by Matt Hampton
At last week's budget hearing on Franklin Square Public Library's 2009-10 budget, the library's board of trustees gave some time to local resident Markose Prince to try and talk his way into the hearts and minds of local residents.
Prince is aiming to replace board member Frank Ammendolea, who was voted onto the board last spring and has worked with the group for all of this year, helping them craft the most recent budget.
Prince, a former loan officer with a Hempstead Bank, has been a Franklin Square resident for decades. Since his retirement, he said, he's trying his best to give back to the community which has meant so much to him.
Prince's platform was simple but multifaceted. In a difficult economy, his desire is to put the onus on community support, and let the library flourish by attracting volunteers to help run programs and maintain the library's stellar reputation in the community.
“Plenty of people outside want to help us, and that way we can maintain low budget, take care of all the maintenance and overhead charges, as well,” Prince said to a small crowd gathered at the meeting. “That way, we can reduce a lot of our budget, and we don't look to the government too much for help.”
Prince wanted to see greater care taken by the library to involved local schools, another way he thought programs and services could be created in a difficult economy. Among some of the programs that Prince said he'd like to see the library create are health programs, community literacy programs, and events that coordinate with local elementary and high schools.
Franklin Square already has several educational programs geared towards young children and older adults, but Prince said his interest was in filling in the gaps to involve the entire community.
Ammendolea framed his own campaign around one word: taxes. Specifically, he said, his main interest since being voted onto the board in April 2008 has been to address the way the library funds itself in the community head on, and try and keep the tax burden down.
“I always ask the question whenever any proposal comes before this board: do we have the money, and should that money be spent?” Ammendolea admitted that he's very proud of the work that's been done in the past year to maintain the level of service that the Franklin Square Public Library provides.
“Over the past year I've learned a lot. How the library runs, what the priorities of the community are and how to serve them,” Ammendolea said. “I believe when someone comes before you and they can show you a positive result, that person deserves reelection.”
Ammendolea hung his hat on the budget that had been detailed explicitly earlier in the meeting, one that slightly decreases the tax levy from the library on local taxpayers without cutting and library services.
The next meeting of the Franklin Square Public Library Board of Trustees will take place on Wednesday, April 29, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Residents are encouraged to vote at the library branch.
