South county residents opposed to plans to move the Tesson Ferry Branch County Library from its current location in Green Park will meet this week.

The meeting will take place from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. Friday, March 7, at the Tesson Ferry Branch County Library, 9920 Lin Ferry Drive, according to Concord resident Ed Ryan, who also serves on the Mehlville Fire Protection District Board of Directors.

St. Louis County Library officials recently closed on the purchase of property for the new Tesson Ferry Branch Library across from Grant’s Farm.

Library officials originally filed their intent to rezone the property at the intersection of Gravois and Musick roads with the county Department of Planning last summer. But the final purchase of the property had been delayed after concerns raised by nearby residents at an August public hearing about traffic and safety spurred the county and state to require a traffic study for the library to move forward with the plans.

With final zoning from the County Council and an agreement with the county Department of Highways and Traffic for $500,000 to $750,000 in road improvements to Musick Road secured, the library finalized its contract Feb. 7 to buy the 4.29-acre property for $2.5 million from developer McBride Berra.

In October, the Green Park Board of Aldermen adopted a resolution authorizing Mayor Bob Reinagel and City Administrator/City Clerk Zella Pope to work with county library officials “to explore all options and ideas to facilitate retaining the Tesson Ferry Library Branch within the city of Green Park.”

In October, Reinagel asked the library district’s Board of Trustees to keep the library in his city.

Green Park resident Fred Hoehn, who led the effort to incorporate the city and served as a Ward 2 alderman from 1998 to 2000, appeared before the library board last spring to ask that the library stay in Green Park.

For more information about Friday’s meeting, call Ryan at (314) 729-7137.