2025 County Executive Race

Christina Vogel

1. Do you support the lease of Blasco Library space to Gannon University? If so, why?
   I oppose the lease of space within the Blasco Memorial Library to Gannon University. Erie County’s libraries are vital public assets dedicated to serving the entire community, and allocating their space to private entities compromises their mission and accessibility. The lease of Blasco Library space to Gannon lacked sufficient public input and transparency. While I support educational partnerships, they must not come at the expense of public institutions’ integrity and the community’s trust.
2. Do you support the process that led to the lease of the space at the Blasco Library?
   Why/why not?
   I do not support the process that led to the lease of space at the Blasco Library. Decisions that impact public resources should be made with real community input, and that simply didn’t happen here. Residents were blindsided by the proposal, and the lack of transparency and accountability undermines trust in our local government. As County Executive, I would ensure that major decisions like this go through an open, inclusive process where the public has a real seat at the table from the very beginning.
3. Would you have done anything differently based on your knowledge of the deal? If so, how would you have handled it?
   I would have taken a very different approach. From the start, I would have prioritized transparency and proactively invited the public into the conversation before any agreements were made. At the root of the issue is what the space means to the community and how Erie County Library was created. No one should be able to dishonor the Blasco legacy to usurp a space for their own needs. That said, I do believe a discussion could have been had to explore whether a true partnership could have existed. That means engaging community groups, consulting with library staff and patrons, and exploring alternative uses for the space that align with the library’s mission. It also means not providing a rental rate below market value to a private entity that does not pay taxes.
4. Do you commit to keeping the main library and Blasco Library Branch at its current
   location?
   I’m fully committed to keeping the main library and the Blasco Branch right where they are. That location is more than just a building; it’s a cornerstone of public life in Erie, offering educational resources, programming, and a welcoming space for people of all ages and backgrounds. Uprooting it would not only disrupt access, especially for those who rely on public transportation, but would also diminish its role as a community hub. I strongly believe in protecting and investing in our libraries, not relocating or downsizing them.
5. Do you have any personal stories about what public libraries have meant to you?
   Yes, I have many personal stories because public libraries have been a part of my entire life. I grew up being dropped off at the Hoopeston Public Library as a temporary babysitting alternative. My stepmother would drop my brother and I off for Saturday story hour and pick us up several hours later. It always bothered my brother, because he felt abandoned, but I loved it. I would spend hours reading books in the children’s library and listening to records. I owned one Babysitter’s Club Book while my best friend owned the set, but I read all of them either at the library or checked out from the library. When I was in 7 th and 8 th grade and started confirmation classes at my church I would walk to the public library after school to wait until confirmation classes started at 6 pm. When I was in college, the library was where I went to study at both Illinois Wesleyan University and at the University of Illinois, with its underground library. I took my children to the Bloomington Public Library as toddlers and when we moved to Erie, one of the first things we did as a family was to get library cards at the Lincoln Library branch. My children read in the summer reading challenge for years and I took my children to events at the library. My daughter attended a preteen book club at the library. I opened Donatos in October of 2016 and in the spring of 2017, I reached out to participate in the Summer Reading Challenge and I participated for years. Some of the art is included below.¹ When I was a Girl Scouts troop leader we met at the Lincoln Library. When the Idea Lab first opened my Girl Scout troop was one of the first field trips to the Idea Lab. In addition, my son, Andy, and I took the certification classes to create items on the 3 D Printer. And, finally, I made my campaign buttons in the Idea Lab at the Erie County Public Library.
6. What do you feel is the core issue with the lease?
   I read the entire lease. The core issue with the lease is that it hands a public space to a private entity for an absurd amount of time with below market rents. The lease is a 25-year term with the potential for an additional 20 years of extensions (4 – 5-year extensions). My leases for Donatos are currently around $16 a square foot, including CAM charges, which I would consider market rent. At $7 a square foot this is 56% below market rent. In addition, in every lease I have signed there is a possibility for extensions but in those leases the rent prices for subsequent terms are laid out in plain terms. This states that the rent will be “negotiated by the parties in good faith”. That is ridiculous. Also, I have $2 million dollars limits required for each lease on less square footage. The County will be required to supplement any shortfall. This is clearly a lease created to benefit Gannon University at the expense of Erie County and all of its residents.
   

Perry Wood

1. Do you support the lease of Blasco Library space to Gannon University? If so, why?
   The lease is not a good one for several reasons. First, the cost per square foot is so far under market value to the extent that any maintenance on the building would not be covered by the lease payments. $7/square foot is 1⁄3 of market rate downtown property. Second, the lease does not have any programmatic covenants tied to Gannon’s occupation of the space. Programmatic goals ensure that the public benefits from having an external entity in a public common space. Third, the lease does not explain why the use of public space, on the bayfront, is essential to the success of Project NePTWNE, which is slated as an economic development project. Any project that is essential to the region’s economic development should have metrics tied to the leasing of public space.
2. Do you support the process that led to the lease of the space at the Blasco Library?
   Why/why not?
   There was no community engagement process. The library system has advisors such as Friends of the Erie County Library, Erie Regional Library Foundation, and the Erie County Library Advisory Board to ensure its success. These entities were excluded from deliberations of the lease that was then thrust upon County Council with no public comment. Community engagement is the cornerstone of the democratic process. This process was a case study in what NOT to do.
3. Would you have done anything differently based on your knowledge of the deal? If so, how would you have handled it?
   In short, I would have done everything differently. Public-private partnerships are important for the economic development of Erie County, and Project NePTWNE may be beneficial to our local economy and the health of Lake Erie, but unfortunately, the lack of community engagement circumvented the ability of the project to be sold to the community as a net good. Part of the process is to educate the public on the public benefits of partnering with private entities. Here’s what i would’ve done:
   ● Assess the benefits to the public of having NePTWNE in a public facility.
   ● Assess the overall benefits to the local economy of Project NePTWNE.
   ● Engage the following in discussion: library staff, the three previously-listed advisory
   boards, County Council in the discussion and then ultimately, Erie County residents
   ● Determine if NePTWNE fits with the Library System’s strategic plan.
   Before progressing to a lease with any private entity, this process would have needed to happen
   in earnest.
4. Do you commit to keeping the main library and Blasco Library Branch at its current
   location?
   Yes.
5. Do you have any personal stories about what public libraries have meant to you?
   Blasco Library has a special place in my heart. When my kids were little, I would take them to browse the stacks in the children’s section. I can remember sitting in the window well with them as they thumbed through picture books. It’s the only environment left where silence and
   whispering is the norm. It creates a special bond between parents and children to be a team navigating such a large building, in search of creative mental stimulation, while whispering directions in the midst of exciting exploration.
6. What do you feel is the core issue with the lease?
   The two core issues, in my view, are the loss of sacred public space and the unclear benefit to the public good.