Library Community Rooms Are For All
- JCPL Allies
- Jul 15
- 5 min read
At its July 7, 2026, meeting, the Jackson County Board of Commissioners again postponed a decision about access to the library community rooms located in the Sylva and Cashiers libraries. The draft policies the commissioners are currently reviewing treat the two library community rooms differently, eliminating certain usage (such as weddings, baby showers, and other private events) at the Sylva library while permitting those same events at the Cashiers library.
In this post, we are highlighting some of the excellent public comments made at that meeting. Many people shared their thoughts on these draft policies. Every speaker gave articulate, logical reasons to have identical policies for both libraries and to keep the library community rooms open to all. We have included a link directly to the video of the comments we've quoted so that you can see them for yourself.
If you have personal stories about events you have attended in the Community Room at the Jackson County Public Library in Sylva, please consider sharing them in a letter to the editor in our local newspapers and with the commissioners. It is not clear that they understand the impact their policy changes will have on residents. Contact details are at the end of this post. The next commissioner meeting will be held on July 21.
"... Our wonderful Sylva library community room with its beautiful vista of the town and surrounding mountains has a storied history of being transformed through much community effort and fundraising into a space intended for all the citizens of jackson County to enjoy. It has hosted countless free and open to the public educational training and artistic presentations over the years as well as many important topical and informational meetings such as nonpartisan candidate forums and the recent presentation for example made by the Jackson County Board of Elections Director Amanda Allen recruiting poll workers. It has been the space for many private events such as weddings, rehearsals, baby showers, induction ceremonies, receptions, memorial services, and meetings of all kinds of service organizations. Citizens hosting these private events pay to rent this space."
"Tonight, you may vote on a policy that will restrict access to one of our library's most valuable public resources. I urge you to consider not only the policy itself, but what it says about the direction we are taking as a county. Jackson County has underestimated the financial cost of separating from the FRL, and there is uncertainty about whether we will receive any funds through the dissolution process. At a time when every taxpayer dollar matters, it makes no sense to impose restrictions on a public space that should be serving as many community members as possible... Policies that make people feel unwelcome don't just discourage room reservations but they discourage community participation."
"I wanted to give a personal experience and that is that my wife passed away four years ago. And in her over 40 years in the community, she was a counselor that served many, many people. And I wanted to provide a setting that would honor her, that her friends, relatives, and those she had touched would have a chance to speak about her and to join others in support of dealing with her death. And I went to the church that my wife and I had attended in the past and it wasn't large enough. I went to what I thought were the largest churches in the community and they weren't large enough. And I don't know of another facility that is as large as the community room and also has the bonus of such a wonderful side wall that is all glass window to see downtown in the surrounding mountains and has a wonderful setup to provide both indoor, outdoor, and a lobby. It was just the right kind of setting and it brings community together when people can use something from events that are really personal and very important. And so I'm very thankful that the library was available and the library was also able to make money because it was on a Sunday and I paid a fee and I was happy to do that. And so I think it's a win-win to maintain something that seems to benefit everybody and um that's I just wanted to give that personal experience. Thank you."
"I'm here to address the proposed library usage policies you'll discuss later tonight in your work session. Specifically, the disparity in access rights for Jackson County citizens, civic groups, nonprofits, and other local county entities. I am not a lawyer. It did not take much time to determine counties are not legally allowed to geographically discriminate access to public meeting spaces within a county which include public county library meeting rooms. Such spaces are considered limited public forums under the first amendment of the US constitution. The 14th amendment further says rules governing such public forums must be reasonable and viewpoint neutral. Banning local groups from using the local library meeting room in one part of the county while allowing it in another part of the county crosses into discrimination. At the state level, article 1, section 19 of the North Carolina constitution, the equal protection clause, says the state counties cannot treat similarly situated residents and groups differently without a very strong and rational rule. Finally, North Carolina General Statutes 153A-11 says county inhabitants make up a single body politic incorporate. This legalese indicates county services and facilities must be administered equitably for the benefit of all county residents. All that boiled down to facilities specific differences in usage such as not allowing bird seed and rice in the mostly carpeted Albert Carlton library while allowing them in the mostly wood and tile floor Jackson County Library complex make sense and are allowable. But differences in access rights based purely on geography are not. If the county tries to make the distinction that public meeting spaces of the Sylva library complex are not in the library and therefore do not fall under the same equal access requirements as the spaces in the Cashier's library, I doubt this would hold up if it went to court. I doubt a judge would be inclined to see a distinction in the type of facility between the community room and boardroom of the Cashiers library and the community room and boardroom of the Sylva Library Complex. I doubt the judge would recognize that the library, meeting rooms, and library complex are separate buildings given the design, construction, and renovation happening currently and that the newer library-proper portion was specifically built without large meeting rooms since those were being built into the older courthouse portion. The county can address this issue by either giving the Jackson County Library Complex the same access rights to county residents as the Albert Carlton Library or restricting the Albert Carlton Library to the same very limited access as the library complex. If the second choice is made, it would simply reinforce the ongoing perception of Cashiers residents that the county services in the south end of the county are being neglected. I hope this board decides on the first choice and honors equal access to library meeting spaces for all county residents regardless of who."
Please consider sharing your thoughts with the county commissioners and the local newspapers regarding public use of the two library community rooms. Thank you for speaking out.
Jackson County Commissioners:
Todd Bryson: toddbryson@jacksonnc.org
Mark Letson: markletson@jacksonnc.org
Jenny Lynn Hooper: jennyhoooper@jacksonnc.org
John Smith: johnsmith@jacksonnc.org
Michael Jennings: michaeljennings@jacksonnc.org
Letters to the Editor:
The Sylva Herald: Letters should be 250 words or less; they must include your address and phone number (which are not published); deadline is Monday at 12 noon. While there is a web submission form on the newspaper's site, it will be out of order for some time. Please email your letter to: news@thesylvaherald.com
Smoky Mountain News: Submissions should include your full name, hometown, and a daytime phone number for verification (the phone number will not be published). Please email your letter to news@smokymountainnews.com Or, mail it to P.O. Box 629, Waynesville, NC 28786.
