Library Advocacy Engine Check

(in billions and millions)

Link to July 9 Legislative Fiscal Bureau memo (from which the above table is reproduced).

As reported by the Wheeler Report today, A memo distributed to all legislators today by the Legislative Fiscal Bureau details a potential $2.5 billion structural deficit for the next Legislature. The deficit memo is based on current fiscal parameters and does not include any revenue growth or potential program expansions. Revenue growth would reduce the deficit, while expansions would increase it.

The good news -- and believe me, it's a HUGE s---t---r---e---t---c---h to make this analogy -- is we've been in this deep red territory before.  The bad news ---well, let's just say it's self-evident.  The economy's not partyin' like it's 2003; it seems to be suffering from a world-class hangover.  In fact, the last I checked, it couldn't even lift its head off the pillow.

It's not a pretty picture.

Most of the federal stimulus funds have been spent.

The recession continues to batter state budgets.

Localities struggle to balance their books.

OK, now that I have this gloomy assessment out of the way, I'd like to ask all the library directors and trustees in Wisconsin (and beyond) a series of questions:

How are the mechanicals of your library advocacy program?  

Is your engine well-oiled and responsive?  (You don't want to be sputtering when you need to accelerate.)

How fast can you go from 0 to 60 (advocacy messages to elected officials and other key leaders)?

Are you ready to rumble?  (Whoa, wait a minute, how did that one get on the list?!  Instead of a rumble, you might want to involve yourself in any of the "Ten Easy-to-Do Campaign Activities" as enumerated by WLA Lobbyist Tony Driessen.)

The bottom-line question is:  What are you going to do to prevent your library from being represented on this map?  Building a common agenda with your officials is critical.  Let's redouble our efforts now so we don't have to mount a "Save Wisconsin's Libraries" campaign later.

Losing Libraries

The abobe map represents a disheartening series of losses for libraries -- reductions in staff, cuts in hours, shrinking materials budgets -- that in every case, I'd venture to say, were tempered by the vocal support of the people who love and value libraries.

Take the time to tune up your engine now.

Otherwise, as Marilyn Johnson frames her theme in a July 6 Los Angeles Times op-ed piece, "We lose [our libraries] at our peril".

Most Mecklenburg County Commissioners Cool to Sales Tax Hike

The Mecklenburg County Commissioners

in happier days

Link to July 9 Charlotte Observer article, "Mecklenburg commissioners say timing bad for tax hike".

Excerpt: A majority of county commissioners said Wednesday they don't think now is the time to ask Mecklenburg voters to consider a quarter-cent hike to the local sales tax.

But as the county faces teacher layoffs, library closings and deep cuts to other services, commissioner George Dunlap said the board should consider putting the issue before voters in November.

Dunlap, a Democrat, brought up the possibility at Tuesday's board meeting and wants the county board to discuss the tax on Aug. 3.

But seven other commissioners told the Observer on Wednesday they either won't support a higher sales tax or are leaning heavily against the idea.

Related articles:
New hours in effect.  (7/6/2010)
Charlotte Observer editorial board laments the passing of the Novello Festival of the Book.  (6/28/2010)
Shuttered branch could  become Friends' used book store.  (6/25/2010)
A reduced future.  (6/23/2010)
Interlocal cooperation pact.  (6/22/2010)
Three branches close.  (6/19/2010)
Town of Mint Hill perspective.  (6/18/2010)
Five towns tentatively OK $730,000 for libraries.  (6/18/2010)
Carmel, two other branches to close.  (6/16/2010)
Now that the ax has fallen.  (6/16/2010)
Commissioners to vote on budget today.  (6/15/2010)
Charlotte Mecklenburg Libraries:  It's complicated.  (6/9/2010)
Mayor wins straw vote at emotional council meeting.  (6/7/2010)
Editorial:  Should city 'stay in its lane' on libraries.  (6/4/2010)
County commissioners restore some cuts to libraries.  (6/4/2010)
Straw votes begin on Mecklinburg County budget.  (6/3/2010)
Charlotte Mecklenburg Libraries continue to look for one-time financial help.  (5/31/2010)
High school junior speaks out eloquently for libraries.  (5/30/2010)
Mayor Foxx on the art of governing.  (5/30/2010)
Mayor supports financial help for library.  (5/27/2010)
County budget:  Oh, yeah, this is fair.  (5/25/2010)
Bailout proposal not gaining traction.  (5/23/2010)
Library trustees vote to close 4 branches.  (5/20/2010)
Mecklenburg County tightens its belt.  (5/20/2010)
County manager cuts $14.7 million from library budget.  (5/18/2010)
2010-11 Mecklenburg County budget to be unveiled today.  (5/18/2010)
North Carolina woman plans on "going straight to the top" to keep Charlotte libraries open.  (5/16/2010)
Charlotte Mecklenburg officials ask local municipalities for $3 million contribution.  (4/30/2010Library Board chair speaks out.  (4/25/2010)
County commissioners seek ways to ease library cuts.  (4/23/2010)
Mecklenburg County needs to reduce $85-90 million deficit.  (4/16/2010)
County manager takes library board to task.  (4/10/2010)
Libraries now open fewer hours.  (4/6/2010)
"Save Our Libraries Sunday".  (3/29/2010)
Charlotte Mecklenburg users owe average of 55 cents in fines.  (3/27/2010)
Library announces new hours for branches.  (3/26/2010)
Library Board applies a Band-Aid to its bleeding system.  (3/25/2010)
Follow-up on Charlotte Mecklenburg Library Board vote.  (3/25/2010)
Charlotte Mecklenburg Library Board votes to keep all branches open.  (3/24/2010)
Charlotte Mecklenburg Library Board presented with 2 budget-cutting alternatives.  (3/24/2010)
More and bigger cuts looming on horizon. (3/23/2010)
Charlotte Mecklenburg Library System Rethinks Closings. (3/22/2010)
A New Day is Dawning in Charlotte/Mecklenburg County. (3/21/2010)

Charlotte Mecklenburg libraries haven't seen such large-scale reductions since the Great Depression. (3/17/2010)

Information wants to be (a) expensive, (b) free, (c) both, (d) neither

Link to July 5 Christian Science Monitor article, "The end of the free Internet?"

Excerpt: Part of this change has to do with the long-forgotten part of the famous "wants to be free" quotation: "On the one hand, information wants to be expensive, because it's so valuable," said writer Stewart Brand at the Hackers' Conference in 1984. "The right information in the right place just changes your life. On the other hand, information wants to be free, because the cost of getting it out is getting lower and lower all the time. So you have these two fighting against each other."

"Free distribution of premium content is like eating your babies. You will give value away until you go bust," says a recent report from Group M, the media-buying agency of the international media and advertising giant WPP. The report calls people who use search engines to find news or information "useless tourists" who don't pay their way and have little value, even to advertisers.

Others are less sure that the Inter net has hit a "time to pay up" moment. "I can make one prediction," said Arianna Huf fing ton, founder of the popular Huffington Post website, at a recent panel discussion of the future of the news media. "Pay walls are not going to work."


Related article:
Information wants to be free...and expensive.  (6/12/2010)

Milwaukee Public Library Resolves All But 0.4% of its Maintenance of Effort Issue

Milwaukee Public Library

Link to July 9 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article, "Milwaukee makes progress on reducing sanctions on library. State agrees to arguments about pension contributions, block grant money".

Excerpt: Library Director Paula Kiely urged the DPI to reconsider, but Tony Evers, state superintendent of public instruction, and Assistant Superintendent Richard Grobschmidt said the law didn't permit waivers.

Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett and Ald. Ashanti Hamilton, president of the city's Library Board, then took up the issue, restating Kiely's previous arguments in their own letter to Evers on June 25.

Many of the cuts throughout the 2010 city budget resulted from a required $49 million contribution to the city pension fund, after years of little or no employer contribution. Barrett and Hamilton argued the state's calculation of library spending should include the $748,608 that the city contributed toward library employee pensions.

The city also allocated $208,000 in federal community development block grant funds to the library. Barrett and Hamilton said that money also should count for the state's purposes because the city could have spent those funds on other programs.

Evers agreed with both arguments in a June 30 letter to Barrett and Hamilton. By the city's calculation, those two items brought city library support to 99.6% of the state target.

Related article:
Milwaukee Public Library and the maintenance of effort requirement. (6/28/2010)

Montgomery County Public Library Suspends Its Summer Reading Program

Montgomery County Public Library

Link to July 8 Washington Post article, "Summer reading is latest budget-cutback victim".

Excerpt: Montgomery County Public Library officials are hoping to prove that children's love of reading goes beyond prizes and T-shirts.

Decreased staffing -- a result of county budget cuts -- has forced the library system to suspend participation in the popular statewide summer reading program, said Michele Sellars, the system's public services administrator for community engagement and outreach. The system is decreasing hours at most branches and shuffling many employees to new locations.

As part of a 23 percent reduction in funding for fiscal 2011, the system will lose 78 positions, said county library business manager Eric Carzon. Fiscal 2010 budget cuts forced the system to eliminate 60 positions. The library systems fiscal 2011 budget is $28.9 million, down from previous year's $37.7 million.

Seattle City Council Looks at a Variety of Taxes to Fund Its Libraries

Seattle Public Library

Link to July 7 seattlepi.com article, "Seattle libraries: Raise taxes to keep them going? City Council considers a variety of options".

Excerpt: Keeping the doors open to Seattle's libraries may boil down to a simple question: What other taxes are people willing to pay to ensure they have access to the more than two dozen library branches?

Possibilities to be aired before a City Council committee Friday range from forming a new tax-support library district to a system of "earmarking" current tax receipts exclusively for libraries. There's even mention of a possible local sales tax dedicated to city libraries, though that's regarded as an outside possibility. The City may also look to Olympia for help.

The final solution "really needs to be prepared very carefully," said City Council President Richard Conlin, who is pushing to find a reliable year-to-year source of cash to support city libraries.

As with other city programs, the library question has dogged City Hall for about as long as the economy has stayed sour. Even with a $50.9-million budget this year, the system will have to lay off three staffers and has cut back hours at 15 branches to deal with a revenue shortfall.

State Aid to Wisconsin's Schools in 2010-11

Link to DPI projections for all school districts.

Boorish Library Patrons: A Real-Time Encounter or Compressed Experience?

Anne Arundel County Public Library

Scenes of the crimes?

Link to July 7 opinion piece in The Capital, "The Ninth Ward: Enough already! Libraries are being overrun by boorish patrons".

Excerpt: By their very public nature, they are showcases of the decline of civility. I'm writing this column in a public library as children run around screaming, patrons talk loudly with each other or on their prohibited cell phones and librarians are chattering at the check-out.

We used to enter and work quietly in these almost sacred places. Anything above an occasional whisper invited a stern look or raised finger to the lips and hushes from the librarian. Children were taught this library behavior by respectful parents at an early age and it carried on into all libraries, many of which also had even more strict "quiet rooms," as we have in some of our branches.

Ceaselessly screaming and talking loudly and chattering all at once?  Has the atmosphere in libraries become that bad?

Based on my experience -- and I've visited a lot of libraries in my two years of retirement ("Where in the World is Retiring Guy") -- Foer's observations strike me as a bit hyperbolic.  In my 22 years as a library director, I dealt with boorish patrons on a regular basis, but I generally found the great majority of library users to be thoughtful and courteous -- and most appreciative of the services offered.  A staff with a strong customer service orientation (and a willingness to insure that the library is a welcoming place to all) is a huge asset, of course.  (But there's no pleasing some folks, I suppose.)

Paul Foer will likely find find common ground with fellow curmudgeon William H. Wisner, who expressed similar sentiments in a 7/17/2009 op-ed piece in the Christian Science Monitor, "Restore the noble purpose of libraries".

Apparently, the template for this type of opinion piece includes a reverie for library times past....

Foer:   We used to enter and work quietly in these almost sacred places.  Anything above an occasional whisper invited a stern look or raised finger to the lips and hushes from the librarian.

Wisner:  Libraries were once a sacred secular space of silence and reverence – a place where one automatically lowered one's voice.

[Emphasis is mine.]

...and a cataloging of various offenses to traditional sensibilities.

Foer:  See first paragraph of excerpt above.

Wisner:   I went to my own public library the other day with my 11-year-old daughter and was horrified to see a television monitor running videos in the children's section – not a kid in the stacks and all the rest lined up to play games at the computers. It was a library that had gotten everything exactly wrong.

Sacred.   Noble.  Nothing wrong with these adjectives on their own.  But in Retiring Guy's world, I'd rather hear such terms as "essential" and "accommodating" used to describe libraries.

Information Overload Syndrome

Well worth the 3:27 investment of time!

Appleton City Council Unanimously Approves Pay Freeze for Non-Union Employees

Link to July 8 Appleton Post-Crescent article.

Excerpt: City directors, public library workers and other nonunion staff will see their take-home pay stay flat next year.

The salary freeze, approved 14-0 by the Common Council on Wednesday, is prompted by a budget crunch Appleton is facing in 2011.

The pay freeze affects 187 people, nearly one-third of the city's work force.

It cuts $350,000 to $400,000 from payroll and could help the city seek labor concessions with the bargaining groups representing some 400 police officers, firefighters, public works employees, parks and recreation workers, and other union members.

Related article:
City of Appleton considers salary freeze for nonunion staff.  (7/7/2010)

Maybe the Delfonics Will Mellow Him Out

Link to Cranky Geeks John C. Dvorak July 7 pcmag.com post, "The Internet is a Garbage Dump".

Excerpt: So instead of just complaining, we need to start the clean up—in a way that works. Personal responsibility alone won't do it. I think the cache of information should be archived in a closed Internet—an elaborate version of Archive.org's Wayback Machine, only without the history. Just close the Internet as we know it today. Archive it and start over. Make the current Internet read-only, and search and study it, so it can be organized properly. Everything from now on can be fluid, but let's start over from scratch. Now that would be an interesting solution.

TIME, abrdgd

TIME

Link to July 6 Nieman Journalism Lab article, "Time magazine putting up a pay wall to protect print?"

Excerpt: The fact that nearly every major article in the current issue online is now cut short — and that each has the new this-is-an-abridged-magazine-article note — would seem to indicate this is part of a new shift at Time.

Abridged, huh?  So what does this mean?  We're missin' about 2 paragraphs per article?

And then there's this little tidbit from the "Media Decoder" column in the 2/8/2010 New York Times.  Time’s newsstand sales were down 34.9 percent in the last half of 2009, compared to the previous year.  [Emphasis added.]

PA Republicans Object to Capital Funds for Specter Library and Murtha Public Policy Center

Pennsylvania:  Turning Left?

Link to July 7 Philadelphia Inquirer article, "Uproar follows new Pa. budget. Rendell plans to spend $20 million on centers devoted to two longtime Penna. lawmakers."

Excerpt: "Why in the heck are we putting money into an Arlen Specter library when the man has raised hundreds of millions of dollars in his lifetime as a politician?" said Matt Brouillette, president of the Commonwealth Foundation, a conservative-leaning think tank in Harrisburg. "Why did Gov. Rendell feel the need to do the same for John Murtha? The number of companies that have benefited from this man bringing pork to his district could have easily underwritten this."

Babied Living Through Technology

Link to July 6 San Jose Mercury News article, "Smart gadgets may one day anticipate our needs".

Excerpt: Don't be surprised if one day your refrigerator nags you to lose weight, your phone blocks calls it figures you're too stressed to handle and your wisecracking car entertains you with pun-filled one-liners.

Within a decade or two, researchers at Silicon Valley companies and elsewhere predict, consumer gadgets will be functioning like hyper-attentive butlers, anticipating and fulfilling people's needs without having to be told. Life would not only be more convenient, it might even last longer: Devices could monitor people's health and step in when needed to help them get better.

Retiring Guy remembers reading something tongue-in-cheek on this topic years ago*.

Congratulations on your purchase of the ToastTek SmartToaster. The world's first toaster with Tomorrow's Toaster Technology Today!

Finally, a household toaster that performs to its potential! Blazing fast 1 gigahertz Athlon microchip! Lightning-quick coaxial Internet link! SmartToaster can and will revolutionize the art of toasting!

After just a few uses, SmartToaster begins learning your personal toasting preferences. Is lightly browned rye your thing? SmartToaster will know! Do you crave a pizza bagel at 4 a.m.? SmartToaster will remember and not pass judgment!

By interfacing with your refrigerator, SmartToaster knows when you are running low on bread. It will e-mail the nearest grocery store and order a fresh loaf. When the bread arrives, SmartToaster will electronically sign for the delivery. SmartToaster makes toast before you even realize you want toast. And if you decide you don't want toast after all, SmartToaster will eat the toast for you.

One thing SmartToaster doesn't do is clean itself. To clean, use bottled water and one of the two included SmartToasterShammies. Or turn SmartToaster upside down over the garbage and hit it hard five times with the fleshy part of your hand.

How smart is SmartToaster? Very smart. SmartToaster is conversant in more than 75 languages. You will find SmartToaster to be well read. SmartToaster is no stranger to particle physics or comparative religion. SmartToaster can recognize more than 50 varieties of muffin.

*"Lightly Buttered, with Angst", a op-ed article by Rodney Rothman, The New York Times, 6/13/2000.

Libraries for Real Life: Sharing the Stories

Libraries for Real Life

Related article:

Libraries for real life:  What's your story?  (11/5/2009)

City of Appleton Council to Consider Salary Freeze for Nonunion Staff

City of Appleton, Wisconsin

(Notice what's posted in top left-hand corner of homepage.)

Link to July 7 Appleton Post-Crescent article.

Excerpt: The Common Council tonight will take up a committee recommendation to freeze salaries for the city's nonunion staff.

The recommendation the council will consider affects 187 employees. Included are managers and public library employees.

The measure is the latest example of a string of proposals debated by the Finance and Administration Committee. Budget projections for next year show the city is $2.5 million in the red.

Personnel costs, to no one's surprise, typically are among the largest expenses in municipal budgets, making them obvious targets for cuts. This year alone, Appleton, which operates on a $150 million budget annually, reduced the equivalent of 8.5 positions.

An across-the-board pay freeze in 2011 represents savings of $1.4 million.

After Further Cuts in State Aid, Pennsylvania Libraries 'Hanging by a Thread'

Warren Library Association

Warren, Pennsylvania

Link to July 4 Philadelphia Inquirer article, "Lower funding follows last year's 20% cut. Libraries feel pain of 9% less from Pa."

Excerpt: In recent years, libraries have coped with repeated rollbacks in funding by reducing hours and staff, charging small fees for borrowing movies and CDs, and scaling back on book-buying and special programs, such as the popular children's story time.

Now, librarians say, they will have to pare even more while library use is higher than ever - thanks in large part to the economy.

In city and suburbs alike, people line up at library computers to job-hunt or apply for aid. Statewide, visits to libraries are up 11 percent this year, computer use up 19 percent, and circulation up 9 percent, said Glenn Miller, executive director of the Pennsylvania Library Association.

But thanks to reductions in state aid, Miller said, "we're hanging on by a thread."

Denver Public Library embracing e-book, digital audio technology

Denver Public Library

Link to July 5 Denver Top News Examiner article.

Excerpt: Despite the explosion in new forms of digital media, libraries are now [sic] ready to fade away just yet. But the way they look may soon be a thing of the past.

As the public begins embracing gadgets like the iPad and Kindle, the popularity of e-books, digital audio and downloadable movies has skyrocketed and organizations like the Denver Public Library are determined to not be left behind.

The DPL has been steadily increasing the number of e-books and audio books available to its users and says their collection of electronic media now stands at approximately 7,500 e-books and 12,000 audio books, according to a report by 9News.com. The increase is in direct response to the popularity of such devices as Apple’s iPad and iPod, which can hold either e-books, digital audio books or both, and handheld reading devices like Amazon’s Kindle.

New Hours in Effect Today at Charlotte Mecklenburg Libraries

Charlotte Mecklenburg Libraries

(Color added by RG for effect.)

Link to July 6 Charlotte Observer article, "Libraries start shorter hours today".

Excerpt: The six regional libraries will be open four days a week, for 34 hours total. And the 12 community libraries will be open 32 hours a week, on four days. The new schedule also means five-day-a-week operations this summer for the main branch of the library and ImaginOn, although those two facilities will switch to a six-day schedule in September.

Related articles:
Charlotte Observer editorial board laments the passing of the Novello Festival of the Book.  (6/28/2010)
Shuttered branch could  become Friends' used book store.  (6/25/2010)
A reduced future.  (6/23/2010)
Interlocal cooperation pact.  (6/22/2010)
Three branches close.  (6/19/2010)
Town of Mint Hill perspective.  (6/18/2010)
Five towns tentatively OK $730,000 for libraries.  (6/18/2010)
Carmel, two other branches to close.  (6/16/2010)
Now that the ax has fallen.  (6/16/2010)
Commissioners to vote on budget today.  (6/15/2010)
Charlotte Mecklenburg Libraries:  It's complicated.  (6/9/2010)
Mayor wins straw vote at emotional council meeting.  (6/7/2010)
Editorial:  Should city 'stay in its lane' on libraries.  (6/4/2010)
County commissioners restore some cuts to libraries.  (6/4/2010)
Straw votes begin on Mecklinburg County budget.  (6/3/2010)
Charlotte Mecklenburg Libraries continue to look for one-time financial help.  (5/31/2010)
High school junior speaks out eloquently for libraries.  (5/30/2010)
Mayor Foxx on the art of governing.  (5/30/2010)
Mayor supports financial help for library.  (5/27/2010)
County budget:  Oh, yeah, this is fair.  (5/25/2010)
Bailout proposal not gaining traction.  (5/23/2010)
Library trustees vote to close 4 branches.  (5/20/2010)
Mecklenburg County tightens its belt.  (5/20/2010)
County manager cuts $14.7 million from library budget.  (5/18/2010)
2010-11 Mecklenburg County budget to be unveiled today.  (5/18/2010)
North Carolina woman plans on "going straight to the top" to keep Charlotte libraries open.  (5/16/2010)
Charlotte Mecklenburg officials ask local municipalities for $3 million contribution.  (4/30/2010Library Board chair speaks out.  (4/25/2010)
County commissioners seek ways to ease library cuts.  (4/23/2010)
Mecklenburg County needs to reduce $85-90 million deficit.  (4/16/2010)
County manager takes library board to task.  (4/10/2010)
Libraries now open fewer hours.  (4/6/2010)
"Save Our Libraries Sunday".  (3/29/2010)
Charlotte Mecklenburg users owe average of 55 cents in fines.  (3/27/2010)
Library announces new hours for branches.  (3/26/2010)
Library Board applies a Band-Aid to its bleeding system.  (3/25/2010)
Follow-up on Charlotte Mecklenburg Library Board vote.  (3/25/2010)
Charlotte Mecklenburg Library Board votes to keep all branches open.  (3/24/2010)
Charlotte Mecklenburg Library Board presented with 2 budget-cutting alternatives.  (3/24/2010)
More and bigger cuts looming on horizon. (3/23/2010)
Charlotte Mecklenburg Library System Rethinks Closings. (3/22/2010)
A New Day is Dawning in Charlotte/Mecklenburg County. (3/21/2010)

Charlotte Mecklenburg libraries haven't seen such large-scale reductions since the Great Depression. (3/17/2010)

'Library Management Today' Debuts Online

Link

Marilyn Johnson on U.S. Public Libraries: "We lose them at our peril."

Link to July 6 Los Angeles Times op-ed article.

Excerpt: I've spent four years following librarians as they deal with the tremendous increase in information and the many ways we receive it. They've been adapting as capably as any profession, managing our public computers and serving growing numbers of patrons, but it seems that their work has been all but invisible to those in power. I've talked to librarians whose jobs have expanded with the demand for computers and training, and because so many other government services are being cut. The people left in the lurch have looked to the library, where kind, knowledgeable professionals help them navigate the government bureaucracy, apply for benefits, access social services. Public officials will tell you they love libraries and are committed to them; they just don't believe they constitute a "core" service.

But if you visit public libraries, you will see an essential service in action, as librarians help people who don't have other ways to get online, can't get the answers they urgently need, or simply need a safe place to bring their children.

Public Libraries Emphasize Convenience

Bookmarks at NorthPark Center

Dallas Public Library

Link to July 6 Los Angeles Times article, "Mall locations, cafes, easy return boxes pop up as libraries focus on convenience".

Excerpt: "I think what's happening now is really that focus on convenience," said Sari Feldman, president of the Public Library Association, a division of the American Library Association. "How do we make the public library as convenient as Amazon, Netflix? Part of that is putting library branches in the path of customer."

"We are very aware of the fact that our biggest advantage is that we're free, but if time is actually a commodity for people, will people be willing to spend money rather than go to a library?"

She said putting libraries in malls is one of many efforts by public libraries to become more convenient. Even at more traditional branches, libraries have built cafes, provided downloadable books or installed drive-through windows.

With about 5,000 items, including books and DVDs, the Bookmarks branch in Dallas' NorthPark Center checks out as many items as branches eight times its size, said Jo Giudice, youth services manager. She said in the two years since it opened, it's had to increase story times to 12 a week compared to the two or three at most branches.

Barbara Brewer Retires as Monroe Public Library Director

Congratulations, Barbara!

Monroe Public Library

Link to July 3 Monroe Times article, "Library director turns the page".

Excerpt: Brewer, who was library director for more than five years, said the best part of her job was meeting people.

"Everyone eventually comes here," she said. "We serve a diverse group of people with a lot of different interests."

The library staff works diligently to serve the needs of all the patrons.

"The staff has helped create a library that is a community treasure," she said.

Brewer was easy to work with, said Kris Ault, children's librarian.

"She was good at setting goals and meeting them," Ault said.

Janesville's Budget Advice Scorecard

Link to July 6 Janesville Gazette article, "Residents can help with Janesville city budget".

Excerpt: An innovative interactive scorecard on the city’s website allows residents to put in their two cents about how their money should be spent.

The Budget Advice Scorecard will be available online for 11 days beginning today*. Staff hopes that 2,500 residents respond.

*Maybe it's too early in the day.

Neenah Mayor Donates Unused Campaign Funds to Library Trust Fund

Link to July 4 Appleton Post-Crescent article.

Excerpt: Voters elected Scherck to his third four-year term as mayor in April. He said he would not run for a fourth term.

"I am definitely done," he said. "I thought this was the final decision that would make it obvious."

The donation will be used to purchase library materials. Scherck said he didn't consider any other recipient for the money.

"This best serves everybody," he said. "I figured the young and old would benefit by whatever additional materials they could buy."

The Fox News Library Story Template

myfoxchicago.com

myfoxphilly.com

myfoxnewyork.com 

myfoxboston.com

No Need for Bricks-and-Mortar Libraries, You Say?

Retiring Guy enjoyed this comment to the Wheaton Public Library hissy fit story.

there's no more need for brick-and-mortar libraries, or costly library staff. As FromIllinois pointed out, almost anything can be done virtually. When I go to the library, most people are there to rent movies anyway, not to do anything educational. The library can be operated 'netflix' style.  [Emphasis added.]

Ya gotta wonder, if there's no need for libraries, VB Clements, why are you still going there?

Public Libraries and 'Unattended' Children

Link to July 5 Chicago Tribune article, "Kids find summertime haven in libraries, parents find day care".

Excerpt: In Chicago neighborhoods like Austin and Englewood and suburban communities such as Chicago Heights and Zion, many libraries serve as makeshift summer camps. They're a place where parents with limited means leave their kids for part of the day, and where children escape the streets.

Many of these children spend the day at the library without the guidance of a parent, said Susan Neuman, professor of educational studies at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, who is writing a book on public libraries and education. As a result, some librarians have developed informal regimens and systems for managing the daily influx of unsupervised kids.

Some organize learning activities and develop curricula. Others forgive late fees and extend the amount of time children can stay on the computer. In one case, the librarian keeps bread, peanut butter and jelly on hand so he can share his lunch with children who say they are hungry.

"Librarians … they are the hidden stars of our communities," Neuman said. "Librarians act as substitute mother teachers. They have taken it upon themselves to fill this role. They are doing it and doing it well, even if it is not something they wanted to do."

The phenomenon is not new, but in this economy, Neuman said a larger number of parents will rely on the library this summer in place of camp for their kids. The increase is expected even as some libraries struggle with reduced hours and fewer staff, she said.

Another example of the economic downturn putting new, or perhaps in this case, intensified stresses on libraries.

Chicago Public Library.  Policy of Unattended Children and Disruptive Behavior.

Zion-Benton Public Library.   Behavior Policy.

Library Dream Come True for Vernon Hill Illinois Residents

Aspen Drive Library

Link to July 4 Daily Herald article, "After years of dreaming, Vernon Hills library to open Saturday".

Excerpt: For more than a decade, Cook Memorial Public Library District officials - and scores of patrons - dreamed of a branch in Vernon Hills that would complement the historic library in downtown Libertyville.

At noon Saturday, their dream will come true when the building dubbed the Aspen Drive Library opens.

The one-story, brick-and-glass building on Aspen Drive south of Route 60 is the village's first dedicated library. Book-loving residents have been using a small, temporary facility in the basement of village hall since 2003, all the while hoping a more appropriate library would be built.

Wheaton Mayor, Council Members Continue Their Hissy Fit

City of Wheaton Illinois

Link to July 5 Daily Herald article, "Non-appointment fuels dispute between Wheaton library, city".

Excerpt: A Wheaton Public Library board member's decision to support closing the library on Fridays could cost her a seat on the panel.

Carri Peterson has been told by Mayor Michael Gresk - the neighbor who appointed Peterson to the library board three years ago - that her service is no longer needed.

Instead, Gresk wants to appoint two new library board members now that three of the nine seats are up for reappointment.

In addition to recommending someone for Peterson's seat, Gresk is looking to replace Martin L. Kyle, who retired. The only sitting library trustee the mayor supports for reappointment is Stacy Slater.

"There is a message there," said Gresk, adding that city council members are expected to vote Tuesday on his selected appointments.

Unlike Slater, Peterson was one of the trustees who backed the plan to close the library on Fridays - a decision that's been highly criticized by the city council.

In fact, most council members are so upset by the Friday closings they are seeking a local law to reverse it. They also are considering slashing the term of future library board members from three years to two.

Related articles:
Apparently, Scalzo's colleagues didn't take his advice.  (6/30/2010)
'Take a deep breath' advises Wheaton council member.  (6/20/2010)
No Friday hours at library irks council members.  (6/10/2010)
Bad news/good news.  (5/21/2010)
More budget cuts could lead to no Friday hours.  (3/20/2010)

Outpouring of Support for Wheaton Public Library.  (3/6/2010)

Newark Public Library Adjusts to Budget Cuts

Newark Public Library

Link to June 29 article, "Newark Public Library faces staff, service cuts due to N.J. budget".

Excerpt: With millions of dollars in budget cuts slated for the Newark Public Library, one of the city’s most revered cultural institutions will face major reductions in staff and services, according to library officials.

Days after the city’s May elections, library leaders were informed they would lose at least $2.45 million in city funding, or nearly 18 percent of the library’s budget. The city typically funds about 90 percent of the library, with the rest coming from grants, donations and state aid. In response to the cuts, the library put together a spending plan that calls for 31 layoffs, salary freezes, branch closures, and two furlough days a week until the end of 2010.

"These were tremendously difficult decisions for the trustees," library director Wilma Grey said in a statement. "We can no longer maintain all of our facilities and services."

The employee furloughs will force all branches to close on Mondays and Tuesdays, starting in mid-August and continuing through December. The First Avenue and Madison branches will be completely shuttered. Only the main branch will remain open on Saturdays.

To Newark historian and library trustee Clement Price, the cuts represent one of the institution’s darkest hours.

Just What You'd Expect: Cuts in State Aids to Localities Result in Layoffs and Service Cuts

Massachusetts State Budget

Link to July 5 Boston Globe article, "Local aid cuts hits staffing, services".

Excerpt: Hundreds of city and town employees are being laid off across Massachusetts as the recently signed state budget forces communities to cut back on librarians, police, teachers, and other workers to balance the books.  [Listed in descending order?]

As tough as the cuts are to individuals losing their jobs, more drastic layoffs were averted largely by union concessions that included pay cuts, deferred raises, unpaid furlough days, and changes in health care plans, officials said.

An informal survey of town governments and school departments in about 25 Greater Boston communities found that because of the leaner state budget signed last week, communities are reducing the time libraries are open, cutting hours for some employees, leaving staff positions unfilled, taking advantage of new tax options such as the meals tax, and even switching to more energy-efficient bulbs in street lights.  [Once again, the library option tops the list.]

Related article:
State budget includes cuts in aids to cities and towns.  (6/24/2010)

The Other Candidates Running for Wisconsin Governor

Link to July 4 Wisconsin State Journal article, "State has plenty of little-known candidates for governor".

Excerpt: What do Tim John, James James and Scott Paterick have in common? They're all candidates for governor that you've probably never heard of.

This year there are nearly two dozen registered candidates for the state's highest office, a group that includes established politicians, rich businessmen and a recent high school graduate. And with the exception of the three heavyweights in the race — Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker, former U.S. Rep. Mark Neumann, and Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett — most are practically unknown.

Michael J. Blinkwitz (Independent-Neenah).
No website.

Jared Gary Christiansen (Democrat-Ellsworth).

Steven R. Evans (Republican-Montreal).
No website.

James James (Independent-Spring Green).

Timothy S. John (Democrat-Oconomowoc).
No website.

James Dean Langer (Independent-Germantown).
No webiste.

Phil Miller (Independent-Stanley).

Matthew R. Mitchell (Independent-Appleton).
No webiste.

Scott S. Paterick (Republican-Wisconsin Rapids).

Marcia Mercedes Perkins (Democrat-Milwaukee).
No website.

Dominic L. Reinwand (Democrat-Pittsville).

John Schiess (Republican-Rice Lake).

Kevin Gene Schmidtke (Independent-Stratford)

Erick Scoglio (Libertarian-Balsam Lake).

Leslie Ervin Smetak (Independent-Mosinee)

Travis D. Swenby (Republican-Glenwood City).
No website.

Bruce L. VanSky (Independent-Chippewa Falls).

Frederick Westphal (Democrat-Port Washington)
No website.

Manitowoc Public Library's 4th of July Reflections

Link to July 1 Herald-Times-Reporter article, Uncle Sam wants you - to paint the library".

Excerpt: The idea originated several years ago as a project to paint the whole city — including the Rahr-West Art Museum, local businesses and the library — red, white and blue, Ann Herrmann, the library's youth services manager, said.

It's since narrowed to just the library windows — 98 of them, Herrmann said, most of which at least two kids shared this year.

Here's a sample of the results.