LIBRARY DISTRICTS TAKE A LOOK AT BOUNDARIES

The idea to gather directors from the three area libraries (Cape Girardeau, Jackson and Riverside Regional) along with state library officials and local elected officials for a meeting on boundaries was absolutely inspired.

They came to Cape Girardeau in mid-July to discuss a law that, like so many others, seemed to be a good idea at the time it was passed.

In 1965, the Missouri Legislature decided that freezing library district boundaries would cause a positive proliferation of libraries. There would be convenient places to study and read and do research every few miles or so across the state, the supporters of the legislation believed.

But that's not exactly how it worked around here.

The Cape Girardeau Public Library is a convenient, pleasant building conveniently located on Clark Street. Its shelves are stocked with the newest books. The genealogy section is superb. And the equipment is modern. Many residents inside the city limits of Cape Girardeau appreciate and use their library cards there.

But not all the resident of the city have free access to the city's library. Those who live, say, in Twin Lakes Subdivision must pay $24 annually for the privilege, plus the 8 cents for each $100 of assessed valuation that goes to Riverside Regional Library, which is in Jackson. Twin Lakes is on the west side of Interstate 55, and the 1965 city limits stopped at the interstate.

In Cape Girardeau County, the regional library those 1965 legislators envisioned popped up in Jackson, where it's inconvenient for patrons in those areas of Cape Girardeau that were annexed after 1965.

Even more amazing, it's mere blocks away from the existing Jackson Public Library.

So, in Jackson, there are two libraries offering similar summer youth programs, books and videos. And neither has the funding to provide all the library services the directors would like. In 1995, for those reasons, Jackson held an election on a proposal that would have combined the two libraries in one new building in the city park. But the plan involved a tax increase, and it failed miserably that November.

The group that met two weeks ago decided to start small: with an educational campaign so that residents understand why they are assigned to a certain library based on where they live.

But they also are considering other options, such as a reciprocal-use program for patrons of other districts. St. Charles, Mo., for example, has such an agreement between the city and the county library districts.

In the best scenario, state legislators should examine whether that 1965 library-boundary law really panned out the way it was supposed to. In Cape Girardeau County, the answer is certainly not.