicians to prevent this from happening.

Wait, we did. Just not anymore. Thanks Supreme Court.

Oh really? Please point out the SCOTUS decision that makes it legal for coportations to donate directly to political candidates.

 

[mugs]

You guys realize this is the "bailout" in action, right?

All you suckers who voted in the democrats and Obama into office, I hope you're enjoying yourselves right now, because I can confidently tell you, not many other people are.

No, this is the poor economy in action. No one promised or expected an immediate recovery.

I love how you blame Obama for the problems he inherited.

 

[CRXican]

we need to create jobs, let's build expensive shit!