On Tuesday, February 4th the Manitou Springs City Council approved a 0.3% sales tax that will support arts and culture in Manitou Springs. This tax is based on the MACH the ballot measure that passed in December 2019 and will go into effect on July 1, 2020. The MACH tax will be collected for 14.5 years.
For up-to-date information please visit the MACH Facebook Page
For up-to-date information please visit the MACH Facebook Page
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"It's time to fix Manitou's library - it's far too small and impossible to access for our disabled friends and neighbors. As has been said, nothing is so powerful as an idea whose time has come. In Manitou Springs the library must be fixed. And the time is NOW. " Fix Manitou’s library now, Part 1: A problem to solve Pikes Peak Bulletin November 8, 2018 ML Cavanaugh |
Articles
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Fix Manitou’s library now, Part 1: A problem to solve
Pikes Peak Bulletin Nov 8, 2018 ML Cavanaugh First, our library, which holds only 19 people according to fire codes, is too tiny for our community. The city’s population has more than tripled since the library’s doors opened Feb. 22, 1911, yet the building remains the same size. Every other similarly aged, Andrew Carnegie-funded library in the region has been remodeled. Second, our library is not accessible for those with physical challenges. It was built when life typically terminated around age 50; today, the average person lives a bit longer than 80. Manitou’s demographics reflect this aging trend, and paired with Census data showing that 19 percent of the wider population has some sort of disability — it’s likely that a sizable portion of the people of Manitou Springs physically cannot use their library. This in a community where every city meeting includes an agenda on which is printed: “the City of Manitou Springs does not discriminate on the basis of disability in the admission to, access to, or operations of programs, services or activities.” We can fix this. We’re shovel ready. Continue Reading Why it’s time to invest in Manitou’s public library Pikes Peak Bulletin January 10, 2019 ML Cavanaugh .....our library is far too small for a community that has more than tripled in size since it opened its doors, and it is the only library left in the Pikes Peak region that is not accessible to the disabled. Continue Reading Time for action on the Manitou Springs Public Library
Pikes Peak Bulletin Feb 7, 2019 ML Cavanaugh The City Council unanimously endorsed plans to expand the library and make it accessible two full years ago—yet, owing to turnover in city government, the new Council has essentially forgotten this priority. So much so that of the roughly 50 items on City Council’s 2019 Work Plan agenda—the library didn’t even make the cut. Continue Reading Share a vision of what Manitou’s new library can be
Pikes Peak Bulletin March 21, 2019 ML Cavanaugh When the library undergoes its anticipated expansion to a little more than double its current footprint, it will do so much more for Manitou than take in a few more patrons. The design accommodates the disabled and includes separate children’s, teen, and adult book stacks; specified quiet study and reading areas; doubles computer access; and includes two community meeting rooms with accessible kitchen and bathroom facilities, and the ability for organizations to self-lockup for after-hours events. Continue Reading 
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Fix Manitou’s library now, Part 2: The economic case
Pikes Peak Bulletin Nov 15, 2018 ML Cavanaugh When it’s expanded and upgraded, the library will have a far larger economic impact on the citizens of Manitou than the Cog Rail or any other local tourist attraction. But to see the upside, you’ve got to look beyond price—to value. Continue Reading Fix Manitou’s library now, Part 3: Lifelong learning case
Pikes Peak Bulletin Nov 22, 2018 ML Cavanaugh Librarians are Manitou’s secret weapon in the Information Age. They help us find useful information, convert it into knowledge, and then, over time, maybe even a little wisdom. For anything you’d care to know, just ask a librarian. Continue Reading Fix Manitou’s library now, Part 4: The social case
Pikes Peak Bulletin Nov 29, 2018 ML Cavanaugh There’s a weapon to fight loneliness: libraries. Libraries provide year-round social infrastructure to complement seasonal parks and natural infrastructure. When there’s hail, ice, buckets of rain or piles of snow—people can still gather in the library. Social infrastructure is the “physical places and organizations that shape the way we interact. Continue Reading Fix Manitou’s library now, Part 5: The moral case
Pikes Peak Bulletin Dec 6, 2018 ML Cavanaugh Manitou Springs is failing our fellow citizens, our library’s generous original benefactor, and dishonoring our own publicly-stated values. Continue Reading Fix Manitou’s library now, Part 6: Our million dreams
Pikes Peak Bulletin Dec 13, 2018 ML Cavanaugh Manitou lives on the collective dreams of its citizens, the outputs of which are both creative and economic. If we choose to build a better library—appropriately-sized and disability-accessible—the community and all its citizens will benefit. If we don’t, well, sometimes dreams turn to nightmares. Continue Reading |
Further Reading
Why we need libraries, even in the digital age
The Gazette June 6, 2018
ML Cavanaugh
I learned that without libraries, we have no past. Some history is simply not Google-able.
Read the article
Libraries are our community's greatest investment
The Gazette Jan 22, 2018
ML Cavanaugh
I've always liked libraries, but never knew how vital they are to society. They're our community's memories and dreams, and where our collective past, present, and futures collide.
Read the article
The Gazette June 6, 2018
ML Cavanaugh
I learned that without libraries, we have no past. Some history is simply not Google-able.
Read the article
Libraries are our community's greatest investment
The Gazette Jan 22, 2018
ML Cavanaugh
I've always liked libraries, but never knew how vital they are to society. They're our community's memories and dreams, and where our collective past, present, and futures collide.
Read the article
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