Community Corner
Water Fountain Flood Damages Butler Library Carpet, Books OK
Butler Library trustees vote to investigate replacing fountain with water cooler.
The voted Thursday night to look into the removal of an outdated water fountain and to replace it with a free-standing water cooler. The decision followed flooding that occurred last month when water pipes leading to the fountain failed and carpet at the library was damaged.
“No one knows how long it was leaking,” Acting Director Margaret Assante said. “The leak occurred over the weekend. It was discovered Monday morning.”
Butler’s Borough Administrator James Lampmann and CFO James Kozimor stopped the leak when they noticed it. Working together, they stopped the spread of water throughout the building. The two ran a shop vacuum and moved books and furniture out of harm’s way, while arranging for repairs to be made on the plumbing.
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“They worked for hours,” Trustee and Mayor Robert Alviene said.
“That’s not really their job,” he added. “Kudos to them both.”
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Alviene then indicated that, with the insurance deductible, the clean-up from the water is going to cost the library “a couple of thousand dollars.”
“It would be a smart thing to modernize it,” Alviene said of the fountain. “It is very, very inexpensive. And we don’t want to take the chance on disaster if this fountain runs all night.”
Last month’s leak left more than half of the library’s rug area underwater. Thanks to the efforts of Lampmann and Kozimor, the stacks and furniture remained unharmed. However, the rug was damaged and clean-up requirements are still being fully examined.
Assante noted that several library workers had to leave early due to dust issues related to the incident. She expressed concern about the potential for mold growth should the fountain leak onto the rug repeatedly.
Four of the board’s seven trustees were in attendance at the meeting, along with the acting director. All agreed that Board President Marijane Brandau should seek estimates from water cooler companies.
Other items discussed included the review of a potential candidate for library director and acknowledgement of the library’s new link on the Butler Borough website.
More than 5,000 people used the library in July. Sixty-one new patrons registered with the facility and 3,958 books and other materials were circulated.
The next Butler Library Board meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 1 at 8 p.m.
