Clippings – September 21, 2009

Library News

Tacoma Public Library Board of Trustees has been briefed on plans to spend $150,000 to remodel the Kobetich branch and is scheduled to vote on approving the funding later this month.  (Photo)  (Tacoma Weekly, 9.3.09) http://www.tacomaweekly.com/article/3498/

Puyallup Public Library updated its Web site including new themes, redesigned layout, tab navigation and interactive features.  More patrons are visiting the library remotely, discovering books and programs, researching reports or building resumes.  The Puyallup library’s re-design is the first step taken to improve Virtual visits, making things easier to find and, hopefully, more fun to view.  (The Herald [Puyallup], 9.9.09)

A town hall meeting will be held in Ferndale to address the issue of spending $8 million on a new library and police station.  The city’s current library plan would utilize a $1 million contribution by an anonymous donor.  (Westside Record-Journal [Ferndale], 9.9.09)

Moses Lake City Council agreed to fund a mechanical engineering study for the Moses Lake Public Library future expansion.  The study is expected to cost about $5,500 and will help to determine the structural soundness of the facility to determine how it can be expanded to meet the needs of future growth.  (Photo)  (Columbia Basin Herald [Moses Lake], 9.10.09)

Ferndale town hall meeting results reveal that the city’s most recent plan to build a new library adjacent to city hall and move the police department into the current library facility proved to be to expensive, a fact disclosed by the mayor during the meeting.  Discussion regarding the facilities will continue.

(Photos)  (Westside Record-Journal, 9.16.09)

The president of the union that represents city (Bellingham) library employees has taken public the battle over layoffs and budget cuts made by the mayor’s administration.  The union president accused the mayor of keeping “special expensive pet projects in lieu of maintaining direct public services for our community.”  (Bellingham Herald, 9.16.09) http://www.bellinghamherald.com/102/story/1071410.html

If county voters decide in November to increase their property taxes by 10 cents per $1,000 assessed value, the Whatcom County Library System will be able to maintain current library services for the next four to five years.  If Proposition 1 is turned town, services, jobs, and open hours will be cut beginning in January.  (Bellingham Herald, 9.16.09) http://www.bellinghamherald.com/689/story/1071381.html

Letters & Editorials

I have been very disappointed with our Sno-Isle library as of late.  It began when they wanted to remodel the Coupeville branch.  I attended a meeting of the design review board.  The so-called Coupeville Library expansion was not about more library educational resources, but instead, about separate bathrooms for staff, separates entrances with large roofed porches and a community meeting room.  (Whidbey News-Times [Oak Harbor], 9.5.09) http://www.pnwlocalnews.com/whidbey/wnt/opinion/letters/57419222.html

While all eyes focus on overwhelming national and foreign-policy problems, there is a local issue that makes Bellingham seem like a narrow-minded municipality.  It seems we are abandoning our public library.  (Bellingham Herald, 9.11.09) http://www.bellinghamherald.com/letters/story/1060535.html

An August 18 article in The Herald said that the Sno-Isle Regional Library System, like most of us, is feeling the pinch of a challenging economy. (“Sno-Isle Libraries scales back, looks to tax increase.”)  Facing a shortfall, I applaud the proposal of reducing their costs by $1.2 million in 2010.  Just like the rest of us, when your income goes down, the logical thing to do is reduce your expenses.  (The Daily Herald [Everett], 9.12.09) http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20090912/OPINION02/709129988

We asked our libraries to limit their budget to a 1 percent increase per year in 2001.  The Whatcom County Library did a great job for us – they served more people every year and still cut costs.  Voting “yes” on Proposition No. 1 would support continuing local library service by adding only about $20 to $30 per house-hold in property tax.  (Bellingham Herald, 9.15.09) http://www.bellinghamherald.com/letters/story/1065931.html

Economy/Hard Times

To help the Ocean Shores Library during tough times, people in the community can select a book from a list of books that the library would have purchased in October then donate the book to the library.  Those who donate will have their name added on the bookplate.  (The North Coast News [Ocean Shores], 9.9.09)

[This summary of library news was created by Bobbie DeMiero and Leanna Hammond of the Washington State Library Division of the Office of the Secretary of State.  It represents a selection of newspaper clippings about Washington libraries from all Washington newspapers received in the packets on the dates shown. For more information about any of these stories, contact Carolyn Petersen at 360.570.5560 or [email protected] ]