Florida Public Library’s annual budget vote set for April 8
Florida. Four candidates seeking four seats on the library’s Board of Trustees will also be on the ballot.
| 19 Mar 2021 | 02:12
Friends and family of the late Madeline Rose Pillmeier dedicated a bronze statue in her memory on May 15, 2010 at the Florida Public Library. The statue of a young girl reading a book was funded by an outpouring of donations to the library following the fifteen year old Florida student’s death in June 2009. She was an avid reader and a lifelong library user. The statue rests on a rectangular sandstone block with original chisel marks, once a foundation stone in an 18th century barn. According to the library’s web site, the stone was donated by Peter Kimiecik of Kimiecik Landscaping. Tim and Todd Purta, of T.S. Purta Funeral Home, donated the plaque which reads “Once was a girl who loved to read and read – Maddy.” Todd Purta donated his services and that of his crane to transport and install the statue and stone. He was assisted by Ross Folino who also prepared the site.
The Florida Public Library’s annual budget vote and trustee election will be held in the library on Thursday, April 8 from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
All registered voters in the Florida School District are eligible to vote.
The library is located at 4 Cohen Circle behind Village Hall. Voters are directed to enter the back door and exit the side door.
Face masks and social distancing are required within the library.
Applications for absentee ballots are available at the front desk or on the library’s website at www.floridapubliclibrary.org under News on the menu bar.
The ballot will contain two propositions: one for the library’s proposed budget for the 2021-2022 fiscal year and the other for the election of four trustees to the board.
The budget and tax rate
A tax levy of $493,127 is offered for voters’ approval. This represents an increase of 1.45 percent or a total of $7,069.
Estimated tax rates are an increase of 2 cents per $1,000 of assessed value to $1.38 for the Town of Goshen and 10 cents per $1,000 of assessed value to $5.97 for the Town of Warwick.
Library Board of Trustees
Three incumbent trustees and one newcomer are running for the four open seats on the library board.
Vice President Ronald Kamrowski, Secretary Laura Fernandez and Trustee Stella Kosior will be joined by Tyler Carey on the ballot.
Three seats are for full three-year terms and one seat will be a one-year term to finish out the balance of former trustee Cecelia Lillard’s term. The top three vote getters will secure the full terms.
Ron Kamrowski: Library needs to expand
Ron Kamrowski is a lifelong resident of the Village of Florida, a graduate of St. Joseph’s School, John S. Burke and SUNY Buffalo where he earned a BS in Economics and Philosophy.
He is retired from a long career in management with Big V/ShopRite, Stop & Shop and Gillette Creamery.
He has attended numerous advocacy events for public libraries during his term, uses FPL on a daily basis and still marvels at the ease with which books, CDs and movies can be ordered through Inter-Library Loan.
He believes the library needs to expand its size and offerings and would like to continue to use his finance and computer skills toward those goals.
Laura Fernandez: Sees an expansion of online learning in FPL’s future
Laura Fernandez has lived in Florida for 45 years and is running for her second term on the board. Her three sons graduated from S.S. Seward and she is a graduate of SUNY Orange.
Her career in the Orange County Department of Social Services allowed her to work closely with people who were facing difficult challenges and she helped to connect them to information and resources.
She is an avid reader, skilled in team building and problem solving and has taught herself French since her retirement in 2017.
She appreciates the excellent readers advisory help from library staff and sees an expansion of online learning in FPL’s future.
Stella Kosior: Supports library’s educational programming for all ages
Stella Kosior was the library’s appointed treasurer for 15 years before being elected to the board. She is a longtime Florida resident and graduated from St. Joseph’s School, S.S. Seward and Krissler Business Institute with a business diploma. She is a member of St. Joseph’s Church and its Living Rosary Society.
She retired from Modern Produce Farms, Inc. as head bookkeeper after 50 years with this local business.
She is proud of the library’s educational programming for all ages in the community and uses her finance skills on the board.
Tyler Carey: Advocates expansion of everything the library does to meet community needs
Tyler Carey and wife, Marlene, have lived in Florida since 2008 and their three young children attend local schools. He studied writing in college and has worked in publishing and technology. Since 2014, he has worked for an employee-owned company that edits and typesets books for publishers.
He volunteers as a Cub Scout den leader, in professional publishing groups and for FPL’s Dungeon & Dragons online group via Zoom.
His whole family uses the library and he continues to be impressed by how much FPL offers within and beyond its small physical footprint.
He would like to see an expansion of everything the library does to meet community needs.
For information on the vote, call the library at (845) 651-7659.