The former Clinton Public Library has set vacant on North Broad Street for over a decade. At last night’s May meeting, City Council agreed with City Manager Frank Stovall that it’s time for it to go.
Stovall noted the Library was constructed on North Broad beside the Public Safety building in 1974 and served as the Clinton Public Library until 1987. That’s when a structural failure of the roof system was discovered.
Mabry Engineering then advised the city that the roof system was really inadequate for the load it had to bear. They recommended a series of repairs but also stated that a complete roof system redesign and replacement should be considered. Repairs in 1987 totaled some $30,000 and the building was re-opened. Then in June of 2000 a roof system failed and collapsed at a fire department structure in the city of Union, damaging fire apparatus housed in the structure. Subsequent investigation revealed that a substance sprayed onto the wooden trusses of the structure as a fire-retardant had the unintended effect of causing an accelerated aging of the wood. Another roof collapse with the same cause was identified at Marlboro-Chesterfield Technical College. The city of Clinton investigated and learned that the wooden trusses in the roof of the Clinton Public Library had the same fire-retardant material and that the building was actually unsafe. The building was immediately closed and repairs were made again and again for about $30,000. Marshall Clarke Architects issued a report after those repairs stating that they could not certify the safety of the building in a wind storm, snow or ice. They recommended a complete redesign and replacement of the roof system.
In 2003, when the cost of total roof replacement was estimated at more than $250,000, the facility was abandoned. Since that time the Clinton Public Library has occupied leased space on Jacobs Highway while the original library building has set vacant and has deteriorated further. City Manager Stovall informed council that in the 12 years since the building was abandoned the probable cost to replace the roof structure has increased to over $350,000.
He then asked for authorization to proceed with exploring the demolition of the building, converting the property to green space, to be held for any eventual need to expand the Department of Public Safety.
Council voted unanimously to approve a resolution authorizing the City Manager to begin the process toward demolition.