The New York State Board of Regents has approved an amendment to the
Monroe Free Library’s charter thatexcludes the Satmar Village of Kiryas
Joel from the library’s service area – meaning Kiryas Joel residents can
no longer check out library materials there or from other public
libraries in the Ramapo-Catskill Library System, including libraries in
Orange, Ulster, Rockland and Sullivan counties.
Kiryas Joel Residents Barred From Checking Out Library Materials In 4 New York Counties
Shmarya Rosenberg • FailedMessiah.com
The New York State Board of Regents has approved an amendment to the Monroe Free Library’s charter thatexcludes the Satmar Village of Kiryas Joel from the library’s service area – meaning Kiryas Joel residents can no longer check out library materials there or from other public libraries in the Ramapo-Catskill Library System, including libraries in Orange, Ulster, Rockland and Sullivan counties,
the Photo News reported.
“Kiryas Joel residents have not paid taxes toward the library, or voted on library issues, since 2005, when they entered into a contract exempting them from those taxes so that they could direct funds toward the construction of their own library, an initiative that never materialized,” Sandra Keltai, the president of the Monroe Free Library’s Board of Trustees reportedly wrote in an email to the paper.
“…This will leave Village of Kiryas Joel residents without public library service,” Keltai reportedly wrote in a public statement. “They will not have borrowing privileges at any public library in the Ramapo-Catskill Library System, which networks libraries in Orange, Ulster, Rockland and Sullivan counties.”
The Regents decision was reportedly made on October 22.