MANASSAS, Va. — Manassas Park is leaving the Prince William County Library System.
The city is expected to save $500,000 annually with the move. It’s a public library system Manassas Park has paid into since the early 1970s, said Prince William Library System Director Dick Murphy.
“This is a very unfortunate situation for us, and we want to be able to continue to serve the citizens of Manassas Park, but right now we don’t know how we will be able to do that,” said Murphy.
Manassas Park’s involvement in the library system dates back to the late 1960s when, then the Town of Manassas Park, donated the land to build Central Library on Mathis Avenue in Manassas. When it opened in 1970, the library was the first building in Prince William especially built and purposed to be a library. It was made available for use by Prince William and Manassas Park residents under a special agreement.
Brian Leeper, who serves on the Prince William Library Board of Trustees and represents Manassas Park, did not immediately return a request for comment on this story.
While Murphy said it’s early in the secession process, Central Library is expected to remain in the county’s library system . For residents, the change would likely mean those who live in Manassas Park will no longer be able to check out materials from Central Library, use it’s electronic resources, or attend special events such as story hours.
