OUTLOOK 2021: The community rallies to preserve 'heart' of Farrell

Feb. 27—FARRELL — Stey-Nevant Public Library serves as the heart of Farrell, according to its branch manager, Abby Kutz.

That is why Kutz was shocked when she first heard the city was considering pulling its funding from the library.

"I didn't realize the state the city of Farrell was in," Kutz said. "I was sad and heartbroken, because everybody relies on the library. Not just kids, but teens and adults."

In November, when city council was discussing the $400,000 gap in its budget, it talked about cutting was funding to the Stey-Nevant Public Library, which is a branch of the Community Library of the Shenango Valley.

Farrell owns the building at 1000 Roemer Blvd. that houses the library, and the lease was up at the end of December. The city would save $47,653 if it eliminated the annual payment for operations at the library.

The Sharon-based Community Library took over Stey-Nevant in 2016 in what Councilwoman Olive McKeithan, then Farrell's mayor, said was necessary for the library's survival.

Farrell, which emerged from state Act 47 economically distressed community status in 2019, soon afterward faced new kinds of fiscal difficulty in 2020, with the COVID-19 pandemic impacting collections of earned-income tax. Then workers at the NLMK Pennsylvania steel mill — one of the city's largest employers — went on strike Aug. 22, hurting tax revenue further.

The city ultimately balanced its 2021 budget by raising taxes but kept the library funding in place — for the first quarter of 2021. The library is billing the city on a monthly basis, and city council has said it will review its position during it March meeting and decide whether to continue to provide the funding.

Kutz realized that without the city's funding, the library was in danger of closing.

"If there's no library here, what's going to be here?" said Kutz, a Shenango Valley native. "I was sad. Think of the little kids. This is a family library. Everybody comes here."

That's when a group of people from Farrell formed a committee — which included Farrell native Victoria Phillips Latzoo — to find other sources of funding for the library.

"We went into panic mode," said Phillips Latzoo, a biology teacher at Farrell High School. "Everyone on the (library) board was upset, and they took it upon themselves to jump on it and make things happen. This is our immediate branch right here, and we need to do something."

The group has six members but is looking for more people to join. Kutz said any interested maycall the library or come in for an application. Or they could visit the library's website, steynevantlibrary.com, click on the link "Friends of the Library," and fill out the application.

Phillips Latzoo immediately set up a GoFundMe page.

Kutz sent out an appeal letter to local churches and businesses in Farrell, Sharon, Hermitage and West Middlesex. The committee went door to door asking for an annual donation from people. They also asked the businesses if they would like to be a part of the upcoming rummage and bake sale that they hope will happen in the spring and summer.

The library has received a Walmart grant for $1,000 and has appealed to the Buhl Regional Health Foundation, the Community Foundation of Western Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio and the American Library Association.

After that push, the library has raised $10,000 — which is halfway to its goal of $20,000.

"We're hoping to cover the $20,000, but I want to keep on going because I don't want this to happen again next year," Kutz said. "I want to have a big enough safety net to see us through."

The goal could change, depending on what the city decides to do, Kutz said.

In 1932, the original library was started above the old fire department, Kutz said. Then, in 1952, the building at 1000 Roemer Ave. was built and the library moved there.

Both Kutz and Phillips Latzoo said the library is the heart of the city.

"I feel it's so important," Phillips Latzoo said. "Part of it is, it's a certain quality of life to have a library here. To have had it and for it to be gone would be devastating."

Since Farrell is a walking community, Phillips Latzoo said the library is easily accessible.

"It's accessible by foot, by bike or by skateboard," Phillips Latzoo said. "You can come ready to Xerox, job search, join clubs or for entertainment. It's not just for academic purposes either. It's essential for emotional, social and mental health."

Kutz said there is so much to do at the Stey-Nevant Public Library. Things like finding sources, current events, programming and reading. The library also does outreach by holding events such as visiting the school to help the intermediate children work on STEM projects. They have also conducted craft days at the preschool, Kutz said.

In normal times, for generations the library has been an afterschool hangout for students of all ages after walking the few blocks down the hill from the school complex.

"To me, it's not save the library, it's save our library," Kutz said. "For a lot of people, it's a safe haven to get away from stresses of society and home life. Come and read, relax and come into your own."

Kutz said Friends of the Library are in the process of planning upcoming fundraisers, such as a book sale, or a library walk. They want to partner with local diners for people to sample their food and buy books.

Kutz said if the library were to close, there would be no connection in Farrell.

"We'd be sorely missed if gone," Kutz said.

Follow Melissa Klaric on Twitter and Facebook @HeraldKlaric, email: mklaric@sharonherald.com

HOW TO HELP

To join "Friends of the Library," to help raise money to keep the Stey-Nevant Public Library open, call the library at 724-983-2714 or visit the library at 1000 Roemer Blvd. to fill out an application.

Online at steynevantlibrary.com; click on the link, "Friends of the Library" and fill out an application.