New library facilities are a huge asset to Christian County

I heard some fine music on August 11 at the newly-renovated Ozark branch of the Christian County Library from Kicking Jacksie!

As you can see in the photo, we were in a bright meeting room that is available to the public. The windows overlook the Finley River Park, where a mud-run had just been completed and where on other days and nights you can see barrel racing at the Finley River Saddle Club arena, various amateur athletic events, the county fair and people having picnics or paddling kayaks.

In our public discourse, we glorify entrepreneurship and the for-profit engines that drive our economy. But what I saw Saturday reminds me that the nonprofit sector—including the government—plays a big part in providing some of the best things in our lives, such as parks and libraries, when citizens are willing to tax themselves.

Last December, I was privileged to be asked to provide legal counsel to the board of directors of the Christian County Library District and the capable director Geri Godber and assistant director Katy Pattison.

The Christian County voters had the good sense to vote an increase in the District’s property tax levy by a 2-1 margin in August 2017. A mere twelve months later and the District has delivered an 8,000 sq. ft. branch in Nixa in a former office suite leased (with a purchase option) from Southern Bank and a complete renovation of the original branch in Ozark, adding a children’s reading room.

For both the Nixa and Ozark projects Sapp Design Architects, led by project architect Devon Burke and senior project manager Jim Stufflebeam, provided designs and Nesbitt Construction was the general contractor.  Michael Strong of George K. Baum & Company was the District’s financial consultant, assisting with the issuance of certificates of participation.

I’ve rarely worked on renovation projects with so much cooperation and so few problems. Nor have I worked on many projects where women (Geri, Katy, Devon and most of the District’s board members) made almost all the decisions. Though my role in the District’s projects has been tiny, I’ve rarely been more proud to be associated with a client’s endeavor.

At the Ozark library, you can check out live music and other performances from time to time, and you can also check out a rod and reel and tackle box or cake or muffin pans. And there are lots of books and movies. You can use a computer that may be connected to databases that aren’t available on Google and get help from a trained librarian. There’s a room full of local history materials. Separate spaces for little kids, tween and teens, with furniture and books to fit them, will help them enjoy using the library.

Getting back to the music–which is linked to books–Jack Bowden of Kicking Jacksie! is a teacher in Hermitage who formerly entertained at Silver Dollar City, where he hooked up with drummer Andy Holloway and bassist Shannon Thomason.

Jack is a participant in Wild Bob’s Musical Book Club. This book club publishes a list of books for upcoming months. Songwriters write a song related to or inspired by the book of the month and congregate at Lindberg’s on Commercial Street once a month to perform the songs that each has written. Literature and music fuel our spirits and imaginations, so that we can go on working. For the performance at the Ozark library, the two songs inspired by Where the Wild Things Are were big hits for all ages.

Everywhere I go, libraries are popular. They offer many things besides quiet spaces, including spaces with pleasant noise, helpful librarians, cake pans and fishing equipment.

One big difference between searching for information at a library and on the internet is that the internet is driven by mechanisms that obtain information from you and select information to give to you, including advertisements, based on what the advertising clients of Google and Facebook want you to see. Libraries aren’t like that.

Christian County has library facilities to be proud of and dedicated board members and employees. The 20 cent per thousand levy provides knowledge and entertainment. Even in an off-year election, Christian County voters turned out and did themselves a huge favor. More facilities are planned for the west and east ends of Christian County.