Historic Massachusetts Library in Peril, Pub Lib Opens Auction Site
Library Crisis
Time for another selection of library budget crisis stories. Massachusetts..."Historic library could be shut down" (via Cape Cod Times)
" One of the nation's oldest public libraries faces shutting its doors more than two centuries after it opened with a gift of 116 books from Benjamin Franklin." See Also: "Oldest Public Library In Country Faces Closure" (via WCVB) UPDATED 4/29 Good News! The Franklin Library Will Remain Open
-- Quebec..."Quebec Library Funding in Doubt" (via School Library Journal)
"A new government in Quebec may threaten $90.4 million in school library funds promised by Education Minister Sylvain Simard"..."School libraries here are a disaster," says Regine Horinstein, director of the Professional Librarian Association of Quebec. "Most schools don't have school libraries and they rarely have professional staff. They mostly rely on volunteers and parents."
-- Pennsylvania..."Bookworms burning over library funding" (via The Philadelphia Inquirer)
"After several years of steadily increasing appropriations, the proposed cuts in [Gov.] Rendell's budget would knock the state's library funding back to the mid-1990s. At that time, Pennsylvania dwelled in the national cellar for funding libraries."..."It's ironic that the librarians are the loudest voice in the entire debate," Glenn Miller, director of the Pennsylvania Library Association." I don't see what's ironic about it. You mean librarians (like any other group) can't be heard and heard at a loud volume? The important and valuable work Mr. Miller is doing shouldn't help reinforce stereotypes.
-- Pennsylvania..."Local libraries caught in state financial pinch" (via The Evening Times)
-- Texas (Houston)..."City gets budget cut proposals" (via Houston Chronicle)
"Barbara Gubbin, the city's library director, said she also may have to close facilities to meet her target budget. She said the department could either close up to eight of the city's 36 branch libraries or would have to scale all branch libraries back by six hours to 40 hours a week, buy fewer books, CDs and videos and
eliminate management positions."
-- Ohio..."Libraries turn to taxpayers for help" (via The Plain Dealer)
"Five library districts, the largest of them Cleveland Public, say they need more money to meet rising costs and growing demands of their information-hungry patrons."
-- Ohio..."Hamilton County Library Now Considering Endowment" (via WCPO.Com)
"The Tri-state's biggest public library is considering the same concept that colleges use to give them steady funding over time. They are considering creating endowments and foundations to provide funding."
--- California..."Facing Tough Times, A Rural Public Library Looks To Online Commerce" (Auction Bytes)
"We have a clear choice in this economy - cut back or fight back," says library director Marie Bryan. "We're fighting. We got a grant to cover the costs of setting up Shop for the Library, and now all proceeds we raise will go to support services to the public." See Also: It's Not Just a Rural Issue In California (via LJ)
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