Iberia Parish Library Director Kathleen Miles reviews the 2020 budget for her department. 

The Iberia Parish Council’s finance committee on Monday held the first of several meetings to review the fiscal budget before the 2020 budget is voted on later this year.

The committee discussed the public library fund, parks and recreation and 16th JDC juror and witness fund, among others.

For the library, Director Kathleen Miles laid out some basic projects for the library system in the 2020 fiscal year. Miles noted there would be an increase to lawn service because the bids received were higher than expected, and also expected to be repairing the Main Branch’s second floor.

“We are doing some significant repairs, the main library being one of them,” Miles said. “The second floor is in terrible need of lighting. There was some talk about a grant but you’re (IPG) going for a grant as well and we didn’t want to compete.”

Councilman Warren Gachassin suggested looking into a past grant used for the Iberia Parish Jail that could be used for the main branch.

Miles said work on the new Coteau and Loreauville libraries would be paid off by splitting fees between the 2019 and 2020 budgets.

There also were repairs made this year at the Lydia Library.

“We did a lot of repairs this year in Lydia. The repairs on that one are fairly completed but things do come up,” she said.

Gachassin also asked about a technology center being implemented in the library system, which had been talked about at last year’s budget meetings, but Miles said the library already offers similar programs throughout the year.

“We just don’t have it in a single location,” Miles said.

Instead, Miles said she was focusing on virtual classrooms being used for teachers who teach at students’ homes, and also recently purchased a promethean board that aids people going to college for the first time.

“I didn’t want to spend the money because I had the money, I wanted to spend it wisely and reach as many people as far as the need was concerned,” Miles said.