by James Coulter
The Lake Wales Public Library will receive assistance from Library Interiors of Florida through a piggyback agreement approved by the City Commission.
At their meeting on Tues. Mar. 4, 2025, Lake Wales city commissioners voted 4-1 to enter into a piggyback agreement with Library Interiors of Florida utilizing the Orange County Public Schools Agreement for upcoming renovations to the city library.
The Lake Wales Public Library will be undergoing renovations with a new multi-purpose room and young adult rooms. These renovations are being done in response to increased demand and attendance.
“Due to significant business and residential growth within the city, the demand for extra space has never been higher than in the past couple of years,” Belle Reynoso, Library Director, wrote in the agenda memo.
“Our single meeting room is frequently booked, resulting in the library staff having to refuse five or more requests for it each month,” she further elaborated. “With an average of 40-50 library programs per month using the meeting room, public requests are often left without a space to conduct their business.”
Through the agreement, Library Interiors of Florida will assist the library with the moving of furniture and books during these refurbishments. Library Interiors has worked successfully with other libraries within the county.
The agreement was part of the commission’s consent agenda. Commissioner Carol Gillespie requested that it be pulled from the agenda for discussion. She expressed concerns about the lack of clarity within the agreement, which is why she was reluctant to vote to approve it.
“As I reviewed these documents, I found no mention of what the contractor will do for the city or how much he would get paid,” she explained. “I have a problem because I feel the contract is grossly inadequate, and if there ever is a problem that comes up, I do not feel we have the kind of protection that we would need to be sure we have money for performance or a product of what we are paying.”
Commissioner Keith Thompson, in contrast, voted to approve the agreement, claiming he did not wish to quibble over the details, and in doing so, delay any valuable work the library required.
“My personal opinion is that I do not want to delay what the library needs to do to go into minutia on contract law,” he explained.
Deputy Mayor Robin Gibson likewise voted in favor of the agreement, claiming that it proved sufficient for the staff’s and library’s needs.
“If our folks are satisfied with it, and if the library is satisfied with it, and our attorney is satisfied with it, then I am inclined to go along with this proven commodity,” he said.
City Commissioners voted 4-1 through a roll call vote to approve the agreement. Commissioner Gillespie offered the only vote against it.
