After Foot Dragging by Deputy Mayor Fails to Produce Deal; Cheh Again Drops Support for Public Private Partnership

From Library Renaissance Project
For Immediate Release
Contact: Robin Diener
202/387-8030; cell 431-9254

After Foot Dragging by Deputy Mayor Fails to Produce Deal
Cheh Again Drops Support for Public Private Partnership

Calls for Tenley Library Construction to Begin ASAP

Washington, DC – March 13, 2009 – Councilmember Mary Cheh (D-Ward3) today withdrew her support for the long delayed public private partnership involving a library, school, and housing across from the Tenley metro stop, after learning that representatives from the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Economic Development and project developer LCOR would not be attending a public roundtable on the matter.

Cheh originally supported exploration of the concept, but community opposition to the ill-defined partnership is wide spread and encompasses many issues. Cheh has been sensitive to the need for quick action since the library has been closed for more than four years and gone through two extended redesign processes (once in 2004, and again in 2008), both of which were approved by the community and fully funded. At a Saturday morning “Chat with Cheh” last month at Starbucks, the councilmember promised constituents more information and a fast turnaround.

In a letter of March 11 to Mayor Fenty and Deputy Mayor Albert, Cheh said she “genuinely regretted the turn of events” and hoped that “structural supports will allow building on top at some time in the future.” Tenley Library Now advocates noted that the former library was structurally engineered to have another story added, but after decades of neglect and occasional flooding it was demolished to make way for a “21st century” facility yet to be built.

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