Karma? Bankruptcy? With spat settled, small Fresno library cleared for big move | Opinion

It might’ve been karma. It might’ve been bankruptcy. Either way, one of Fresno’s smallest and most-beloved public libraries should soon occupy a significantly larger space.

Last October, I wrote about how community efforts to relocate the Politi Branch Library to a northeast Fresno shopping center were being stymied by 99 Cents Only Stores, whose lease allowed the discount chain to restrict non-commercial use on the property.

Fresnans were outraged enough to bombard the 99 Cent Only Stores customer service center and email address with angry messages. Enough for the company’s PR firm to issue a vague mea culpa.

Six months later, 99 Cents Only Stores announced it was closing all 371 of its outlets and filed Chapter 11. Almost surely just a coincidence, but capitalism moves in mysterious ways.

With that obstacle cleared, talks continued between library officials and the shopping center at the northeast corner of First and Bullard avenues. They recently culminated in a 10-year lease agreement for the Politi Library to occupy a former Rite Aid location more than four times its current size — provided the Fresno County Board of Supervisors grants its approval at Tuesday’s meeting.

The existing library, named after Fresno-born author and illustrator Leo Politi, is 5,016 square feet and tucked away in a strip mall. The new location is 21,440 square feet and highly visible. It’s also next door to a Starbucks and adjacent (via back fences) to Ahwahnee Middle School.

As Friends of the Politi Branch board member and retired school librarian Janet Claassen put it, “This kind of site comes up once in a lifetime.”

Books & coffee

The proposed lease between the county and the Jeff & Velvet Jue Family Trust calls for $7.8 million in annual rent over the 10-year term. It also calls for the lessor to make the estimated $1.29 million in improvements needed to make the space suitable for a public library.

The move won’t have any negative fiscal impact on the county, according to a staff report . Lease payments, as well as initial costs for building signs, furniture and fixtures, will be funded from library sales tax and property tax revenue.

To say Politi Library has outgrown its current space would be an understatement. Almost every foot of the cramped, one-room setup is being utilized.

The new location would allow for community rooms, similar to those at Woodward and other larger branches, so that groups could meet without disturbing other patrons.

Plus, it would be the only library in town with a coffee shop next door.

“People want to go to Starbucks, and they want to read,” supervising librarian Alan Greenhaw said. “Put those two together and you have a dream corner.”

Supporters had hoped to announce Politi Library’s big move in May when the branch celebrated its 50th anniversary. That didn’t happen, but this story appears headed to a happy ending.

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