Uncertain Future of Grays Harbor County Library Branch Spurs Angry Comments at Timberland Meeting

Recent conversations about the future of a library branch that serves a rural community in northwest Grays Harbor County generated plenty of angry comments at a Timberland Regional Library Board of Trustees meeting on Wednesday.

And several of those public comments were directed at Cheryl Heywood, the executive director of the multi-county library system, with some calling on the board to have her removed.

At issue are recent discussions about the library branch in Amanda Park, a branch that library officials have described in stark terms, saying it is little used and expensive to operate. That was followed by a recommendation to physically move the branch to Lewis County as part of a cost-cutting move. Instead of building a new branch in the town of Randle, they could use the relocated branch, library officials have said.

Based on the testimony heard Wednesday, none of that has gone over very well with certain community members.

"I was there for the 2018 fiasco," said former Mason County Trustee Brenda Hirschi, referring to a controversial capital facilities plan that proposed closing rural library branches. "Deciding not to move the (Amanda Park) branch is the least you can do." she told the board, adding about Heywood: "You can't trust her. She needs to go."

Other comments shared at the meeting:

• "You most definitely have not learned form your poor behavior in 2018. And let's not get into the lip service to diversity, equity and inclusion when the Amanda Park building was designed to reflect and contribute to the character of the tribes that make up the Quinault Nation. Shame on you."
• "I'm an educator and I understand that knowledge is power. It's very disheartening that a rural library system would be considering disempowering a community, especially children, in a rural area from being able to have consistent access to the internet and the services a library can provide."
• "It makes my physically sick, seriously, to think there are people in this organization who are trying to make a decision about a place of learning, a place of peace, a place of sanctuary."

Not all of the comments were as angry or directed at Heywood.

Dawneen Delacruz, who said she was a former Quinault Nation tribal council member, acknowledged that it would be a really sad day for the residents of Lake Quinault, which is near Amanda Park, to lose a library branch. However, she seemed ready to facilitate a meeting between the library and the Quinault Nation.

"If there is some kind of partnership that could happen with the Nation, I would be willing to solicit something," she said.

Heywood also took a moment to share her thoughts after hearing public comment, as well as reading emails and social media posts.

"We understand this is a difficult topic to discuss," she said about the future of the Amanda Park branch.

"My job, our job, is to ensure, both the board and myself, to be responsible (in our) use of public funds, so we are examining this option. We are asking for guidance from the board. The board is the governing body and as the governing body they have the ultimate decision-making authority when it comes to facilities. I am asking again: We are asking for guidance."

Although Heywood is asking for guidance from the board, the board made no decision on Wednesday. The facilities committee, which has initiated the discussions about Amanda Park, is set to meet again on July 25, followed by a full meeting of the board on July 26.

The library system has also posted some frequently asked questions about the Amanda Park branch.