Fundraising is 30 percent complete for renovations to the future home of the ImagineIF Library in Bigfork. The ImagineIF Library Foundation purchased the Bethany Lutheran Church Ark Building for $475,000 in December 2018 and hopes to raise another $1.2 million to transform the 6,000-square-foot space into a library. The foundation had hoped to gift the building to the county, provided that the county increase the library system’s current annual budget by $40,000 to $50,000, which foundation officials said would be necessary to open the new facility.

However, The Flathead County commissioners voted to deny the funding increase and eliminated future library projects from their 2020-24 capital improvement plan. The commissioners did approve nearly $1.9 million for operations and employee benefits for the county’s ImagineIF libraries, the same amount that was allocated last year. Commissioner Phil Mitchell told the Daily Inter Lake earlier he believes the library should plan for capital improvements within its own budget and further noted that Flathead County lives “within our means.”

Proponents of the new facility argue that ImagineIF has outgrown its current facilities at 525 Electric Ave., and were critical of the county for turning down the offered building.

The library foundation has nevertheless continued fundraising efforts to bring the project to fruition and has raised $400,000 toward renovations as of mid-October, according to Foundation Executive Director Charlotte Housel. During the recent Bigfork Town Hall meeting, Housel reported that the foundation would be focusing on larger grant opportunities with the aim of reaching a $600,000 benchmark by the end of the year. She also highlighted internet usage and children’s programs as some of the most common draws for library usage in the Bigfork community. Discussion on a potential partnership between ImagineIF and the county is ongoing, she added.

“I don’t hear ‘no,’” Housel said, “I hear ‘let’s keep talking.’”