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Orange County Library Long-Range Facility Planning <br />t9 a <br />Joint Use Library <br />Durham Technical Community College has approved the purchase of twenty acres of land in <br />the Waterstone Development for an Orange County Center. The County Commissioners have <br />proposed a joint use library facility for that site. The consultant has identified a number of <br />advantages of this arrangement, but also has discovered that it may not serve well the long- <br />term needs of either institution nor fulfill Commissioner expectations regarding financial <br />savings. <br />In addition to adding a built-in user population of faculty and students, the library's location <br />at DTCC's Orange County Center offers these advantages: <br />¦ The County may not have to purchase a separate site for a new library <br />¦ The College could possibly contribute towards the operation of the proposed library <br />(although the amount would require negotiation) <br />The collection required to support the proposed curriculum of the local campus is <br />typically found in public library collections, so the need to duplicate resources would <br />be reduced <br />Students would have direct access to a larger, broader library collection than would <br />otherwise be available at the center, <br />¦ Resources purchased specifically to support the curriculum would be available to the <br />general public <br />® Communication between faculty and public library staff could be enhanced <br />¦ The library could potentially have access to other resources at the Center (e.g. <br />classroom and meeting space; student internships) <br />A number of significant concerns and questions regarding the co-location proposal have <br />surfaced, however, and would need to be addressed as plans proceed: <br />¦ A major concern for the college is the space that might be required for the public <br />library facility and its impact on availability of land for future expansion of the <br />community college <br />® Likewise, expansion acreage for the public library would be limited (even if a library <br />facility were to be built that is smaller than the recommended size, land for future <br />expansion should be available) <br />¦ There is a possibility that perceived financial benefits and savings of the arrangement <br />will not be fulfilled <br />o A question mark exists as to whether the land on which a public library <br />constructed by the County can be considered part of the required County <br />match for the State bond funding for the college, especially considering the <br />suggested size of the library facility <br />o The College is currently using its North Durham Center as the model for <br />determining operational costs it would consider helping to underwrite; this <br />model will need to be reviewed in light ofactual needs once the library <br />becomes operational <br />Students will expect resources and services not normally offered in a public library <br />setting so the Library will need to plan for them (e.g. class reserve collections, <br />bibliographic instruction classes, etc.) <br />¦ The library must be sufficiently staffed to be able to serve the needs of both the <br />general population and the college population <br />15