The Garfield County Library board voted unanimously last week to amend its regulations to ban the open carry of firearms but allow licensed concealed carry on library property.

The decision was essentially the moderate option out of three approaches the library district could have pursued.

The board could also have amended its current policy against weapons to read “in accordance with state law,” which would allow both open and concealed carry, or else banned both open and concealed carry and put metal detectors and security in place.

Although standard protocol calls for a maximum of 15 minutes of public comment and no more than three speakers on the same subject, the board allowed more than an hour of feedback.

Some attendees spoke in favor of limiting firearms.

“I can’t fathom for what reason someone might feel a need to bring a gun into a library,” Ted Frisbie told the board. “It is a place that is meant for safe growth.”

Others disagreed that a gun ban creates safety.

“To me, if you’re talking about a gun-free zone, it equates to a helpless-victim zone,” Perry Sweeney said. “That’s the place that people target because they know that there’s no one there that can fight back.”

A full ban was deemed nonviable due to the cost of security.

“We cannot even begin to think of affording that,” said board member Bill Lamont.