To build or not to build a library

RIGA - The Latvian Parliament committee for education, science and culture on May 16 voted down a draft law on the proposed Latvian National Library slated to cost more than 87 million lats ($148 million), mostly supplied by customers of the state electric power monopoly.

As the responsibility for the bill's further fate at the Parliament lies with the budget and finance committee, the vote is only advisory.

In March former Prime Minister Skele's government proposed financing construction through a mandatory electricity tax, saying it was the only means available to finance the construction of the library.

The draft law on the library construction envisaged that each electricity consumer would donate funds at 0.001 lats per kWh for 12 years. Most of the committee members objected to plan and questioned the high costs of the project.

As planned, the project would cost 87.4 million lats. Breakdown of the proposed costs is: information technology, 3.4 million lats; land, 4.8 million lats; and construction itself will cost 68.2 million lats plus a VAT(18 percent) of 79.4 million lats.

Only lawmakers from Latvia's Way and People's Party factions voted in favor of the draft law.

Presently, the 5 million items in the national library are located in eight buildings. Of them, one is in catastrophic condition and not fit for a library. In addition, the system has only 240 seats for readers.

The construction of the new building is planned in Pardaugava district of Riga. Architects' drawings call for a glass mountain or "Castle of light," with 1,000 fully-equipped seats for readers with access to traditional information resources, Internet and local data banks.

Lawmaker Jakovs Pliners of the leftist alliance For Human Rights in an Integrated Latvia said at the committee meeting that so far no basis has been provided to justify so huge an expenditure on a library building or the need for a luxury library in Latvia.

Social Democrat MP Osvalds Zvejsalnieks said that first the existing entire library network all over the country should be improved.

The aim of the project is to establish a unified information network across the country. The idea is that any person will be able to get information from the national library at any branch library in Latvia.

New Party MP Raimonds Pauls pointed out persisting uncertainties concerning the plot of land on which it is proposed to build the library. People's Party lawmaker and committee chairman Dzintars Abikis argued that the matter of land could be settled only after the Parliament passes a law about the financing of a new National Library building.

Late last year, UNESCO General Assembly unanimously approved the project and agreed to cover 30 percent of the costs with its donations after the state guarantees financing for construction. This will make it easier to find foreign financing for the library such as an interest-free loan from the World Bank, Abikis stated.

He also said that the proposed increase in electricity rates suggested as a source of financing will not become too great a burden on Latvia's population. In his household, for example, the raise would amount to 0.15 lats ($0.25) monthly.

BNS also contributed to this story.