CHAPEL HILL - The proposal to move the Chapel Hill Public Library to University Mall has fresh concerns and questions from the Chapel Hill Town Council and library groups.

The council asked for more information on the proposal, which would permanently relocate the Chapel Hill Public Library to the Dillard's space in University Mall.

The possibility of flooding at University Mall, which is in a flood plain, the reliability of cost estimates, and the financial health of the mall were some of the concerns expressed about the town's preliminary report on the proposal.

In November, mall owner Madison Marquette asked the town to consider the anchor space currently occupied by Dillard's for an expanded Chapel Hill Public Library. The firm offered to sell the town 52,000 square feet of mall space for $4 million cash, providing Dillard's ends its lease.

The Town Council put expansion plans at the library's current site off Estes Drive on hold for 60 days to explore the mall offer.

Tuesday's update was the first official update on the design and fit, business aspects of the proposal, sales and property tax revenue implications and public information and input of the proposal.

The library's Board of Trustees and Friends of the Chapel Hill Public Library posed questions about the report. Their concerns included the extent of public input in designing the new site, the tax revenue that would be lost at the town and county level, and the appropriateness of using library bond money for a library at a different site.

"The preliminary analysis raises serious concerns and questions," said Kimberly Call, secretary of the Chapel Hill Public Library Board of Trustees, who also represented the Friends of the Chapel Hill Public Library Tuesday night. "It is unclear what level of involvement citizens will have in a permanent library at the mall."

If the town purchases the Dillard's space, it would lose $29,700 in sales taxes and $20,800 annually in property taxes, for a total of $50,500 a year, according to staff, but Town Manager Roger Stancil acknowledged that those losses do not include losses of tax revenue for the county.

The savings estimates by the town outlined in a memo last November did not include the initial purchase price for the space, nor the costs of physically moving the library from one site to another.

Stancil said cost estimates on the project including purchase price, and construction and redesign costs are variable because there has been no formal negotiations.

"The numbers that we used are not final, they will continue to change," he said. "We are not negotiating; this is information gathering only."

A permanent move would save the town money, according to town memos. It would cost between $9 and $11.25 million to renovate the mall space versus $15.5 million to expand the existing facility, according to the town.

But some council members questioned the viability of the proposal because cost estimates may change even after they make a decision about the proposal on Feb. 14.

"We're really talking in very, very broad generalities about numbers," said Council Member Sally Greene. "When we get to February 14, at least with regards to construction costs, we won't be any closer than we are now."

Council Member Gene Pease said that as the town determines the potential savings, it must consider all costs, and compare apples to apples.

"I think we have to really scrub the numbers...on the surface I don't know," he said. "I'd be more comfortable if you'd give me ranges you're confident in."

The need for additional space for the Chapel Hill Police Department and the Parks and Recreation Department is also a consideration in the proposal, Stancil said.

If the library moves to the mall, that would free up space in its current building for either department.

"Discussion has been about two major needs for the town in terms of space," he said.

It would cost $2 million to renovate the current library building for another use, which is about $3.5 million less than if the town built a new building of similar size, he said.

But using bond money to free up space for other departments not the issue residents voted on, said Council Member Sally Greene.

"I don't think when the citizens voted for the bond issue they had any of this musical building prospect in mind," she said.

Some council members and the library board also voiced concerns about the long-term viability of the mall and the level of control the town would have if the library was located in a building owned by a private company

"...The long-term future of [the] library might be jeopardized by bankruptcy or adverse decisions on the part of mall owner or its banks," Call said. "Retail malls have a relatively short life span, and there is no reason to assume University Mall will be an exception."