Build the library

If anything is going to be built where Potoczny Field now stands, a new community library still makes the most sense.

During Friday's meeting to discuss alternative options for long-term planning, a plethora of ideas was presented. The Fire Department would like to build a new fire hall on the 2.3 acres of property along Holt Drive. Others suggested that along with the library, a community center with administrative offices for local services should be part of the package.

And still others were against any development at all. They stated that the children would be the real losers in this deal because Bigfork doesn't have enough park area close to the Village. Losing Potoczny Field would be an injustice to families that don't want to drive all the way to Carlyle-Johnson in order to play baseball.

But the arguments for adding to the library concept or denying it altogether simply fall short.

Argument 1: Kids and families will lose a treasured spot to play.

Potoczny Field is not exactly well-used. The field is generally in poor condition and visits by children and family are certainly limited, especially during the winter months. Building plans for the library include well-developed open space for outdoor education programs and general play areas. Not only will the community have a place for valuable information and entertainment, but it will also have a better place to play.

The comments Friday night about the loss of park space struck me as a little ridiculous since homeowners surrounding five or six acres of county-owned open space in the Lake Hills subdivision completely struck down the opportunity to develop another community park.

I was at the meeting where homeowners lined up to decry the idea of developing that space. Some even threatened legal action. Yes, the planning for that park was mishandled and communication was often botched, but if Bigfork doesn't have more developed places for children and families to gather, there is a simple reason: Residents shut it down.

And no one involved with the library wants to dishonor Joe Potoczny by losing the ball field. The area would be called Potoczny Park, and the Community Foundation for a Better Bigfork has pledged to help relocate the ball field to the Carlyle-Johnson complex or improve the site.

Argument 2: The fire department can't stay in its current location because of the upcoming highway expansion, and if the fire hall moves farther away, insurance premiums will rise.

Currently, the Insurance Service Office (ISO), a company that provides comprehensive data for risk analysis, rates Bigfork at a six. As it turns out, as long as buildings are within 1,000 feet of a fire hydrant, and the fire hall remains within five miles of the downtown area, insurance premiums will remain the same.

Holt Drive is not compatible with fire trucks, either. The road has minimal to no shoulder, and Holt would have to be completely redone to accomodate large trucks and already congested traffic. As of right now, cars would have no place to pull over to make room for emergency vehicles.

The volunteers who run the fire department perform an amazing service to the community, and growth is forcing them to look at possible locations for a new building, but Potoczny Field is not the right spot.

Argument 3: Retrofit the existing fire hall into a new library.

In some ways, this argument makes sense. The building is much closer to Bigfork's schools, which would diminish some people's concerns about children crossing Highway 35.

The only problem is that all the reasons the fire department wants to move would plague the new library. Parking would be a nightmare, and an expanded Highway 35 seems less compatible with children and a library than a fire hall.

Argument 4: Forcing children to cross the highway in order to use the new library is dangerous.

Paul Mutascio, president of the Community Foundation for a Better Bigfork, said that the school district is committed to bussing students to the library when needed during the school year. The trips, however, would be rare as the high school library has grown to the point where it can accommodate most of the students' needs.

Students walking to the library on a regular basis would be in danger, especially while crossing the highway, but how many young students will be traveling that far on foot without supervision?

Plus, libraries don't just serve students without driver's licenses. Adults use libraries, too. And families from Creston, Echo Lake, the Swan Lake area, etc., will utilize the library, and they'll all drive to the library without walking across Highway 35.

Argument 5: Why not include plans for emergency services and administration offices with plans for the library?

First, 2.3 acres couldn't possibly hold a combination of all the local services. Open space would be completely gone, and as Kim Crowley, the director for Flathead County Library, said, a library is simply not compatible with a fire department or other emergency services.

A lot of great ideas for the future of Bigfork's growth came out on Friday night. But what the public meeting made abundantly clear was that more public meetings won't solve this issue. The library went through extensive studies and hired professional consultants for a period of nearly four years to get to this point.

Other community services and organizations are going to have to put forth the same effort into their long-range plans. A rush for the same piece of property without proper planning is neither fair nor prudent.