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recommended space. Chapel Hill has 94% of the recommended space. She <br />understands that when the library moves out of the trailer, that it will actually have less <br />space in the Whitted Building. There has also been no additional shelving added since <br />1980. She said that it seems to be getting worse. The Orange County library spending <br />per capita is $6.33. The State average is $15, and Chapel Hill's spending is $36.29. <br />She would recommend some changes. <br />Chair Brown said that we have a Library Committee and she will send the <br />concerns to John Link and the Library Committee. <br />Mauricia Castro is the director of EI Centra Latino and he came to thank the <br />Board of County Commissioners for their support far their Many Cultures One Race <br />fundraiser. They raised $16,444 that will be used for youth programs at EI Centra. He <br />presented the County Commissioners with an event T-shirt to thank them for their <br />support. <br />Commissioner Carey asked how many participated in the race and Mr. <br />Castro said that there were 744-844 runners. Including the volunteers, there were <br />about 3,444 people involved in the event. <br />Chair Brown asked if they had broken off from the festival that used to be <br />held at Chapel Hill High School. Mr. Castro said yes, because the Fiesta Del Pueblo <br />had moved to Raleigh. <br />Commissioner Halkiotis thanked Mr. Castro for opening up this center four <br />years ago. <br />Bridget Booher, President of the Friends of the Library, read a prepared <br />statement as follows: <br />"Like many in the community I was thrilled to hear last spring that the library <br />was undergoing a renovation. It was clear that the 84-year-old Whitted building -which <br />the library moved into in 1984 -was showing its age. Books were stacked in any <br />available windowsill, patrons waited to use the limited number of public computers, and <br />community outreach programs were ~Iled to capacity. <br />When I became the Friends president, I began to understand the <br />complexities associated with this renovation process, and the multiple factors <br />associated with it. As two weeks stretched into four months stretched into now almost <br />eight months, it's become clear that a more apt term for this process is maintenance <br />rather than renovation. <br />While no one could foresee the impediments that this project encountered <br />along the way -such as the discovery of asbestos and other health hazards - it has <br />been hard for library patrons and Orange County citizens to get a handle on what to <br />expect in terms of space and services once the library reopens. <br />We understand that space allotment is a complicated matter, particularly <br />given the County's limited real estate options. But given that the library facility was <br />already pushed to capacity before these maintenance operations, and that compliance <br />with ADA and fire codes requires creative thinking simply to accommodate - <br />accommodate, not expand -necessary services - I speak on behalf of many in the <br />community when I say we are deeply concerned about the short and long-term future of <br />the library. <br />The move-in date is now estimated to be less than two months away. When <br />can patrons expect to know haw these maintenance procedures will affect space and <br />