MASSENA -- Trouble between members of the Massena Public Library Board of Trustees has prompted a temporary closure beginning Monday June 11..

Continuing controversy at the Massena Public Library has left the library without a functioning board of directors and an absence of any management personnel to oversee the library staff and the library’s day-to-day operation, the town board decided.

The closure will also give the town trustees time to reorganize the library’s administrative structure, fill the vacancies on the library board, and make arrangements for an interim library director, according to Supervisor Joseph Gray.

Resignations and a cloud of discontent have plagued the library administration as it began the process of finding a replacement for director Lynn Fountain.

A search is under way to identify and put an interim director in place as soon as possible.

“The town council was reluctant to take such a dramatic step but we felt it necessary to ensure the town’s resources are protected and well managed. We have what we feel is the finest library in the North Country and we don’t want anything to jeopardize it,” Gray said.

“We expect the closure to be brief,” he said.

Another special meeting of the town board is set for next Wednesday, June 13, “to re-assess the situation and hopefully begin filling vacancies on the library’s board of trustees,” Gray said. “We appreciate the community’s patience and support while we work through this unprecedented circumstance.”

Once the library board is in place and has received direction from the town council, it will assume control of the library as it has in the past, Gray said.

The Massena Town Council invites people interested in serving on the library board to contact the town supervisor’s office at 769-3588 or supervisor@town.massena.ny.us.