The Fairhope City Council is set to reappoint three library board of trustees members Monday night at its regular council meeting.
The terms of chairman Anne Johnson, vice-chairman Andy Parvin and secretary Randal Wright will soon expire. The term lengths being voted on Monday are two years for Johnson, three years for Wright and four years for Parvin.
"The terms are supposed to be staggered, so we would not typically have three positions expire at the same time," Mayor Sherry Sullivan explained. "With the reappointments, we are also establishing two, three and four-year terms so the terms get back on track."
Sullivan said there have been several applications from citizens who want to serve on the library board.
The reappointments follow controversy over books offered in the library's children's and teen sections.
The library board has heard heated comments over the past two years concerning inappropriate materials, which some say are pornography.
Moms for Liberty and Faith, Family, Freedom Coalition of Baldwin County have gone head-to-head with Read Freely Alabama at library board meetings and city council meetings.
Johnson says democracy and freedom of speech are under attack, leading some residents to call for her resignation. She also claimed the board took a "middle-of-the-road approach" in complying with new rules by the Alabama Public Library System to protect juveniles from sexually explicit materials.
Some city council members have distanced the City from responsibility concerning the library. Councilman Jay Robinson told citizens in a packed council meeting that the issue has nothing to do with the city council and requested concerns go to the library board. Robinson called the library and independent library and said the City does not control what materials are shelved.
While the library is not a City department, the City owns and maintains the building. Fairhope taxpayers fund $918,000 of the library's budget.
The library board has five seats. Dan Stankoski and Debra Langham are also members, and Jimmy Conyers serves as the city council liaison.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email erica.thomas@1819news.com.
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