PICKENS — The still-grim economic climate has caused county council members to put off a library study to gauge the feasibility of opening county library system branches in both Six Mile and Dacusville.

The issue was sent to the Administrative and Finance Committee earlier this year after a motion by Councilman Randy Crenshaw about gauging the possibility of a Six Mile library branch.

Councilman Tom Ponder amended the motion to expand the study to include the Dacusville area as well.

Committee members discussed the bill Thursday, agreeing that the outlook on the issue’s future was bleak, at least in the short term.

“We’re looking at what we can do, but we’re talking about a time period where financial resources are pretty tight,” said Council Chairman G. Neil Smith.

Smith said the state is projecting a $982 million budget shortfall, and that legislators will have to struggle just to meet the minimum funding requirements for public education.

To reach that number, all other agencies may be facing an additional 30 percent cut, Smith said.

“If they do that, that’s really hitting us,” he said.

Acquiring property for additional branches won’t be as much of a problem as finding the money to fund them, Smith said.

Councilwoman Jennifer Willis said the county at one point had a comprehensive library plan that called for the construction of a

Dacusville branch, after the construction the Hampton Memorial Library in Easley, but that plan had not been looked at in recent years.

“I’m a big proponent of libraries, especially in today’s economy, when so many folks need the access that those facilities provide without having to pay at the door,” Willis said. “I don’t know that we have the money or the resources to commit to doing anything right now, even if we wanted to.”

Six Mile realtor Brenda Rippy has been spearheading an effort to begin a private library in Six Mile, and to turn that library over to the county system at some point in the future.

County Library Director Allison Anderson said that the cost of opening a library branch, not including facility costs, would be an estimated $500,000 to $800,000.

“That’s certainly not in the library’s budget,” Anderson said.

Councilman Sam Wyche suggested, instead of a full-fledged library branch in Six Mile, county officials and library board members consider creating a “study center” in the town.

“So many kids today, when they come home, there’s no quiet place at home,” he said. “There are no books in there.”

A study center could provide students a place to study and also give them computer access to help with their homework, Wyche said.

Anderson said she’s discussed non-traditional possibilities with the library board, including a mini-library that includes limited computer access.

A smaller facility for a smaller community would help the library system save on costs.

“But again, you’re talking about the cost of a facility, making sure its ADA compliant, staffing,” she said. “I do think it would be a good idea to have an independent study done.”

Smith said a new library of any size would also pose a problem from a student safety standpoint, especially in a town that looks to the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office for its policing.

“Security is a major issue in this country and this state,” Smith said. “There’s a lot of major issues that you get into.”

Wyche said he realized the timing is bad, but urged council to remember the study center.

“We can’t let security and supervision trump a kid’s chance to better themselves,” he said.

“There are a lot of kids, I promise you, that would like to do their homework. They get put down by their mom and dad, they get put down by their brothers and sisters, they get out screamed by the television, and we could help.”