After residents spoke against a revised proposal to make having an overdue library book a crime, the idea has been tabled.
On Tuesday, Siloam Springs Board of Directors voted 4-2 to table the ordinance until June 3. Directors Bob Coleman and Carol Smiley voted against tabling it.
In other business, the Board of Directors approved:
• Adopting a new master street plan
• Establishing subdivision regulations
• Contract with Lyons Concession to operate the concession stand at Siloam Springs Family Aquatic Center.
Resident Grace Davis asked directors to reconsider the ordinance.
She was concerned that it could lead to someone's driver's license being suspended. It also would create a perception issue.
Davis said she wants the library to be a welcoming place. She suggested taking the approach that Bentonville Library uses.
She said to try that approach for a year to see how it works.
Davis, who is president of Friends of the Siloam Springs Library Foundation, said she was speaking as a resident and taxpayer, not for the Friends of the Library.
Resident Lucas Roebuck said that the public relations ramifications could be negative and encouraged the board not to pass the ordinance.
Mayor John Turner said that this was the fifth time an ordinance like this has come before the board.
On March 18, at its third reading, an ordinance failed that would've allowed for a citation to be issued to someone for failing to return an overdue library book. That ordinance would have allowed for up to a $500 fine for violating it.
On April 1, Coleman proposed a similar ordinance but instead of the $500 fine, the maximum penalty would be $350. This is the ordinance that was tabled Tuesday.
When asked why she voted against tabling the ordinance Tuesday, Smiley said she wanted to get the issue resolved. She's in favor of the ordinance that Coleman proposed.
Directors heard the first reading of the ordinance after a 4-2 vote. Directors Scott Jones and Brown voted against it.
Several residents opposed the ordinance, and some spoke against it at the meeting April 1.
Resident Matt Feyerabend said he posted about it on Facebook, and of the dozen or so people who responded, half would cancel their library card if the ordinance was approved. No one thought it was a good idea, Feyerabend said.
Feyerabend suggested making the maximum fine twice the value of the item that's not returned.
"Make it related to replacement value," he said.
City Attorney Jay C. Williams explained that conviction under the ordinance would be a violation, not a misdemeanor. It would be treated like a traffic offense.
Director Dennis Brown asked if children could "have a record" because they didn't return their books.
Williams said that the only way a juvenile could be charged under state law is in county juvenile court.
"We do not have juvenile court jurisdiction," Williams said. City staff would look to see if an adult co-signed for the library item.
Brown said state law already in place would provide for someone to face felony charges for some offenses.
Offenses in the state law range from a misdemeanor to a felony based on the value of the library item that's not returned.
General News on 04/20/2014