Douglas County Libraries is embarking on perhaps its most
difficult chapter yet, and it’s only the beginning of the
story.
Over the course of the next few years, the library district —
widely regarded among the nation’s best — is expecting not only a
decline in revenue, but reductions in staff and service cuts across
the board.
The staff, with director Jamie LaRue at the helm, is in the
final stages of shaping a proposal that will help the district cut
expenses while looking toward the future. The district’s board of
trustees is scheduled to vote on the plan at 7 p.m. March 19 at the
Philip S. Miller Library in Castle Rock.
Unfortunately, the news has been grim for the library system as
a whole. It began in November 2007 with the narrow defeat of a
ballot measure that would have funded the construction and
operation of new libraries in Parker, Lone Tree and Castle Pines
North; it lost by slightly more than 200 votes.
A similar, but more stripped down version of the measure was
reintroduced last fall, but the flat lining economy all but spelled
the end for the proposal, which lost with 53 percent voting against
it.
Now, more dire news is making its way to library officials: The
county assessor’s office anticipates the assessed valuation on
homes countywide will remain stagnant, or, in a more likely
scenario, drop off in 2009 and possibly all of 2010 and 2011.
LaRue said he has been notified that the valuation numbers
scheduled for release in July are expected to reflect a decline,
and over the next few years, there could be a 10 percent to 20
percent reduction in property taxes because of declining home
values.
The library district derives much of its $21 million in annual
funding through an existing mill levy on property taxes.
That means less revenue for a district that is practically
bursting at the seams in many respects. Traffic at the Parker
Library continues to climb, and the demand for a facility in Castle
Pines North is at a fever pitch.
The long list of challenges has resulted in a monumental shift
for LaRue, who has spent the last 20 years building and expanding
facilities and programming for a flourishing district.
“The next four years will be spent dismantling them,” LaRue
said.
The cuts, he says, could not come at a worse time: Increasing
demand has been met with shrinking resources. Because many are
losing their jobs or struggling with the possibility of
foreclosure, more are turning to the library for help.
With less funding and growing needs, library officials will have
to apply a little ingenuity to make it through the hard times and
return to the greener pastures of the late 1990s and 2000s.
The board of trustees will consider a proposal March 19 that
would institute a hiring freeze that could save 8 percent to 10
percent on the staffing budget. LaRue said he is trying to prevent
the alternative.
“We’re trying to avoid layoffs by making it work with fewer
people,” said LaRue, who has overseen the implementation of
automated check-out counters at many county facilities. “We’re not
forcing anybody out at this point.”
The annual Shakespeare Festival, a $25,000 expense, will likely
become a casualty of the cuts, as will the Page to Stage program,
LaRue said.
A plan to replace aging computers used by staff and the public
with newer models will be phased out over a two-year span, and
subscription databases will probably be cancelled.
The materials budget, which accounts for 16 percent of the
budget, could also be cut, resulting in more competition for a
limited number of books. In a bid to find additional sources of
revenue, nickel-a-day late fees could be doubled and various
community groups might be charged for using library rooms for
meetings, LaRue said.
The library director hopes the service cutbacks will make the
public realize that the local library is “one of those things that
matters to the life of a community.”
The board of trustees will also consider closing permanently
libraries in Cherry Valley and Louviers. The Louviers library has
been in operation for nearly 100 years, but when stacked up against
the number of residents served in Castle Rock and Parker, it pales
in comparison.
But the decision to close such a large part of a small community
is not made lightly. Trustee Stevan Strain said it is always
difficult to be a decision-maker during tough economic times.
“When you’re put on these boards, it cannot be about emotion. It
has to be about fact,” he said. “We hate to see any library close.
It impacts these people’s lives.”
Some of the money saved through the reductions will be funneled
into an account that will be used to fund the construction of a new
library, although its location has not been determined.
The board might not make a final decision on the proposals March
19. Board president Mark Weston can decide whether to make a motion
to approve the measure, or wait until further information is
presented before the trustees make a final decision. LaRue said he
expects the meeting to be well-attended.
Libraries
“We’re trying to avoidlayoffs by making it work with fewer
people …We’re not forcing anybody out at this point.”
Jamie LaRue, Douglas County Library District director