There is no gift shop to leave through in an impending exit from a longstanding agreement between several local entities. The only parting gifts may be division and animosity.
Jackson County Commissioners are apparently moving forward with a three-year effort to dissolve the Fontana Regional Library System. In a surprise move, the commissioners discussed the contentious issue in a public setting.
The item was tacked onto the end of a long agenda for the May 6 work session. County Manager Kevin King told the board that it had three options to attempt to get the FRL to succumb to its demands: board appointments, financial appropriations and leaving the embattled FRL agreement, as spelled out in a recently reworked contract.
“The fourth option would be to close the library,” Commissioner Jenny Hooper said, laughing.
Other board members disagreed with that option.
Smith said he felt the county could run the library on its own.
Board Chair Mark Letson suggested exerting control by renegotiating the library’s lease for the historic courthouse space when the lease ends in 2026.
Commissioner Michael Jennings suggested giving the FRL an ultimatum.
“It’s very left wing, and it needs to go,” Hooper said. “The whole library is being misrun and mishandled. They let homeless in there.”
The board, King and County Attorney John Kubis discussed options, but a push was made to announce the county’s intention to leave the regional system as a declaration needed to be made before June 30, giving the parties one year to divest themselves.
Commissioner Todd Bryson said the library should be “neutral” because it receives county dollars.
The board told King to begin exploring scenarios for what it might look like if the county leaves the FRL.
“I’m here to serve the citizens of Jackson County and what they want,” Smith said. “By and large, they’re not happy with what’s going on.”
Director’s response
Tracy Fitzmaurice, director of Jackson County Library and the FRL, has worked for FRL for 33 years.
She has, so far, not been contacted about the decision.
“I haven’t heard from anyone from the county, so I know as much as I did last week (after the board meeting),” Fitzmaurice said. “My staff are devastated in Cashiers and here (Sylva) because they worry about their jobs. Some of them have been here 20-plus years. They’re devastated to lose something they’ve worked so hard for, for so long; as am I.”
Fitzmaurice said she has lost sleep fretting about how her staff, many of whom are Jackson natives, will be impacted.
For now, she and staff are carrying on as usual.
Though she is not shocked, Fitzmaurice is still surprised given recent statements from Letson and being told by King that the issue wasn’t “on the table” as far as he knew.
In February, Letson assured the public that the county was not considering exiting the agreement.
“At this time Jackson County is not engaging in trying to get out of the FRL agreement,” he said. “We’ve spent thousands of dollars working towards a resolution, and we’re not meeting in secret with anyone regarding that.”
Fitzmaurice contacted Yancy County, who recently voted to leave the Avery Mitchell Yancy Regional library system. They have finished the year window in which a county has to reconsider leaving. According to Fitzmaurice, Yancy’s library budget will double from what it would have contributed under the regional contract.
“I’m sure that same thing will happen here,” she said. “We’re just hoping that they listen to people that love the library.”
Fitzmaurice addressed allegations made in the meeting.
According to Fitzmaurice, the OTC display Smith mentioned was a joint effort between the library and N.C. MedAssist to hand out items like over the counter medications, personal hygiene items, handwarmers, diabetic socks and other supplies to locals who need them, particularly unhoused people and victims of Hurricane Helene.
However, some people did not approve of the library giving out medications. Fitzmaurice conceded, and libraries quit dispensing medication but continued to give out supplies.
The issue was addressed within a week of receiving the complaint from the board, she said.
Kicking people out
Regarding Hooper’s apparent distaste for unhoused people accessing the library, because the library receives state and federal funds, Fitzmaurice cannot legally tell someone they aren’t allowed in the library unless they break conduct rules.
“The only people I can stop from coming into the library are those on the sex offender registry; we’ve done it three or four times,” she said. “That’s the only group of people that cannot use the library. That’s the law federally and in the North Carolina statues. I’ve have had to ask people to leave if they threaten staff, and even then, it’s usually temporary until they can meet the standards that are expected through the conduct policy.”
Unhoused people have a legal right to sit and read, attend library programs, or use the computers. Additionally, turning away an unhoused person could impede their ability to access help by using library computers to apply for assistance.
“They have absolutely as much right as any other person in this community,” Fitzmaurice said.
The hair dye incident happened once, and Fitzmaurice believes it was a teenager.