Library swap criticized by area residents

University-area residents voiced skepticism Saturday morning to a planned land deal in which the University would get the 40th and Walnut street land where the Philadelphia Free Library now stands. In the deal, first proposed by the administration last year, the University would build a new facility for the library in a eight-story, 750-car parking garage complex to be constructed catty-corner to the library's current site. The complex would also house the new headquarters for the University Police Department and the University Mail Service, and would provide ground-floor space fronting Walnut Street for either the library or retail operations. But at a meeting organized by the Spruce Hill Community Association Saturday, area residents said they were concerned about the adequacy of the proposed new facility and questioned the fate of current site and its 85-year-old building. During the first hour of the meeting, University officials, including Treasurer Scott Lederman and Police Commissioner John Kuprevich, joined library officials to present different explanations in support of the proposal. Lederman said during his presentation that the present library building, located at the edge of Superblock, could be used as a "focus for community volunteer programs." But he said he could not guarantee the University would not demolish the 85-year-old building. Lederman said the complex, which he estimated will cost between $12 and $13 million, is scheduled to open in the spring of 1993. He added that other long-term plans for the area include the construction of more student and faculty residences. During the second hour of the meeting, several of the 50 Spruce Hill residents in attendance spoke emotionally as they described the project as another major University project affecting the community planned without input from residents. At times, the question-and-answer period degenerated into simply a criticism of the University's lack of involvement of its neighbors in its development of major projects. But when speaking on the proposed land deal, residents said they were not only concerned that the building could be torn down, but also questioned how the new complex will affect Walnut Street and the neighborhoods immediately surrounding it. State Representative Jim Roebuck (D-West Philadelphia) said he was concerned that the expansion of retail space on Walnut Street would compound existing congestion problems, and noted that there would be a shortage of customer parking. Michael Hardy of the University City Historical Society said the library, which is one of many libraries donated by industrialist Andrew Carnegie, should be designated as a historic landmark. He said he would use an obscure clause in the title of the donated land to fight the land deal. But Eliot Shelkrot, President and Director of the Free Library, said he supports the deal because the city can not afford the maintenance required by the current building. He estimated that necessary repairs, including replacement of the leaky 30-year-old roof, installation of sprinklers and modification for handicapped access could cost $500,000. In addition, Shelkrot said the deal is the only way to provide the community uninterrupted access to the library, which recently was reopened after a three-year asbestos removal project. In the garage complex, the library would have over 600 square feet more usable space than the current building. The current facility has a larger total area, but flooding has rendered the basement meeting rooms unusable. The new library could also be designed with modern library design techniques, as well as a meeting room for 60 people and special facilities for the handicapped. And though building architect Keith Moch assured the group that fresh air would be provided through an air intake on the building's roof, residents were concerned that the there is no space for future expansion. University Police Commissioner John Kuprevich said the new police headquarters not only would provide more space but would also be able to "serve the University and serve the University community" better. In addition, Kuprevich said the move would have a "direct impact on safety" in one of the highest crime areas on campus. David Hochman, president of the Spruce Hill Community Association, said he was pleased with the meeting and an official position by the association would be made after a meeting Tuesday. "[We might] go with the deal or maybe go with a better deal," Hochman said. Staff writer Scott Calvert contributed to this story.

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