By Lee Weyhrich
CLAY — The Clay City Council has announced some major changes to the Clay Public Library, beginning with a new library board and possibly a new location.
The library is currently located in an old house near Clay City Park, but several city council members believe the area around the old Clay City Hall, near the schools, would be a better location for a city library in the future.
The board change is meant to give the city council a clean slate to work from.
“Without going into a lot of the details of what’s transpired since 2009, I think the easiest way to say it is that the board has not functioned properly,” City Manager Ronnie Dixon said.
The new ordinance, established Monday, will re-establish a board under the original bylaws and budget as laid out in 2009. The library director would work 30 hours per week for $15 an hour. The library budget would revert to the 2009 budget of $66,000, $82,855 less than what was spent last year.
April Wallace, the director of the Pinson Public Library, will be helping the city council and the new library board determine what other changes need to be made. Under Wallace’s tenure, the Pinson library has been recognized as one of the most successful of its size anywhere.
The new library board will consist of Christy Steeley and Jane Anderton filling the four-year terms, Jimmi Lynn Amick filling the three-year position, and Andrea Self taking the two-year term. The city council is still looking for a candidate to fill the one-year term.
The May 18 council meeting is being rescheduled to May 21 due to Alabama’s municipality conferences.