By: Keith Klein (Photo mcpl.org)
The Monroe County Public Library’s Board of Trustees unanimously approved a design for the new southwest branch of the library that includes an underground parking garage. The new library will be built on the southwest corner of the Batchelor Middle School property.
The plan includes a 105-space parking garage, under the 21,000-square-foot library building providing sheltered parking.
When deciding between the option with the parking garage and an option with surface parking, which would cost less, the Board considered the long-term value of the building and ongoing maintenance cost for the elevator necessary with the garage as well as cost savings from less need for snow removal with the garage.
Due to sloped land and the garage being under the main building level, rock removal is anticipated at the west end of the garage. The option approved by the board limits the amount of tree removal and also focuses on invasive species with new native trees anticipated to replace many if not all of the trees removed.
The cost is estimated at $8.5 half million dollars.
The parking garage option is about $1 million more than what the library had been planning.
Completion is fall – 2022.
A federal judge has ruled that an Indiana law wrongly throws out mail-in ballots that don’t arrive at county election offices by noon on Election Day.
U.S. District Judge Sarah Evans Barker’s decision orders state election officially to count mail-in ballots if they are postmarked on or before Nov. 3 and received by voting offices no later than Nov. 13.
Judge Barker rejected arguments that extending the deadline would confuse voters, add strain to county election staff, and delay completion of vote counting.
Barker ruled that thousands of people voting by mail because of the coronavirus pandemic faced being disenfranchised because of slow mail delivery and other factors outside their control.
You can listen to WGCL’s election night coverage starting at 7 PM
