By LOIS THOMSON

A discussion about whether or not to keep the Carnegie Library Book-mobile service led to a heated argument at Tuesday's Ben Avon Council meeting.

Resident George Trent of Brighton Road started by saying to council that "the budget system leaves a lot to be desired" in that "the public has no participation in the budget process."

He said the public cannot see what is being proposed, and there's no opportunity for discussion. He said he had asked to see a copy of the budget but was told it was not available. Council pointed out that once it is approved for advertising, the budget is on hand in the borough office for 30 days and anyone can come in for a copy.

Trent then got to the heart of the matter, which was his concern about the Bookmobile and whether it was included in the proposed budget. When president Ken Opipery Jr. told him it was, he said he believes it is the one thing people use.

However, council member Judy Konitsney pointed out that she was going to recommend transferring the $9,115 set aside for the Bookmobile into the ordinance codification project. She said statistics show that approximately 16 people use the service each week, and she did not think the borough should pay for that when Avalon has a library they can use.

Trent countered by saying, "Statistics don't mean anything in my mind." He said that about 35 percent of the library cardholders in the borough use the Bookmobile, but not every week. He added that "every year the budget runs a surplus of $165,000 to $200,000" and "the borough is financially able to provide that service. When you have a $200,000 surplus every year for five years, I have to wonder what you're saving it for."

Opipery commented that Trent wants the borough to be prudent with its money, which means carefully considering whether to spend more than $9,000 on a service used by only a few people.

Council member Todd Smith interjected that he had done some research and told Trent, "When you left council (in 1986 or 1987), you left the residents $155,00 in the hole. Twenty years later we're still paying for it."

Opipery agreed. "When I came on council (20 years ago), I had a deficit and a crumbling infrastructure. Every road was falling apart. We were in a very bad way. I struggled for three or four years. We had overlapping services, like police and fire, but now we're sharing services and saving a lot of money. We had a bond issue for more than $1 million, and that will be paid off this year. We're leaving the borough in good shape." Opipery was referring to the fact that he would be leaving council in January.

He added, "I think Todd is saying that you're the last person we should take financial advice from."

Resident Gretchen Barlett said that she supported the Bookmobile.

"My family and I use it, but not every week," she said. "We didn't realize you can get music, order books on-line, get books from anywhere. I think more people would support it if they knew there was a danger of it going away."

Council member Sue Weiss said she is in favor of trying to keep the Bookmobile.

"I've had phone calls (from residents) about it, and I think we can find the money."

Mark Colenbrander agreed. "I'm with Sue. I think it's an amenity this town has, and I think we should let it (continue) for another year."

When it came time to vote on the budget, Konitsney made a motion to move the money from the Bookmobile expenditure to the codification expenditure, but nobody seconded it. Council then voted to advertise the budget as proposed, and it passed unanimously. Lloyd Corder and Dan Herchenroether were absent.