It's time for city to chip in to buy the library books
Published October 14, 2004
Re: Plan sacrifices books to save library, story, Sept. 24.
Why is there not a followup article on the cutback of material acquisitions for the library system?
In 2000 the Clearwater Public Library System had 85,700 square feet of library space. In 2004 the system has 131,300 square feet. This is a reflection of the citizens' support for a better library system. Little did they know that with increased square footage there would be a decrease in the materials to fill this space. The library acquisitions budget in fiscal year 2000-01 was $695,010. The acquisitions budget for fiscal year 2004-05 is $595,840.
Imagine, opening two new, larger buildings and allocating less money to fill the shelves!
The issue should not be, and is not, the Beach Library Branch vs. books for the system. There is a need for the Beach Library. It is an important neighborhood asset, as are the North Greenwood Branch Library and the East Branch Library and the Countryside Branch Library.
There seems to be funding for soccer fields, for parks, for baseball, for beach walks and so forth. Why not for libraries? These are all quality-of-life issues for our community. People who use parks also use the library. People who walk the beach also use the library.
The answer is not to ask the Friends of the Library to donate funds to the city from the money raised in their bookstores. That is like asking us to "vote for the lottery to support education." We all know what happened with that action. The city needs to adequately fund the library system. If the Friends give money to the library, it should be for books and materials that enhance the system, not subsidize the city's general fund budget.
The Friends have been and will be giving $3,500 in scholarships for library employees and teen volunteers. They have continued to commit $1,000 for an authors program, $7,500 for youth programs, $2,000 for the Born to Read program, $2,500 for Library Volunteer Appreciation and more. The Friends are giving back to the library, fulfilling their purpose.
The real issue we the people need to ask is, "Why is the City Council not adequately funding the library system?"
-- Rita Garvey, Clearwater
Tropical storms showed how folks pulled together
Here it has been over two weeks since Hurricane Jeanne hit Florida and caused millions of dollars of destruction. It has been six weeks since the start of all this with Charley. We had barely a chance to recover from each of our storms when it seemed another was heading our way.
Yet we as Floridians did make it through these storms, we did manage to maintain order and respect one another. I have never been more proud to call myself a Floridian. Everybody pulled together and helped one another.
Still I see power trucks contracted from other states helping the exhausted men and women from our state's power companies. Thank you to all who lent support. Thank you to the power companies, the cable companies, the police and fire rescue personnel and the retail businesses that provided the necessary supplies in an expedited and professional manner.
Also, a big thank-you to the different entities of the media - radio and television stations, newspapers and online news - for providing accurate and continuous coverage throughout the hurricane crisis.
-- Caroline Hart, Dunedin
City spreads funding for its libraries too thinly
Re: Library cuts aimed at closing branch, and Closing library would be a service to none of us, letters, Oct. 6.
Contrary to the few letters in the paper and a few loud voices, there are probably many library patrons and city taxpayers who find it ludicrous that Clearwater has just spent millions of dollars on a world-class library, yet feels it needs to support another branch library hardly a few miles away at the beach.
I would like the city to publish the circulation figures at the various libraries, in an effort to see where dollars should be spent more equitably.
The group that hollered for the Beach Library is the same group that insisted the city replace a pool for the community at the beach. It would be interesting to see the usage numbers on that also.
For those who think I shouldn't be saying anything because I do not live in Clearwater, I want to remind them that the library is used by people throughout our region. I am also a volunteer at the Countryside Library.
Letter writer Nancy Hart's suggestion that Friends of the Library funds pay for library materials does not address the root of the problem. Why should the Friends' work be used to make up for the city's inability to make wise decisions regarding the number of libraries it operates?
-- Jill Rommel, Oldsmar
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