Rain or shine, the Dacula Business Association is planning for a large turnout Saturday for a rally to save the local library.
The group is mounting an effort to get the Gwinnett County Library Board to reverse its Aug. 11 decision to close the Dacula branch in order to staff the new Hamilton Mill Library.
“Some of this will depend on the weather,” said Business Association President Chad Parson, “but based on conversations I’ve had with other officials, I would expect from 200-500 people [to attend the rally].”
The campaign has recruited almost 6,000 members on its Facebook page and local residents have been exchanging strategies, designing T-shirts and making posters to draw attention to the issue. The rally will begin at 9 a.m. at Dacula and Fence Roads. Parson said officials have asked participants to park at the Hebron Church parking lot.
“This is a kid-friendly event,” Parson said. ‘We want as many children involved as we can.”
The new $7.4-million Hamilton Mill Library is set to open early next year. Because it has the same square footage and is located in the same service district, library board members said it made sense to close the Dacula branch and shift those resources to the new facility located 7 miles north on Braselton Highway.
Dissenting board member Phil Saxton, who represents Dacula in District 3, called the action “shameful” and he recommended equitable cuts be made throughout the system to fund resources for the new branch.
Dacula Mayor Jimmy Wilbanks said the rally is not intended as an “us-versus-them” event.
“I see a lot of support for this,” he said. “That certainly includes a lot of people outside of Dacula, including the Hamilton Mill area. We’re looking for a system-wide solution to a system-wide problem.”
Wilbanks said organizers are hoping momentum from the rally carries over to Tuesday night’s library board meeting, where the Dacula matter will be reconsidered. The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. at Five Forks Branch Library, 2780 Five Forks Trickum Road in Lawrenceville.
The board has set aside 30 minutes for up to 10 people to speak beginning at 6 p.m.
The Gwinnett County Library system has been under siege due to budget cuts since July. Last month, the library branches county wide took the unusual step of closing Sundays and Mondays and reducing hours the remainder of the week.
The system is under orders to cut another $2 million from its 2010 operating budget of $24 million.
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