Last week, the Clackamas County Board of Commissioners and the Gladstone City Council unanimously approved an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) between the County and the City of Gladstone to bring new libraries to the Gladstone and Oak Lodge service areas.
The approved IGA formalizes a settlement agreement that was made in 2017 between the two parties, and marks the latest milestone in an ongoing, collaborative partnership between the County and the City.
“We are thrilled to have reached this important milestone,” said Jacque Betz, Gladstone City Administrator. “The Gladstone community wants to move forward with building a new library, and this IGA allows the City and the County to proceed with the project.”
Per the agreement, Clackamas County will construct two new library facilities, one in the City of Gladstone at the current City Hall site, and the other in the Oak Lodge library service area. Previous community discussions identified the Concord Property (owned by the North Clackamas Parks and Recreation District) as a possible location for a new Oak Lodge Library. The County will operate both libraries using a “one library, two building” model to maximize efficiency, achieve economies of scale, and provide high-quality, consistent library services to Gladstone and Oak Lodge residents.
In addition, while Clackamas County has been providing temporary library management services to the City since July 2018, this IGA provides for the full transfer of
Gladstone Public Library employees and operations to the County starting Dec. 1, 2019. “We’ve been working for more than a year to prepare for this transition,” said Laura Zentner, Director of Clackamas County Business and Community Services. “We’re delighted to welcome Gladstone Library staff to the Clackamas County family, and are looking forward to working closely with both communities to plan and build new, modern libraries.”
Both parties are excited to be working together to provide new library facilities and enhanced library services to the community. The County and the City are working closely with two community task forces and a team of architectural consultants to define community values, evaluate community needs, and create designs for modern library facilities for both communities.
Learn more about the project at https://www.clackamas.us/communityproject.