This time, it's pollution: Library merger hits another snag

The planned Jan. 1 merger of the Minneapolis and Hennepin County public libraries is in jeopardy because of a dispute over who would be responsible for any liabilities that arise from pollution on the sites of eight city libraries.

County and city officials will meet today to try to resolve the disagreement, which could delay the reopening of three Minneapolis libraries that have been closed for a year.

Both county and city officials said they want to get the deal done. The County Board, which must approve a merger, has its last scheduled meeting of the year on Tuesday.

"We're still targeting the end of the year, but we might not be able to get it done by then," said Richard Johnson, Hennepin County administrator. "We're willing to wait on the merger if we can't get it resolved."

A spokesman for Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak said the city is eager for a resolution.

"We have every reason to believe [a merger] will happen by the end of the year, and we will do everything to make that happen," said spokesman Jeremy Hanson. "Looming deadlines have an amazing ability to bring people together."

Minneapolis libraries are merging with the county system to solve financial problems. The sole stumbling block to an agreement is the pollution issue, Johnson said.

Environmental assessments of 15 Minneapolis library sites show eight have soil or groundwater contamination, some of it resulting from oil tanks that were used for heating the buildings. Though that pollution is not an issue while the buildings remain in use, if they are ever razed or moved, the contamination would have to be cleaned up. That could be very costly.

Late last week, the County Board sent a letter to City Council President Barbara Johnson saying that state legislation that cleared the way for a merger, as well as guiding principles agreed to by the city and county, make the city responsible for any liabilities that stem from conditions existing prior to consolidation. The county would be liable for anything happening after a merger.

But, the letter says, city attorneys have proposed that the county be legally protected only from "third-party" claims, and not from the cost of fixing pre-existing problems on the city sites.

County Commissioner Peter McLaughlin, a merger advocate, said "the sins of the past stay with the sinner."

"The pollution occurred prior to us assuming ownership. Therefore, the responsibility should reside with the owner at the time," he said. "This goes to the essence of the agreement we made before. That's why we're adamant about it. And it's about a lot of money if something goes wrong. You never know what you find when you dig this stuff up, and we want to be smart about it."

City Council President Johnson said she thinks the issue can be resolved and the merger can go ahead on Jan. 1. She said the city wants to make sure that if there is any kind of cleanup requirement, the county would seek dollars from sources such as the state and federal governments before turning to the city.

"We're willing to look at this because we've had detailed reporting, and we don't think our exposure is that dramatic," she said.

Hanging in the balance are the January reopenings of Roosevelt, Southeast and Webber Park libraries. Librarians are preparing them for use again, but that has been contingent on accomplishing the merger, according to Jane Eastwood, acting library director for Minneapolis.

The city is poised to send the county $1.5 million annually for operating the reopened libraries under the proposed agreement.

County Library Director Amy Ryan said that contingency plans have been made if the merger doesn't happen on Jan. 1. But delaying the effective date would make the accounting somewhat messier. For example, city library employees would have to be sent W2 forms by both the city and county. City library finance workers also would have to be trained on a new city accounting system that starts Jan. 1.

City Council President Johnson said that county officials also have expressed hesitation about long-standing plans to install a planetarium atop the new downtown Minneapolis library. The building has been structurally braced for the project but funds need to be raised.

The Legislature has approved $22 million in state bonding for a planetarium, but about $20 million remains to be raised from private donors. The project is also expected to run an annual operating gap of at least $800,000, half of which would be raised privately.

McLaughlin and County Administrator Johnson said the planetarium needs to be discussed but said it is not a barrier to approving a merger.

Mary Jane Smetanka • 612-673-7380 Steve Brandt • 612-673-4438