Saturday, June 4, 2011
Ebooks, Netflix, and Library Building Projects (Part 54, Ludington Library)
Library expansion stirs hopes in Bryn Mawr. (Philadelphia Inquirer, 6/4/2011)
Excerpt: The Bryn Mawr library's massive $9 million expansion is progressing more slowly than expected but is already redefining the look of the central intersection there.
The building's two-story, wraparound, glass-enclosed reading "porch" will be the project's centerpiece when the library reopens, now tentatively set to happen in the fall.
With the newish Bryn Mawr Farmers Market across the street and the Bryn Mawr Film Institute also being spruced up and expanded a half-block away, the area near the Ludington Library has been revitalized even as the number of empty storefronts is growing in the village.
"It's great, just great," said David Broida, who was in the area Friday to set up for the Bryn Mawr Twilight Concerts, which he runs in a gazebo near the library. "It will be a magnet. I hate to use a cliché, but it's like a field of dreams - if you build it, they will come."
Letters to the Children of Troy Michigan from 1971
August 2 a "this is it" moment. (5/17/2011)
Working to keep the library open. (5/10/2011)
Will there be a library after June 30th? (4/20/2011)
Keep the Troy Public Library open: Council members told to 'figure it out'. (4/19/2011)
May Day! May Day! Two Michigan libraries set to close on May 1. (4/17/2011)
Library to close on May 1. (2/23/2011)
Troy Michigan (population: 80,000) still on track to close its library. (2/8/2011)
Voters wave bye-bye to their library. (11/3/2010)
Giving voters more choices than they need. (8/13/2010)
Library threatened with closure, part 2. (5/19/2010)
Library threatened with closure, part 1. (4/25/2010)
Bill Passed by California Assembly Sets Up Roadblocks to Public Library Privatization
Make it hard to privatize libraries, California Assembly says. (Sacramento Bee, 6/3/2011)
Excerpt: Despite strong opposition from Republicans, the Assembly narrowly passed a union-backed bill to make cities and counties blow through a series of roadblocks before they can privatize their libraries.
Under Assembly Bill 438, library systems would have to:
• pick a contract after a competitive bidding process.
• give four straight weeks of public notice before enacting a change, doubling the current requirement.
• prove through a broad analysis that a switch away from the free public library system saves the city or county money.
• show that the cost savings are not simply a factor of lower pay for the private company's employees.
• require an audit before hiring a library contractor charging more than $100,000 a year.
• ensure that the public employees don't lose their jobs.
National contractor Library Systems & Services, which already runs some libraries in the state, and the Service Employees International Union engaged in dueling lobbying efforts on the measure.
Both the League of California Cities and Republicans in the Assembly said the state shouldn't be interfering with local issues. They also said local officials already trying to save money through library sell-offs likely would drop their efforts if this bill became law later this year. The bill would also touch renewals of existing contracts.
Related articles:
LSSI's fairly pathetic track record. (3/4/2011)
Camarillo sez goodbye to Ventura County, hello to Library Systems. (10/26/2010)
Privitizing @ your library. (9/27/2010)
Milwaukee Police Chief to Gov. Walker on Concealed Carry: Exhibit statesmanship and provide adult supervision
Milwaukee police chief slams concealed-carry measure. (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 6/2/2011)
Excerpt: Milwaukee Police Chief Edward Flynn urged Gov. Scott Walker to "provide some adult supervision" and ensure that the final version of a concealed-carry bill outlines a strict permitting process for carrying guns and stipulations including basic training and not being a "criminal, drug abuser or insane." He also called for changing the charge of carrying a concealed weapon from a misdemeanor to a felony.
The news conference came after a gunfight Wednesday night between Milwaukee police bicycle patrol officer Jose Viera and a 21-year-old armed suspect in the Sherman Park neighborhood. The officer escaped unharmed despite a chase during which the two exchanged gunfire. The suspect was shot multiple times and arrested.
"I also want to take this as an opportunity to call upon Gov. Walker to exhibit statesmanship and provide adult supervision over the chaotic legislative process that seems bent on inflicting a reckless and foolish concealed-carry law on the citizens of Wisconsin," Flynn said. "This is not a political talking points issue. This is an officer safety issue. This is the second time in less than a week my officers have been in a gun battle with armed, reckless assailants. We cannot afford a reckless bill."
The City of Menasha police chief, who served on the Library Director Selection Committee, is against any kind of concealed carry legislation.
"We already have too many guns on the street," he noted during lunch on the day we interviewed candidates.
I'm not aware, though, if he's made an official public statement. He has nothing to lose, as he begins his retirement on Tuesday, June 7.
Policy item "tucked away in massive state budget"
:-o
Bill would make it harder to see if state officials have conflicts of interest. (Wisconsin State Journal, 6/3/2011)
Excerpt: The measure was sponsored by Vos and the other five GOP Assembly members of the joint committee and is part of the Legislature's budget bill, which now goes to the Senate and Assembly for passage.
Vos, who owns businesses including a popcorn distribution company, defended the measure through his aide, Kit Beyer.
Beyer said the measure is meant to discourage those who merely want to snoop on officials' private lives or steal their business clients while continuing to make the statements available to "people who want to have it for a true reason rather than people just fishing around."
The statements themselves are not online. Currently, members of the public can request an official's statement be sent to them electronically or in the mail for 25 cents a page. The measure would require requesters to go to 212 E. Washington Ave. to review or copy the forms. All officials whose forms are requested are notified of the request and who made it.
The Government Accountability Board also publishes an online index that allows the public to search for all state officials who own stock in a specific company. But Ahmuty said the measure approved by the legislative budget committee likely would prohibit the GAB from providing that online search service.
Members of the Legislature, judges, top agency officials and members of state boards and commissions are required to fill out the statements.
Officials must disclose employers, investments, business activities, clients, business partners, real-estate holdings, creditors and other financial information for themselves and their immediate family members.
Bill would make it harder to see if state officials have conflicts of interest. (Wisconsin State Journal, 6/3/2011)
Excerpt: The measure was sponsored by Vos and the other five GOP Assembly members of the joint committee and is part of the Legislature's budget bill, which now goes to the Senate and Assembly for passage.
Vos, who owns businesses including a popcorn distribution company, defended the measure through his aide, Kit Beyer.
Beyer said the measure is meant to discourage those who merely want to snoop on officials' private lives or steal their business clients while continuing to make the statements available to "people who want to have it for a true reason rather than people just fishing around."
The statements themselves are not online. Currently, members of the public can request an official's statement be sent to them electronically or in the mail for 25 cents a page. The measure would require requesters to go to 212 E. Washington Ave. to review or copy the forms. All officials whose forms are requested are notified of the request and who made it.
The Government Accountability Board also publishes an online index that allows the public to search for all state officials who own stock in a specific company. But Ahmuty said the measure approved by the legislative budget committee likely would prohibit the GAB from providing that online search service.
Members of the Legislature, judges, top agency officials and members of state boards and commissions are required to fill out the statements.
Officials must disclose employers, investments, business activities, clients, business partners, real-estate holdings, creditors and other financial information for themselves and their immediate family members.
Friday, June 3, 2011
BookExpo America Panel Discussion on Book Banning
Excerpt: At a lively and thought-provoking BookExpo America panel, two bestselling authors and two nationally noted free speech advocates presented an overview and a frontline account of the tactics and trends of contemporary book banning.
The panel — “Book Banning 2011: A Report From the Front Lines of the Battle for Free Speech” — was held on Wednesday, May 25, and featured bestselling authors Laurie Halse Anderson (Speak, Twisted) and Robie Harris (It’s Perfectly Normal, It’s So Amazing!), Pat Scales, a defender of free speech in libraries for more than 30 years, and moderator Joan Bertin, executive director of the National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC). The panel was sponsored by the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, the Association of American Publishers, the Freedom to Read Foundation, and PEN American Center.
Bramble's Retirement Leads to Search for 21st-Century Visionary to Lead Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library
Library seeks leader to close book on losses. Countywide system hopes to hire 21st-century visionary by November. (Indianapolis Star, 5/31/2011)
Excerpt: [Laura] Bramble, 63, started at Central Library in 1970 as a reference librarian. While she's championed programs for workforce development and childhood literacy, she knows her legacy will be having led the library during tough times.
"We've adapted, and we will continue to adapt," she said. "It doesn't mean we've stopped.
"We're still delivering good services."
The Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library has hired Kansas City, Mo.- based-Bradbury Associates/Gossage Sager Associates for about $25,000 to look for a new CEO.
The position was posted last week. Finalists will be interviewed in August, and the library board hopes to hire a CEO by November.
Related articles:
Library funding a front-burner issue. (6/3/2011)
Empty cup at the finish line? (4/30/2011)
Indiana House passes library funding bill before Democrats take a much needed road trip. (2/22/2011)
Indiana Senate moves more quickly than House on library bill. (2/10/2011)
No rest for IMCPL 'loyalists'. (2/9/2011)
'Library loyalists' provide a remedial lesson in funding priorities. (2/8/2011)
Legislative effort to provide more funding for IMCPL continues. (2/4/2011)
Show of support by IMCPL advocates. (1/25/2011)
Library angel. (1/17/2011)
Indianapolis Star editorial: "Give library a fair share of tax" (1/13/2011)
Sustainability in the form of a share of county income taxes. (1/12/2011)
Township deals comes undone. (1/8/2011)
Vote to restore library hours and rehire staff: Thanking God again in Wayne Township, Indiana. (12/16/2010)
Wayne Township's $200,000 for IMCPL: "Thank God it's a nice purpose". (12/8/2010)
Temporary fix (not yet approved ) to keep 4 IMCPL branches open. (11/19/2010)
ICMPL to lay off 37 employees. (11/12/2010)
Cuts in library hours, materials budget. (9/15/2010)
Library announces 26% cut in hours. (9/14/2010)
Indianapolis resident recommends book to local officials. (9/6/2010)
Library board votes to include 'shortfall appeal' option. (9/1/2010)
Library board to consider 'shortfall appeal'. (8/30/2010)
In close vote, library board cuts hours, staff. (8/20/2010)
Library grapples with its sustainable future. (8/16/2010)
Library projects a $7.3 million deficit by 2014. (7/29/2010)
Library board sez no branch closings in 2011. (7/15/2010)
Library supporters question Pacers deal. (7/15/2010)
High performance government team report. (7/11/2010)
Library board delays decision on libraries. (6/5/2010)
Another big turnout for libraries. (5/13/2010)
Mayor vows to keep library branches open. (5/12/2010)
Residents speak up for their libraries. (5/11/2010)
The neighborhood library as refuge. (5/2/2010)
Indianapolis Star editorial board keeps library funding issue front and center. (4/25/2010)
Efficiency experts look for ways to keep branch libraries open. (4/23/2010)
More than 1400 sign petition to keep Glendale branch open. (4/20/2010)
Editorial: Find resources for library. (4/19/2010)
What's in store for Indianapolis-area libraries? (4/17/2010)
Indiana Pacers bailout talks continue. (4/16/2010)
Postscript. (4/15/2010)
Look what's at the top of Indianapolis's to-do list. (4/14/2010)
A Challenge to Indianapolis-Marion County: Stand Up for Libraries. (4/13/2010)
Indianapolis Star Editorial: Library Funding a Front-Burner Issue
Don't drive the patrons away. (Indianapolis Star, 6/2/2011)
Excerpt: As the campaigns work their way toward November, library funding must be given a place on the lengthy list of front-burner issues facing candidates.
Just as the library's incoming boss must be prepared to adapt to rapid change in technology and patrons' needs, elected leaders must address the danger of a backslide.
Record numbers of residents were using the libraries when the decision was made to lay off 37 employees, shorten hours, add a day of closing each week and reduce the budget for books and other new materials. Since then, visits have declined 16 percent and circulation 4 percent; though, in keeping with the times, website use has seen a slight uptick.
The transforming effects of the digital age on libraries are nothing less than profound, giving rise to the temptation to view bricks-and-mortar venues and face-to-face contact as diminishing aspects that invite cost-cutting. But while economies are necessary in every category, it must be remembered that libraries fill a vital multifaceted role as community gathering places and service centers. If a spiral begins whereby residents drift away from them because they grow less welcoming, the loss to quality of life, especially in low-income areas, would be incalculable. We have seen it with IndyGo, which now represents a challenge to government far greater than stabilizing the libraries.
Related articles:
Empty cup at the finish line? (4/30/2011)
Indiana House passes library funding bill before Democrats take a much needed road trip. (2/22/2011)
Indiana Senate moves more quickly than House on library bill. (2/10/2011)
No rest for IMCPL 'loyalists'. (2/9/2011)
'Library loyalists' provide a remedial lesson in funding priorities. (2/8/2011)
Legislative effort to provide more funding for IMCPL continues. (2/4/2011)
Show of support by IMCPL advocates. (1/25/2011)
Library angel. (1/17/2011)
Indianapolis Star editorial: "Give library a fair share of tax" (1/13/2011)
Sustainability in the form of a share of county income taxes. (1/12/2011)
Township deals comes undone. (1/8/2011)
Vote to restore library hours and rehire staff: Thanking God again in Wayne Township, Indiana. (12/16/2010)
Wayne Township's $200,000 for IMCPL: "Thank God it's a nice purpose". (12/8/2010)
Temporary fix (not yet approved ) to keep 4 IMCPL branches open. (11/19/2010)
ICMPL to lay off 37 employees. (11/12/2010)
Cuts in library hours, materials budget. (9/15/2010)
Library announces 26% cut in hours. (9/14/2010)
Indianapolis resident recommends book to local officials. (9/6/2010)
Library board votes to include 'shortfall appeal' option. (9/1/2010)
Library board to consider 'shortfall appeal'. (8/30/2010)
In close vote, library board cuts hours, staff. (8/20/2010)
Library grapples with its sustainable future. (8/16/2010)
Library projects a $7.3 million deficit by 2014. (7/29/2010)
Library board sez no branch closings in 2011. (7/15/2010)
Library supporters question Pacers deal. (7/15/2010)
High performance government team report. (7/11/2010)
Library board delays decision on libraries. (6/5/2010)
Another big turnout for libraries. (5/13/2010)
Mayor vows to keep library branches open. (5/12/2010)
Residents speak up for their libraries. (5/11/2010)
The neighborhood library as refuge. (5/2/2010)
Indianapolis Star editorial board keeps library funding issue front and center. (4/25/2010)
Efficiency experts look for ways to keep branch libraries open. (4/23/2010)
More than 1400 sign petition to keep Glendale branch open. (4/20/2010)
Editorial: Find resources for library. (4/19/2010)
What's in store for Indianapolis-area libraries? (4/17/2010)
Indiana Pacers bailout talks continue. (4/16/2010)
Postscript. (4/15/2010)
Look what's at the top of Indianapolis's to-do list. (4/14/2010)
A Challenge to Indianapolis-Marion County: Stand Up for Libraries. (4/13/2010)
Listen up, West Warwick council members, Ed Fitzpatrick has some good advice
Ed Fitzpatrick: Library budgets should be last cuts in bad economic times. (Providence Journal, 6/2/2011)
Excerpt: To protect your library, you need to speak up now, Caplan said.
And West Warwick Councilman Edward A. Giroux plans to do just that at a June 14 Town Meeting. The proposed budget would cut library funding from $732,759 to $500,000, but that’s only part of the problem. State law requires that towns at least level-fund their libraries to qualify for state aid, so the proposed cut would result in the loss of $171,000 in state aid, he said.
Giroux said the town faces hard choices and council members have discussed reinstating some money. But he is sure the town can avoid devastating the library budget. He talked about tapping “rainy day” funds. He said the budget doesn’t factor in certain tax revenue. He said he’d consider a tiny tax increase. And he’d like the state to ease the level-funding requirement so towns receive aid if they maintain 90 percent of library funding.
“The library is critical to a community,” Giroux said, emphasizing that cuts would affect those who can least afford it: children, senior citizens and the poor.
Not to take anything away from Fox News, but as Walter Cronkite said: “Whatever the cost of our libraries, the price is cheap compared to that of an ignorant nation.”
Related article:
Rhode Island's West Warwick Public Library, 'The only place left to go', facing deep cuts to budget. (4/18/2011)
Ebooks, Netflix, and Library Building Projects (Part 53, Hartland Library)
Hartland Library To Reopen. (Hartford Courant, 6/31/2011)
Excerpt: A celebration of the completion of the six-month renovation project features a used book sale and refreshments. The project, which included STEAP grant assistance, was under the direction of Library Trustees, Town Selectmen, Joe Alicata, architect, and Josh Hackett of Hartland Homes LLC.
New additions feature Internet access, flooring, lighting, air conditioning, shelving, displays, a children's area with a tall arched window, and a hand-milled circulation desk. The library is funded by the town of Hartland and the Connecticut State Library, and operated and managed by a team of volunteer Trustees.
Branch Library to Open at Rutgers' Downtown Camden Campus
Paul Robeson Library
Rutgers steps in to help give Camden a new library. (Philadelphia Inquirer, 6/2/2011)
Excerpt: Sometime this fall, Camden's youngest residents will be able to walk among Rutgers-Camden students and faculty on their way to Camden County's newest branch library.
Construction has begun on the basement of the university's Paul Robeson Library to make room for a 5,000-square-foot downtown Camden branch. County and city officials gathered Wednesday to announce details of the partnership with Rutgers University.
Though a price has not been placed on the renovations, the county will pay for them. Camden residents will join the rest of county library users in paying a library tax of 4 cents per $100 of assessed property valuation starting later this year.
The much larger downtown Camden branch on Federal Street was shut in February when Mayor Dana Redd decided the city could no longer afford its 100-year-old system while facing a $26.5 million budget deficit.
The county Library Commission voted to absorb Camden's system, making it the 27th municipal participant. However, the county kept open only the Ferry Avenue branch. A small Fairview branch, shut in September, also remained closed.
Related articles:
College library will also serve as public library branch. (5/31/2011)
Branch now part of county system. (4/28/2011)
Downtown library closes for good. (2/10/2011)
Library decides to puts a positive spin on the situation. (1/16/2011)
Camden County Library System takes over Camden Free Public Library. (12/30/2011)
Reformatting the library. (10/16/2010)
2011 budget outlook remains bleak for Camden New Jersey. (10/9/2010)
Fairview branch library is closed for good. (9/8/2010)
Library board postpones decision on closing branch. (9/2/2010)
"An oasis in the desert". (8/15/2010)
Camden New Jersey squeeze play? (8/11/2010)
Camden mayor plays an odd game of library advocacy. (8/9/2010)
The library dumpster solution. (8/6/2010)
Mayor proposes 70% cut in library funding. (7/19/2010)
"My Reading History" @ your LINKcat Library
Grass Roots: Library checkout system opens patrons to scrutiny under Patriot Act. (Capital Times, 6/3/2011)
Excerpt: You might want to think twice about activating the "My Reading History" option on the updated computerized materials checkout system for the Madison Public Library. [Strictly speaking, it's not just Madison's "computerized materials checkout system". And the system, of course, does more than check out materials.]
Clicking "yes" to opt-in for the service means you'll have a handy record of what you've been reading if you need it. But the list of what materials you've checked out also will be available to federal authorities if they come knocking at the library door under the Patriot Act, the controversial anti-terrorist legislation rammed through a 9/11-stunned Congress in 2001 and quickly extended last week for four more years.
Not that you have anything to hide. The question is whether it's any business of the government what you've been reading.
All I can say is a reading history option would have been an instantly popular feature back in August 1994, when the 2nd-generation Dynix system went into operation.
Related article:
The LINKcat upgrade. (5/28/2011)
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Ebooks, Netflix, and Library Building Projects (Part 52, Margaret E. Heggan Free Public Library)
Expanded Washington Twp. library opens its doors. (Philadelphia Inquirer, 6/1/2011)
Excerpt: For Thomas Treusch, the relocated Washington Township library could not open soon enough.
"I've been unemployed for several months, and I was always using the computers and the other resources to look for work," said Treusch, 54, who lives in the township.
So when the expanded Margaret E. Heggan Free Public Library in Gloucester County opened its doors Wednesday, after several weeks to complete the move, he was first in line.
Fortunately for Treusch, the new library, on Delsea Drive, has 16 computers in a quiet area off the main room, twice as many as its predecessor about a block away on East Holly Avenue. Teenagers have their own computer lab with five stations, and younger children have six computers for their use.
The facility is much larger, too - nearly double the 10,000-square-foot former location. The old place was so tight that, in 2008, a member of the library's friends group reported that books.
Ebooks, Netflix, and Library Building Projects (Part 51, Boyden Library)
Foxborough library expansion plans stir dispute. (Boston Globe, 6/2/2011)
Excerpt: An ultramodern design for an expansion of Foxborough’s 1960s-era Boyden Library at Bird and Baker streets has caused a firestorm of controversy in the historic neighborhood, where residents have hired a lawyer to try to stop it.
According to Foxborough attorney Mark Stopa, who says he represents a group of a dozen or more residents, the $12 million renovation and expansion project is based on a design residents had never seen until recently. He said they also didn’t receive legal notice of a key meeting last August where the plan was granted zoning variances.
“Everyone agrees we should have a library that meets the town’s needs,’’ Stopa said. “We want a beautiful library we can all be proud of, not one that violates who we are as a town. And we ought to have a say in how it should look.’’
Town Meeting voters approved funding in May 2010 to upgrade and expand the large concrete library next to the town common. But controversy developed recently, particularly among those who live within sight of the library, when the voters learned that the design they thought they had approved — with a graceful, curved glass wall connecting the existing building with the new one — had been replaced with one dominated by an angular exterior overhang and dramatic glass stairway.
Ebooks, Netflix, and Library Building Projects (Part 50, Cherry Valley Library)
Cherry Valley library expansion may start in Aug. (Rockford Register-Star, 6/2/2011)
Excerpt: Construction could begin as soon as August on what leaders hope eventually will be a $4 million expansion of Cherry Valley Library.
Library Director Eve Kirk said there’s no timetable for completing the project, which aims to nearly double the size of the 13,300-square-foot building at 755 E. State St.
The expansion will be done in phases as the district is able to afford it.
“We’re not like the state or the federal government,” Kirk said. “We just can’t go into debt like that.”
The district has about $650,000 in reserves for the expansion project.
Officials don’t intend to issue bonds or levy new taxes to pay for the expansion, Kirk said.
“We could wait until we have collected all the money. That could be years from now, and we are desperately short of space right now,” Kirk said.
The district’s main source of revenue is its property tax levy, which amounts to about 28 cents per $100 of assessed property value.
About 55 percent of voters approved a 6.2-cent increase in the district’s general fund levy in 2006, an increase Kirk said will hope fund extra operating costs following the expansion.
The district has been unable to secure any grants for the project, but not for lack of trying, Kirk said.
Related articles:
Library keeps on truckin'. (8/21/2010)
Catch-22 keeps library expansion plans on hold. (2/2/2010)
Ebooks, Netflix, and Library Building Projects (Part 49, Waynesboro Public Library)
W'boro library begins new chapter. (Waynesboro News-Virginian, 6/1/2011)
Excerpt: For two weeks, a sign at the Waynesboro Public Library counted down the days until the start of construction on a $1.5 million renovation.
Excitement among staff and patrons culminated Tuesday when the number finally read zero, and construction began, said Zahir Mahmoud, executive director.
“Everyone is happy that the work has started,” he said. “We’re anxious to see the progress from beginning to end. We’re really thrilled about it.”
Lynchburg-based C.L. Lewis General Contractors began the project by partitioning off space where a new stairway connecting the building’s lower and main floors will be built, said library spokeswoman Marta Grove.
Workers then will replace the library’s HVAC unit before beginning upgrades to the lower floor, which will include a new Internet café and local history room.
Children’s spaces split between the two floors will be consolidated into an extended area on the upper floor. Other planned main-floor renovations include a new teen’s area, circulation desk and lobby.
Ebooks, Netflix, and Library Building Projects (Part 48, Athens-Clarke County Library)
A-C library turning new page. (Athens Banner-Herald, 6/1/2011)
Excerpt: But library patrons need not fear - you just have to go in the back way for a while.
Construction workers are cutting a new, temporary entrance in a back wall of the library as they prepare to give a multimillion-dollar expansion and renovation to the library building on Baxter Street.
"It's hard to believe after (only) 20 years we're overcrowded in some areas," said Kathryn Ames, director of the Athens Regional Library System.
But Athens' population and library use have grown dramatically in the years since the building opened in 1992.
About 2,000 people a day use the library for one reason or another during summer months, Ames said.
Now, the building doesn't always have enough space to accommodate children's programs, public gatherings and computer labs, she said. The library has 100 computers for the public and they almost always are in use, she said.
Beginning this month, workers will add about 20,000 square feet to the 63,000-square-foot library building, allowing for some much-needed breathing room.
Building Renovation News blog.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Homestead Library/Community Center Updated for the 21st Century
Rebirth in Homestead: the Carnegie Library. Old building given new life as multipurpose facility for a reinvigorated community. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 6/1/2011)
Excerpt: At a time when nonprofits and other "community benefit" organizations are reeling from cuts in public funding, the Homestead library is a textbook example of social enterprise and reinvention, experts say, using revenue from the music hall and its fitness club memberships to stay viable. The library's core mission has been preserved, and then some: you can check out a book or use a computer, take a Spinning class, have a cup of coffee or see a show.There's more to come: a swimming pool in the basement -- the longest continually operating heated pool in Western Pennsylvania, complete with marble columns reminiscent of ancient Rome -- will be renovated, as will an old bowling alley, which may become an indoor baseball training facility.
"They've captured the spirit of the original Andrew Carnegie vision for libraries in building and renovating what he originally saw as a community center with multifunction outreach, updated for the 21st century," said Marilyn Jenkins, executive director for the Allegheny County Library Association, which comprises 45 libraries -- including the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, which isn't affiliated with Homestead.
Pornography:Men::Romance Novels:Women
Romance novels can be as addictive as pornography. (KSL.com, 5/30/2011)
Excerpt: According to psychologist Dr. Juli Slattery, author of “Finding the Hero in your Husband”, there are similarities between what happens to a man when he views pornography and what happens to a woman when she reads a romance novel.
“There is a neurochemical element with men and visual porn [don't worry; it's work-safe] , but an emotional element with women and these novels," she wrote.
Men are very visual, and viewing pornography produces a euphoric drug in the body. This drug is the reason pornography becomes addictive. When the natural high wears off, a man will crash and feel depressed (as happens with any drug) and crave another hit.
Women are more stimulated by romance than sex, so when they read romantic stories (and they don’t have to be explicit to work) they can experience the same addicting chemical release as men do.
Related artlcle.
Ereader as brown paper bag. (12/9/2010)
Colorado State Library Launches Internet Access Campaign
Colorado State Library launches campaign to help rural Coloradans access the Internet. (Denver Post, 6/1/2011)
Excerpt: The Colorado State Library, a division of the Colorado Department of Education, has launched an Internet access campaign to draw rural Colorado residents into local computing centers around the state.
"We are committed to providing Internet access, computers, support and training for the communities we serve through our libraries," said Sharon Morris, director of library development for the Colorado State Library.
The Colorado State Library has teamed up with Sadler & Dorchester, a Denver-based marketing firm, to launch the program which is funded by the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program, passed in 2009 as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
Libraries and Ebooks: Any Book, Not Any Time Soon
LINKcat. 166 copies. 168 holds (89 active).
Public libraries’ policies are evolving with e-books. (Kansas City Star, 5/30/2011)
Excerpt: It’s news to a lot of folks, but many public libraries here and across the country offer digital books that can be read on such devices as a Nook or, with the right app, a smartphone. The potential is enormous: book-borrowing without the physical limits. Any book, any time, right?
“Some of the waiting lists are long,” said Adam Wathen, collection development manager at Johnson County Library. It’s the same at Kansas City Public Library, director Crosby Kemper III said.
And most everywhere else. One digital library advocate found a waiting list of 127 for an e-copy of a book about chess champion Bobby Fischer at the New York Public Library.
Public library collections are mainly made up of physical books, of course, but libraries have begun contracting with e-book suppliers for loaning digital books. The way the system works now, a copy of an e-book, just like a physical book, can be loaned out one at a time.
But along with music and movies in the young digitized world, the handling, so to speak, of digital books is in flux.
Related articles:
On the distinction between the book reader and the book owner. (5/10/2011)
Demand for ebooks grows exponentially in Wisconsin. (5/2/2011)
Struggling to find an ebook common agenda between libraries and publishers. (4/5/2011)
Ebooks and libraries: "The challenges just keep piling up". (3/28/2011)
Publishers Weekly tracks ebook sales. (3/18/2011)
Word is getting out: Ebooks @ your library. (3/18/2011)
Ebooks continue to gain market share. (3/17/2011)
Publishers look to bottom line in formulating ebook policies for libraries. (3/15/2011)
News stories on HarperCollins ebook decision go mainstream. (3/5/2011)
9 years of book sales: trade and ebook. (2/17/2011)
Will ebook readers be wooed by Barbara Cartland? (2/12/2011)
The impact of ebooks on libraries. (2/11/2011)
OverDrive news release: Library eBook circs up 200% in '10. (1/10/2011)
Mashable: 5 ebook trends that will change the future of publishing. (12/29/2010)
Christmas 2010 the tipping point for ebooks? (12/24/2010)
Ereader as brown paper bag. (12/9/2010)
The ebook reader compatibility surprise. (12/3/2010)
Ereader ownership: Survey says.... (11/30/2010)
David Carnoy asks, "Does the Kindle pay for itself?" (11/29/2010)
Need to repair that ebook reader? (11/19/2010)
Who uses an ereader: Survey says.... (9/22/2010)
Book industry wrestles with print vs. pixels. (9/2/2010)
Coming soon to a screen near you: Ads in ebooks. (8/20/2010)
Ebooks now comprise 8/5% of book sales. (8/12/2010)
Genre paperback publishers drops print. (8/6/2010)
Ebooks and libraries. (5/4/2010)
Ebooks eliminate a free form of adversiting: the book jacket. (3/31/2010)
Ebooks: another round of false promises? (3/19/2010)
The skinny on ebooks. (3/8/2010)
Hardcover vs. ebook: Breaking down the costs. (3/1/2010)
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Salt Lake City Branch Planning: How to Lose Friends and Alienate People
Search for 2 new SLC library sites gets messy. (Salt Lake Tribune, 5/27/2011)
Excerpt: Libraries serve as community gathering spots — sanctuaries from stress and society’s cutthroat culture. Yet well before the first shovels hit the dirt, just picking where Salt Lake City’s two newest branches will go has proved contentious, divisive and, perhaps, politicized.
For years, new libraries have been planned in the Glendale and Marmalade neighborhoods. Much of the funding is in place or planned as a future tax increase, and multiple forums have been staged to harness public input. The Library Board has even picked its preferred spots.
But the messy — some insiders say “flawed” — selection process has created as many questions as answers.
Board members heading each site search recently quit those committees in protest. Some Marmalade businessmen maintain their site was ignored in “scandalous” fashion. And critics inside and out of City Hall insist the Mayor’s Office itself tried to sink the Glendale location overwhelmingly favored by residents.
2B or not 2B: Study sez 2B (possibly carcinogenic) for cellphones
Just like pesticides and engine exhaust.
Phones called a possible health risk by world cancer group. (San Jose Mercury News, 5/31/2011)
Excerpt: An international panel of experts says cellphones are possibly carcinogenic to humans after reviewing details from dozens of published studies.
The statement was issued in Lyon, France, on Tuesday by the International Agency for Research on Cancer after a weeklong meeting of experts. They reviewed possible links between cancer and the type of electromagnetic radiation found in cellphones, microwaves and radar.
The agency is the cancer arm of the World Health Organization and the assessment now goes to WHO and national health agencies for possible guidance on cellphone use.
The group classified cellphones in category 2B, meaning they are possibly carcinogenic to humans. Other substances in that category include the pesticide DDT and gasoline engine exhaust.
Phones called a possible health risk by world cancer group. (San Jose Mercury News, 5/31/2011)
Excerpt: An international panel of experts says cellphones are possibly carcinogenic to humans after reviewing details from dozens of published studies.
The statement was issued in Lyon, France, on Tuesday by the International Agency for Research on Cancer after a weeklong meeting of experts. They reviewed possible links between cancer and the type of electromagnetic radiation found in cellphones, microwaves and radar.
The agency is the cancer arm of the World Health Organization and the assessment now goes to WHO and national health agencies for possible guidance on cellphone use.
The group classified cellphones in category 2B, meaning they are possibly carcinogenic to humans. Other substances in that category include the pesticide DDT and gasoline engine exhaust.
Not a good start to the work week @ the San Leandro Library
Man found dead outside San Leandro Main Library. (Hayward Daily Review, 5/31/2011)
Excerpt: Authorities are investigating the cause of death for a man found Tuesday morning outside of the San Leandro Main Library.
About 8:30 a.m., officers responded to a call reporting that an unconscious man was lying on the ground near the library's café and pronounced him dead at the scene, Lt. Jeff Tudor said.
The deceased — described by police as a white male in his 50's -- was possibly a transient, Tudor said.
Police said they are not suspecting foul play.
Nora Roberts Foundation Donates $100,000 to McDaniel College
Excerpt: Nora Roberts' foundation is giving $100,000 to a college in Maryland and the school says it will offer an academic minor in romance literature and start a writing course in the genre.
McDaniel College in Westminster said Tuesday it has received the money.
President Roger Casey says the college aims to raise the profile of romance novels. He says serious study of the subject will reinforce Roberts' reputation as a master and champion of the craft.
The school also will build a library collection of American romance literature, including all of Roberts' more than 200 novels.
About 7 per year.
Camden: College Library Will Also Serve as Public Library Branch
A library returning to downtown Camden. (Philadelphia Inquirer, 5/31/2011)
Excerpt: The city's library system closed in February amid budget problems.
The county library system took over the one remaining neighborhood branch, but the downtown branch was closed.
Now, a portion of the Paul Robeson Library at Rutgers University's campus in the city's downtown is going to be reconfigured for use as another county library branch.
Related articles:
Branch now part of county system. (4/28/2011)
Downtown library closes for good. (2/10/2011)
Library decides to puts a positive spin on the situation. (1/16/2011)
Camden County Library System takes over Camden Free Public Library. (12/30/2011)
Reformatting the library. (10/16/2010)
2011 budget outlook remains bleak for Camden New Jersey. (10/9/2010)
Fairview branch library is closed for good. (9/8/2010)
Library board postpones decision on closing branch. (9/2/2010)
"An oasis in the desert". (8/15/2010)
Camden New Jersey squeeze play? (8/11/2010)
Camden mayor plays an odd game of library advocacy. (8/9/2010)
The library dumpster solution. (8/6/2010)
Mayor proposes 70% cut in library funding. (7/19/2010)
North Fond du Lac School District Student Engagement Project
North Fond du Lac schools invest in iPads. (Fond du Lac Reporter, 5/30/2011)
Excerpt: The Board of Education voted on May 23 to approve an initial purchase of 110 iPads for all teachers, administrators and board members. Superintendent Aaron Sadoff said the district opted to forego the purchase of new textbooks and curriculum material and invest in the future.
“The money is coming from saved dollars from each of the school’s budgets. We decided to use the resources we have in a different way to best impact learning,” he said.
The iPads will be equipped with WiFi (not 3g) capabilities at no cost for monthly internet service. A two-credit iPad in education class will be offered to staff in August so they can begin to utilize technology to change the way students are educated, Sadoff said.
Teachers will have the capability to use the various applications to access iTunes University (tool to organize media) and lectures from big name universities online, obtain audio and video support from other schools, skype, and project information onto a whiteboard, essentially turning it into a smart board.
“I haven’t seen a piece of technology that will have more of an impact on engaging kids,” Sadoff said. “We owe it to our students to provide them with the tools they need on their journey to excellence.”
Monday, May 30, 2011
Josephine Community Libraries Falling Short of Fundraising Goal
Loss of federal timber payments in 2007 dried up library funding.
Funny photo contest to raise money for children's programs.
Funny photo contest to raise money for children's programs.
Population (1990, 2000, 2010)
