The Lewes Public Library commissioners have taken an underhanded approach in their attempt to claim the ownership rights of 2.4 acres of property in the Villages of Five Points, Lewes.
The deed that granted this land to the library included a stipulation. If the library didn’t build a “library facility” on the land within 10 years, the site would revert to the Villages of Five Points. That 10-year period will be ending soon, in 2022.
The library clearly doesn’t need the site. It decided to purchase the site where a new library facility has already been built. But it does want to monetize the site, as stated in the minutes of the library board of commissioners’ meeting of March 2013.
To put it plainly, the library needs money. The commissioners want to pretend this little book box is a library facility so that they can hold on to the land and sell it.
The residents of the Villages of Five Points are against this. First, because we want it to remain open space, where it complements the lake that fronts Savannah Road.
Second, because we would lose control over what might be built there.
And frankly, it’s dishonest. A kiosk is not a library facility. At the time of the donation, the understanding was that a library facility would be the new Lewes Public Library.
Their unauthorized installation of a birdhouse-type structure on the corner of this property without approval of the community’s architectural committee violates community bylaws, and calling it a library kiosk is clearly a scam in their attempt to justify their ownership of the property.
As residents of the Villages of Five Points, we are upset about their deceitful and manipulative approach.
And the commissioners miscalculated, because the residents clearly see what they are attempting to do, and they left a documented trail in their meeting minutes regarding their intentions to monetize the property.
Be mindful of this if you ever have to deal with the Lewes Public library commissioners on any matter. Their integrity is lacking.
We ask for your support of the Villages of Five Points regarding this matter.
Robert Viscount
Villages of Five Points
Lewes
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