The report establishes that the property in question has a level of grade 4 protection, as established in the “updated catalog of the architectural heritage of the city of Concordia with its levels of protection”. According to such protection, good is protected entirely, allowing only maintenance and/or conservation works.
However, it is noted that “the current situation of the building is unfortunate for its deterioration and very worrying but the state of its cultural heritage (the books) is very serious.” In fact, it is pointed out that “the withdrawal of books and all printed material is urgent for restoration and preservation, classifying it in accordance with the required intervention.”
In addition, with respect to the building, it is pointed out that years ago it had a surrounding land, (owned by the library) destined for a main building to absorb its growth. It was sold and a building is currently built in that place.
In plans working in sanitary works “it can be noted that the sewage drains have a departure to Hipólito Irigoyen street. According to verbal information provided in the place, a pipe would have been taken parallel to the medinera but another of them was annulled harming the bathroom that is on the top floor on the front”.
The report continues to point out that in the terraces that illuminate the reading room (east and west) they were planned between two and three rain drains in each. “In which it gives the east, they were unified in a single exit to one of the small exterior courtyards, to the fund of the property, which floods, or because the amount to be drained is much higher than the drainage pipes and are not enough for the rapid runoff, or because they are obstructed.” The situation is aggravated since the entire vertical mediator drains and leads to this small terrace that has moisture due to leaks.
On the other hand, it is mentioned that the reading room has a park set on wood braces with the corresponding air chamber that was left so that the wood floors do not rot. “When the buildings were built on their sides, their ventilations were covered, especially those that gave to the field of Hipólito Irigoyen street. This, plus the entry of water, which is given through the internal patio that gives the east, has rotted the wood of the braces that hold the floor, which collapses due to the weight of the shelves with books.”
Another “no less worrying” theme is the cracks that can be seen in the heritage building. “On the facade appears one that has eventually aggravated, typical of those that are produced by differentiated settlements. Others also appear inside whose shape could be included within the same category,” is mentioned.
Finally, in the report, it is recommended to get all the books from the place for its preservation and/or restoration urgently. “Meanwhile, face the arrangement and restoration of the building, making the claims corresponding to those responsible for damage and using the funds of the sale of the surrounding land to repair those deterioration that have not been caused by adjacent buildings.”
“You have to start working”
Amiano indicated that it should be act urgently in the face of the cracks in the front, the sinking of the floors and the water leaks. After this morning, he indicated that he was going to fence the report to the new commission that will be in charge of the library headed by the writer Juan Meneguín. “You have to start working and the municipality and other agencies to help us intervene in the most urgent issues specified in that report,” he said.
The deterioration does not cease. After last Tuesday’s assembly in which the new authorities were chosen, more than 80 people approached. And, as a consequence of that concurrence, the building felt it. “Some leaks began to appear. That caused some books to be wet for a droplet that was not at the beginning of the assembly. We understand that perhaps because of the number of people who were in that space, something must have yielded causing that filtration,” he explained.
On the other hand, it must be taken into account that the councilors of the list he lost also participated. This is Mauricio Rey, Felipe Sastre and Verónica del Boca. King said last Tuesday that he was going to make himself available to the elected driving. Sastre, in an interview that same day, remarked that they had formed a list with the aim of collaborating in a selfless way since they did not see any economic or political revenue in starting working for the library. Meneguín, at the end of the election, summoned them as well as the entire community to work for the good of the library. Amiano said he had already briefly talked to them this morning and remarked that the municipality can actively intervene in the reparation needed. And he added that one should also think that Cafesg (Administrative Commission of the Salto Grande Fund) and the CTM (Mixed Technical Commission) of Salto Grande can make a contribution since it believes that the municipality does not have the resources for it.
There are no many libraries in Concordia. The most up -to -date is the “Julio Serebrinsky” that belongs to the Concordia Electric Cooperative. “I know that the library (Carlos) Miggoni closed, some are in schools and there is a municipal library,” he said. The future challenge will be that the Popular Library will remain open doors offering books “very valuable that others do not have them”, said the mayor.
