By GENEVIEVE BOOKWALTER--Santa Cruz Sentinel
Posted: 08/18/2010 06:35:59 PM PDT
Updated: 08/18/2010 06:36:26 PM PDT
CAPITOLA - City leaders have taken issue with the Santa Cruz county grand jury's recommendation that the community take over Capitola Branch Library and turn it into a reading room, saying the report ignores a deal struck between the city and county six years ago as well as the growing demand on the Capitola branch.
"We value and treasure our community library; it is a part of our community identity and cannot be replaced by a regional library," said Mayor Sam Storey, who sits on the Santa Cruz Public Libraries' Joint Powers Board.
Capitola leaders were responding to this year's grand jury report, which was released to the public in June. The grand jury is an independent body assembled of county residents that each year investigates various governmental bodies and releases a report analyzing their practices and behavior. This year's report included analysis on the Santa Cruz Public Library System, Lompico County Water District and others.
While the report did not recommend the governing Joint Powers Board shutter the smaller of the system's 10 branches, it did recommend local communities like Capitola possibly take them over until system leaders can buy much-needed technological infrastructure and build a cash reserve, which they do not have right now.
That is where Capitola leaders drew the line.
In their response to the report, council members noted the city's deal with Santa Cruz County to build a new, 7,000 square-foot library to replace the temporary, 4,300 square-foot building the branch occupies now. The Capitola City Redevelopment Agency has committed at least $2 million to the project, and the city has created a committee to recommend a site, funding strategies and how development should proceed. In addition, more than 60 percent of visitors to the Capitola branch come from outside city limits, the reply stated, showing that it serves a more regional demand.
As a result, "the idea of converting the existing Capitola Library to a reading room, even for an intermediate term, is unacceptable," the city's response said.
The libraries' dire financial situation comes after the system's budget shrank from $12.6 million to $11.3 million last year. It is expected to keep dropping to $10.7 million over the next few years as the nation's economic doldrums continue taking their toll on tax revenues. This year's budget is about $11 million.
About half of the library system's budget is paid for with revenue from a quarter-cent local sales tax first passed in 1996. County voters in 2008 agreed to make the tax permanent. But as residents shop less during the recession, that revenue stream has fallen off.
The Joint Powers Board has formed a subcommittee to develop long-term strategies for managing the branches as the ongoing recession continues. Members are expected to return this fall with recommendations.
Library system Director Teresa Landers said she is waiting for the committee to return before she recommends converting Capitola or any other branch into something else.
"We need to let this process unfold and let this task force do its work before coming to any conclusions about branch closures or any other structural changes," Landers said.
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_15820577?nclick_check=1
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