New South Madison Branch Needs Your Help!

The next project for the Madison Public Library is the construction and furnishing of a brand new, substantially expanded South Madison Branch Library. The current facility has long outlived its usefulness and, at 3,500 square feet, is incredibly cramped. The new space will be more than triple the current space and based on preliminary comments from the neighborhood residents and other users, will be heavily used as well as a welcome addition to help revitalize the Park Street corridor and the South Madison neighborhood.

As has been the tradition with all of our branch library projects over the last ten years or so, beginning with Alicia Ashman, we have called upon the community to provide a portion of the funding for constructing, equipping and furnishing the facility. The response in every case has been overwhelmingly positive and very gratifying. Our most recent capital campaign raised over a million dollars for the nearly 20,000 square foot Sequoya Library.

However, unlike the neighborhoods in which we have previously engaged in fundraising, South Madison does not enjoy the same level of human and financial resources. Our other projects were able to count on strong organizational and financial support from well organized neighborhood associations and other community assets in the immediate vicinity of the branches. Unfortunately, this is not the case with South Madison. While there are certainly many committed residents and stakeholders in this neighborhood, the resource level is not the same as with other neighborhoods. That is where you come in.

Our overall private fundraising goal is $700,000.00. Of that, we have gifts or commitments for a little over half of that amount. That means we have approximately $340,000.00 to raise to complete the all new South Madison Branch.

Contributions to the campaign may be made as a one-time gift or through a pledge payable up to three years.  Contributions may be made by check, Visa, Mastercard or debit card. Online contributions are accepted by visiting www.mplfoundation.org. For your convenience a contribution envelope has been provided in this issue of Sequels.

Additionally, if you would like to get involved in any way, please call the Foundation office at 608-266-6318 or contact us via email at cdavis@mplfoundation.org. The South Madison neighborhood will be very grateful and it deserves our collective support.

Please do what you can.

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