Fannin to pay $500,000; library head sees hurdle
Georgia Speaker of the House David Ralston announced, Thursday, January 2, a state grant of $1,383,000 to help fund a new Fannin County Public Library, however the Mountain Regional Library System believes the state legislature must still approve the funding.
“This is a tremendous win for our community, and this new library will be an important asset for years to come,” Ralston said. “Whether it is inviting a child to read their first book, empowering a young person to research their higher education options or allowing community groups to gather, libraries touch people of all ages and enrich their lives. I want to thank County Commission Chairman Stan Helton and the Mountain Regional Library System for their efforts in making this new library a reality.”
According to a statement from Mountain Regional Library System Interim Director Claudia Gibson, the state legislature still has to vote to grant Fannin County the funds. She said, “The story is not quite complete yet. The Georgia Public Library Service has approved, and put the Fannin County Library on the list to receive $1.3 million dollars in state funding IF the legislature approves it. We will not know for sure until the legislature goes back into session to vote on it. We encourage the community to contact their legislators and ask them to approve this funding.”
According to Ralston, the county will need to provide an additional $582,000 for a total project cost of $1,965,000.
The new library will be located at the Whitepath building in Blue Ridge, which was purchased by Fannin County in May of last year and the county’s administrative offices will also be moving out of the courthouse and into the Whitepath building.
“The November 2016 SPLOST vote approved a new County Admin or parking deck,” Helton said. “We
have $2 million remaining on Admin SPLOST and with the $1.3 million library grant, this will go a long way towards funding the renovations at the WP (Whitepath) building.”
Helton believes the move will alleviate current parking issues at the Fannin County Courthouse.
“With the new privately funded parking deck by Hawthorne Ventures and moving Admin functions out of the crowded courthouse area, Fannin citizens will be able to conduct County business without the current downtown parking problems and congestion,” he said.
Helton said the Board of Commissioners still has to vote to accept the funds.