Metal Thieves Leave Robbins Public Library Without Air-Conditioning

'Outrage' at theft of library air conditioner in Robbins. (Chicago Tribune, 7/11/2012)

Excerpt: The library has been scraping by on a bare-bones budget for years, the victim of dwindling tax revenues in a village with a poor economy and a significant number of residents living below the poverty line, Coatney said. The building was open for only 24 hours a week a few years ago, although it is now open 36 hours a week, Coatney said. 

In 2009, the library was in danger of closing until NBA star and Robbins native Dwyane Wade delivered a $25,000 check to keep it afloat.