South Madison Backers -- Economic Hopes

South Madison Library Backers Hope Economy Won't Stifle Fundraising
By Pat Schneider (Capital Times —  4/14/2009)

Nellieyah Ngai gives the South Madison Branch library a lot of credit for the poised young woman she has become.

"It's done wonders for me," said Ngai, who recalled seeking refuge there from a chaotic home life while growing up nearby. The library was a "safe place" where she discovered books and supportive adults.

Such safe public places for children "are more lacking in this neighborhood than any other," Ngai said last week at a meeting on the planned new branch library on South Park Street that she and civic leaders hope will be a vibrant hub of activity in a hardscrabble neighborhood that has served as an entry point for generations of new residents.

There's little doubt that the busy library needs an upgrade from its current setting in a cramped, worn storefront in the Villager Mall. But the foundering economy means it will be a challenge to raise the $335,000 in private funding needed to make the new library a reality in a neighborhood where many residents struggle in the best of times.

"My biggest concern is that this library will get shortchanged because it happens to be in the least affluent neighborhood," resident Marion McGrath said.

"I think it will be a challenge," said Jane Roughen, library community services manager, of the private fundraising campaign. "It's ambitious."

City officials are relocating the South Madison Branch to a new Urban League of Greater Madison building that will be the anchor of a multimillion-dollar remake of the mall. Renamed "The Villager," the mall is envisioned as the flagship of a revitalized neighborhood that sits along one of the major avenues to downtown Madison.

The new library -- with 10,000 square feet of public space it is three times the size of the current space -- will be on the ground floor of the Urban League's Center for Economic Development and Workforce Training. That building was reduced from three stories to two as the faltering economy slowed fundraising and another tenant, Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, scaled back its own plans for a clinic there.

By the time ground was broken last month, the city of Madison's Community Development Authority, which bought the Villager Mall in 2004 for $10 million, had bent its deadlines for the start of construction to give the Urban League the best price possible on property.

But the less the Urban League paid, the greater the gap between the projected cost of the library and the $2.95 million the city has committed to borrow for it.

Aggravated Madison Public Library Board members said in February that the negotiations on the Urban League space, in which they were not directly involved, left them "behind the eight ball."

"We may have to scale back," they wrote in asking the Madison Public Library Foundation, a nonprofit corporation, to raise money for the South Madison Branch. "But the project has our name -- Madison Public Library -- on the door and we are trying to establish standards for how our branches look and operate."

The authorized cost for the branch library is $3.58 million. City officials have committed to borrowing $2.95 million for the project, leaving a $630,000 gap. Add to that the foundation's costs, and $700,000 is the fundraising goal for the project. More than half of that amount has already been committed, said Tripp Widder, who serves as president of both the library board and library foundation's board. That includes pledges of $200,000 from the Madison Community Foundation, $100,000 from the Rennebohm Foundation, and $65,000 in donations from individuals that already are in hand.

Private fundraising is a routine part of library building projects these days, and played a role in renovation of the Lakeview Branch and construction of the new Sequoya Branch, Widder said.

Grass-roots fundraising will be part of the strategy for the South Madison Branch, but unlike other campaigns that tapped resources and connections of neighborhood associations, "we are going to go about this campaign a little differently," Widder said. "We will try to rely heavily on businesses that serve the neighborhood or are located there."

But the steep economic recession is hampering business' ability to donate to charitable causes. "It's really going to be hard this year and probably next year for businesses to help too much," said Jim Garner, CEO of Sergenian's Floor Coverings on the Beltline and a longtime south side civic activist.

The Sequoya campaign had help from Wisconsin First Lady Jessica Doyle, a former neighborhood resident who served as honorary chairwoman. Fundraising events included appearances by best-selling author Jacquelyn Mitchard and Pulitzer Prize winner David Maraniss, two writers with deep Madison roots. Neighborhood and corporate donations totaled more than $1 million over two years for the new branch that opened last fall.

What connections and resources south Madison can tap in support of its library have not yet been identified. One idea being kicked around is a basketball game played on donkeys, pitting perhaps Mayor Dave Cieslewicz and other city officials against police officers. "We thought it would be hilarious," said Ruth Ann Bauhs of the Burr Oaks Neighborhood Association.

Neighborhood and library foundation representatives were scheduled to meet Wednesday, April 15, to brainstorm on fundraising and set up a campaign cabinet, presumably to include leaders from the south side and the greater Madison community.

The South Madison Friends group wants to reinvigorate itself for fundraising for the new branch and has scheduled a meeting for current and prospective members at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 16, at the library, 2222 S. Park St.

In the meantime, brainstorming on what the South Madison Branch should look like inside has been the subject of two community meetings attended by library staff and a handful of patrons. The third and final meeting on the library plan is set for 6-8 p.m. May 12 at the library.

Preliminary drawings by Milwaukee-based architect Engberg Anderson Inc. show separate areas for children, teenagers and adults, wireless internet service and lots of public access computers, and a large public meeting room where teen programming also could be held. The library is designed to be highly energy-efficient, to the level of qualifying for LEED certification.

Library users at the community meetings discussed type and placement of seating, what floors and walls might be made of, and the possibility of artwork produced by community members or reflecting the neighborhood's diversity.

If fundraising for the library has not reached its goal by the time construction is complete -- projected for early 2010 -- the city will fund the gap while fundraising continues, Widder said.

If the fundraising lags, "there's a possibility we'll have to scale back on our wish list," Roughen said.

Ngai reflected that the South Madison Branch sometimes does not feel welcoming because it's so crowded. Library personnel expect more spacious quarters to attract even more use. Ngai said that's an exciting prospect, even if everything can't be exactly what people would like to see.

"I've been waiting all my life to see this happen in south Madison," she said.