A few weeks ago, a young man got into a bit of trouble putting up his Little Library on the side of a small street in Leawood, Kansas one of Kansas City's suburbs. Zenbassoon did a fantastic job covering that here:
http://www.dailykos.com/...
Well, tonight, the little boy receives some vindication as the town reverses the rules and allows the little libraries to stay.
http://www.kansascity.com/...
Nine-year-old Spencer Collins will be able put his “Little Free Library” back in his front yard first thing in the morning.
The Leawood City Council unanimously approved a temporary moratorium Monday night that exempts the little lending libraries from a city ordinance that prohibits structures in front yards. The moratorium, effective Tuesday, will last until Oct. 20.
As soon as the moratorium passed, Mayor Peggy Dunn called Spencer to the front of the room to hand him a book for his library, an action that received applause from the room.
This isn't to say that everything went all in the young librarian's favor.
One Leawood resident voiced concern about the libraries at the meeting.
“Why do we pay taxes for libraries and have those boxes on our streets?” Wade King said. “In a blighted area, sure, put them everywhere. We’re not a poor area. We don’t need them.”
So, for today I have learned that: only the poor and blighted areas need books and a sense of community.