LAKE LUZERNE – The Rockwell Falls Public Library will hold elections for four of its five seats at the Stuart M. Townsend Elementary School from noon to 8 p. m., on May 21.
“Having four-fifths of any group be up for election at a single point is never an ideal situation, and while that is the reality this year, it will not be a recurring problem going into the future,” reads the library’s website.
Although the election will be held in conjunction with the Hadley-Luzerne Central School District’s election and budget vote, neither the library’s board nor the $190,000 collected by the district for the library’s budget are connected to the functions of the school district itself.
In December 2023, the New York State Board of Regents appointed Margaret Hartley, Rosemarie Gardner, and Ted Mirczak to the board following a series of resignations. All three of those appointments, plus the earlier appointment of Jason Hall in September 2023, will expire in June 30, 2024.
Only Trustee Josh Jacquard’s term continues beyond this term and will expire June 30, 2026.
The nominees running for the four positions are incumbents Mirczak and Hartley, as well as Janice Waterhouse and Colin Hagadorn.
Two of the board seats up for election will serve full three-year terms, and two will serve one-year terms.
The nominees with the most and second most votes will be elected for the full three-year terms, and the third and fourth highest voted nominees will be elected to serve the remaining one-year terms.
Mirczak told The Post-Star in a statement that there is still more work to be done to put the library back on track, after the library closed for lack of staff and the board could not function because too many people stepped down.
“Hiring a Manager and reopening was the short-term commitment I made,” Mirczak said. “Now that I have had an opportunity to dig deeper into the operation, I have become aware of a number of areas where we can do a better job for our library users and for the residents of our community.
“We need to restore programming, engage the community in a plan for the library’s future, and make sure our library is a welcoming place for everyone in our community.”
“I initially decided to apply to the Board of Regents for one of the vacant seats on the library board because I was distressed and horrified that our library was closed,” she said in a statement. “I felt like I needed to be part of the solution – to reopen our library. Once I was on the board, I saw there was a lot of work that needed to be done. Of course, first the board needed to work together to hire a new library manager and get the library back open. We did that – hiring a manager in February and opening the library on March 1. But we also had other work to do. We had to restart the Strategic Planning Committee to establish how the library can best partner with and serve our community in the years to come.”
Hartley also said that she wants to stick around while the library plans a budget and makes sure the finances are in order, along with maintaining the building and grounds.
Gardner, who is not running to be elected to a term, said that when she was appointed to the board, she had only intended to part of a stopgap solution.
“My objective was always to work hard for that period of time to get the library up and running again and we’ve done that,” she said. “I’m proud of the work we’ve done and of the community’s response to that work but I’ve decided I would like to devote more time to a few other organizations where I also volunteer.”
Both Mirczak and Hartley said they were encouraged by how attentive and active the community has been since they were appointed in December, 2023.
“It was heartening to see how much our community appreciated us reopening, and how much the library means to them,” Mirczak said. “Many folks have thanked me and the Board for moving forward as quickly as we did. I am amazed and humbled as to how much there is to learn about library functions, and how much time and effort is required in spearheading the Library Board.”
“What has stood out for me is how important the library is for our community, and how the community has let us know that, in meetings, at the library and around town,” Hartley added.
Alex Portal is a staff writer who covers northern Saratoga County and Hadley/Luzerne. History and Environment are his beats. Contact: 518-742-3274, aportal@poststar.com.