The Federal Emergency Management Agency has estimated that the late June floods that devastated parts of West Virginia caused $1.1 million in damages to the building and contents of the Clendenin branch of the Kanawha County Public Library system, the system's director said Monday.
Alan Engelbert told library board members that he's still waiting to learn, likely later this week or next, what percentage the damage to the building alone represents of the property's appraised value. The branch got 9 feet of water in the floods.
Any time a building is more than 50 percent damaged in such a situation, it has to be brought into compliance with national flood insurance policy. For the Clendenin branch, Engelbert said that could mean having to elevate the building in the current location by 11 feet - a requirement that could increase costs beyond the $1.1 million estimate.
"So we'd have the tallest building in Clendenin," Engelbert said.
Under its Public Assistance Program, FEMA can fund 75 percent, and perhaps more, of the cost to fix damage to public facilities, including the cost to build new facilities and establish temporary facilities. Engelbert said the branch had $300,000 in insurance coverage on its contents and another $300,000 on the structure, so whatever amount FEMA provides will take that into account.
"FEMA has been very good to work with," Engelbert said. "They've been very responsive, and have been of great help in helping me through the process."
Board member Mickey Blackwell asked Engelbert if he had any thoughts on what the system would do in response to the damage to the Clendenin branch.
"I think that's probably premature," Engelbert said. "I think we need to figure out the extent to which we are damaged."
The system will have to consider FEMA funding offers and building requirements in determining whether to try to restore the current branch, build a new structure on the current site or at a nearby location, or not rebuild a Clendenin branch at all.
Blackwell also questioned Monday why the system had reduced the frequency of Mobile Library stops in Clendenin from four times a month to two. The Mobile Library is the "bookmobile bus" where patrons can check out items.
Engelbert cited staff scheduling constraints due to the fact the Mobile Library now has begun stopping at Bridge Elementary in the area, but said he'd review the possibilities in response to Blackwell's concerns.
The director also said he still hasn't heard an update on when the flood-destroyed bridge to Crossings Mall - where the nearby Elk Valley branch is located - will be repaired. On July 26, the library reopened on a space it used to occupy at 3636 Pennsylvania Ave., in Big Chimney, to serve both the Clendenin and Elkview areas until the bridge is replaced.
"There is still no sign of activity at the Crossings Mall," he said.
He did say Monday that FEMA has estimated the cost to set up that temporary branch location and eventually vacate will come to about $32,000, indicating FEMA could fund 75 percent of that expense and the state could fund the remaining 25 percent.
Also Monday, the board:
n Approved a policy change to, according to Engelbert, pay part-time workers seven and a half hours worth of pay for the four and a half hours worth of work they do on Sundays only in the main Charleston branch of the system.
Engelbert has said the change would cost about $5,600 annually in extra pay and benefits for the, on average, six workers who work each Sunday. He said full-time workers have received the benefit of being paid for extra hours each Sunday they work since 1974.
Of the dozen members in attendance out of the 18 system board members, only one, Kenneth Bailey, voted nay in the voice vote. Bailey declined comment after the meeting.
n Heard a report from board member Cheryl Crigger Morgan concerning the fact the ad hoc building projects committee still is reviewing four locations for a new main library branch location, and has delayed making a recommendation to the full board in order to seek more information on one of the options. She declined, as she has previously, to reveal the options publicly.
The main branch currently is located on the corner of Capitol and Quarrier streets in downtown Charleston.
n Heard a report on its new Hoopla service, which launched Monday. With a library card and an email address, library patrons can freely check out from the website hoopladigital.com or the Hoopla app 10 items per month, including movies, TV episodes, albums, graphic novels and ebooks.
Reach Ryan Quinn at ryan.quinn@wvgazettemail.com, facebook.com/ryanedwinquinn, 304-348-1254 or follow @RyanEQuinn on Twitter.