The decision gives the go-ahead for architects to focus on that option, said AADL director Josie Parker. She said it also means she will focus on funding options, including going to voters to request a new millage for the project, which could cost more than $70 million.

From left: Ann Arbor District Library Director Josie Parker, board chair Rebecca Head, and board members Jan Barney Newman and Prue Rosenthal, at the Sept. 15 board meeting.

The board had discussed the options at length at their August retreat, and earlier this month Parker had presented some of those options to the board of the Downtown Development Authority, which has recently authorized a $56.4 million budget for an underground parking garage adjacent to the library. The parking garage is currently undergoing site plan review and resubmission to city planning staff.

On Monday, several board members summarized their reasoning in deciding to build anew. The difference in cost between the two options was negligible, in part because it would be expensive to bring the current building up to the desired standards. A remodel also wouldn’t give the library flexibility to expand, and a new design would bring operational efficiencies in ways that aren’t currently possible.

The vote was followed by applause around the board table. “Here we go,” Parker said.

Earlier in the meeting, board members discussed whether to pursue LEED certification for the project. At the recommendation of Luckenbach Ziegelman Architects, the board voted to spend up to $15,000 to register with the U.S. Green Building Council – the first step in starting the LEED process. (LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, and is a stamp of approval that the project has used environmentally conscientious building practices.) Parker noted that the building would be LEED certifiable regardless of whether they got the official designation. Board members asked the architects to provide a specific cost for getting certified, before they decide whether to go through the process.

In other business, the board also authorized Parker to transition the Washtenaw County Library for the Blind and Physically Disabled, now administered by the county, to AADL. The county had requested that this transfer take place – the library was due to close at year’s end because of budget cuts. Parker said she plans to expand services for the group – by adding programs for families and children, for example – and hopes to also increase the number of people registered for these special services throughout the county.

Present: Rebecca Head, Margaret Leary, Barbara Murphy, Jan Barney Newman, Josie Parker, Prue Rosenthal, Carola Stearns, Ed Surovell. Absent: None

Next meeting: Monday, Oct. 20, 2008 at 7 p.m. in the library’s fourth floor meeting room, 343 S. Fifth Ave.