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Overcast Temple, village meet on subdivision
Peninsula Public Library’s future is part of the discussion
Temple Israel President James Rotenberg and other temple representatives were scheduled to meet with Village of Lawrence Mayor Martin Oliner on Tuesday at Village Hall to get the temple’s planned subdivision application process started.
According to the terms of a preliminary agreement between Temple Israel and the Peninsula Public Library in September, the Central Avenue temple will sell a little more than a half acre of its front lawn to the library for $2.5 million to $3 million. If the subdivision is approved, the library will construct a three-story, 30,000-square-foot building on the property. The library is also buying two homes the temple owns on Fulton Street to create nearly 60 parking spaces.
Rotenberg said that the temple’s congregation supports the sale to PPL. That does not mean, however, that there is no opposition to the plan.
“We understand that [Oliner] prefers the front to remain a green area,” Rotenberg said. “We are truly sympathetic to that. But the village should purchase the land to maintain it as a green space. You can’t expect our 250 members to support beautification for the entire village.”
Rotenberg said that the temple will move forward with its application, expecting to file it this week with Lawrence’s planning board. “We are looking to subdivide the property — that’s what we want to do,” he said. “We are committed to selling it.”
The 50-year-old Peninsula Public Library has sought a new site for nearly a decade, as its staff, 17,000 annual patrons and volumes of material and programs have outgrown the current 13,000-square-foot building at 280 Central Ave. The current property includes only 23 parking spaces. “Our ability to serve the community is hampered by our lack of space,” said library Director Arleen Reo.
Rotenberg said that even if there is an objection to building a new library on the site and the sale with the library doesn’t go through, the temple will still look to sell the property. He said there are other possible buyers, though he did not say who.
Any sale of religious property must also be approved by the state Supreme Court through the attorney general’s office, Rotenberg added.
