Library board proposes $3.6M budget

The Enterprise — Michael Koff

Never too young to learn: This listener at the “Baby and Me” story time at the Guilderland Public Library on Monday looks entranced as Bethany Koehn reads “Hello Baby!”

GUILDERLAND — The library board here has proposed a $3.6 million budget for next year, an increase of 2.4 percent over this year, with an eye to maintaining services and upgrading its 1992 building.

“We circulate 149 items for every hour we are open,” said Timothy Wiles, the library’s director. “I find the number to be kind of thrilling: 149 books, movies, CDs, etc. each hour. I love being in this profession.”

Wiles also said, “Our biggest challenge is the building, which is aging.”

Voters will have their say on May 19 at which time they will also choose two trustees. The board has 11 unpaid trustees. President Chris Aldrich is seeking another term while trustee Brian Hartson is retiring. Trustee petitions were due Monday; only Aldrich submitted one. This means the second seat will be decided by write-in votes.

The tax levy for the $3,627,471 proposed budget is $3,535,421, up 1.62 percent from this year but well under the state-set levy cap.

“We think we’re doing a good job without going to the maximum allowable,” said Wiles. “To ask for every penny the law allows is not what we’re about. We’re cognizant of taxpayers’ wallets.”

Most of the library district, which follows school-district boundaries although the library’s board and budget is entirely separate, falls in the town of Guilderland. Small portions also lie in three other towns. The library estimates that district residents of Guilderland, Bethlehem, and New Scotland will see a three-cent increase per $1,000 of property valuation in their library taxes if the budget passes. For district residents in Knox, a town that hasn’t revalued properties in years, the increase would be five cents.

A Guilderland resident would pay $1.16 per $1,000 of assessed valuation in library taxes next year, an increase of 2.86 percent over this year. New Scotland and Bethlehem residents would pay $1.04 per $1,000 and Knox residents would pay $1.68 — each a 2.85-percent increase over this year.

These calculations are based on the assumption of no assessment growth in Guilderland and Bethlehem; with growth, the rates would be lower.

Since the levy is below the state-set cap, 50 percent rather than 60 percent of the popular vote is needed to pass the budget.

Last May, the $3.5 million library budget passed with 59.6 percent of the vote. The year before, it passed with 56 percent of the vote, down from the more usual two-thirds approval.

Building concerns

In June 2012, a $13 million expansion project that would have updated the library and nearly doubled its size was defeated, 3 to 1, by about a quarter of Guilderland’s 22,245 registered voters.

The library last year created its first-ever capital reserve fund to be ready for repairs, setting aside $90,000. The spending plan for next year shows a jump in “properties” from $123,000 this year to $269,232 next year.

“We spent the year studying the building,” said Wiles. Needs have been prioritized and the library will be looking for grant money as well as “savings and efficiencies,” Wiles said. The building, he said, was “designed to last 20 to 25 years,” and, while he said, “it’s not going to fall down,” roofing, lighting, and heating and air-conditioning are all in need of attention.

The loading dock, with its concrete chipping, is unsafe, Wiles said, and this spring, the dock will be fixed and the driveway resurfaced. Half of the money for the $40,000 project is from the state through the Upper Hudson Library System.

Also, as part of the dock grant, minor updates are planned for the library’s public restrooms. “Soap doesn’t come out of the dispensers,” said Wiles, important in flu season; the new dispensers will be motion activated. Also, rusty partitions in the men’s room will be replaced. “The ladies’ room partitions are like new,” he said.

The library has just completed a free energy audit on its lighting and will look at “ways to be more green and save green,” said Wiles. The auditor’s recommendation was to switch from incandescent lights to light-emitting diode lamps, known as LEDs, to save about 50 percent in energy costs. “The bulbs last years instead of months and it saves money on labor,” Wiles said.

A new roof would cost an estimated $235,000, said Wiles.

The library is heated with a natural-gas system that has pumps in 26 zones. “We’ve replaced five of the 26 and want to be able to replace them as they go,” said Wiles; the boiler was replaced a couple of years ago.

Wiles, new last year, said “a heat pump went on me,” which was “an instant $7,000 expense.” “You couldn’t choose not to heat in the winter,” he said, explaining why he wants to “be ready for surprises.”

“Farthest down on the list of priorities is the appearance and freshness of the library, outside and in,” said Wiles. He would like it to “become more inviting and colorful.”

Revenues

The lion’s share of the budget, at over $3.6 million, is funded by local property taxes.

Funding from the state is slated at $9,500 for next year, down from $12,000 this year.

Fines and fees are about steady at $46,500 as are fees from the copier at $8,000.

Revenues are slated to decline from interest, down to a mere $50 from $1,000; from non-resident fees, down to $3,000 from $5,500; and from the Book Nook, which sells donated books, down to $10,000 from $17,000.

Library use

The library’s circulation is up 5 percent overall from last year, to 505,000, according to the state-required annual report, due in February. While higher than last year, Guilderland’s circulation is still shy of the peak it reached in the depth of the Great Recession — 640,000 — a time when people, strapped for cash, typically turn to libraries.

The circulation for adult fiction books is up 18,000 from last year while adult non-fiction is down 5,000.

Wiles said he was disappointed in the circulation of children’s books, which dropped from 119,000 to 109,000. Part of the reason, he thinks, based on the experience of his second-grade son, is that school libraries do such a good job.

“Job one” is what Timothy Wiles, the director of the Guilderland Public Library, calls interesting kids in books.  Here, librarian Bethany Koehn reads to a large gathering of very young children and their grown-ups on Monday. The Enterprise — Michael Koff

 

Also, Wiles said, there have been staff retirements from the library’s children’s department. “You need people to build relationships,” he said.

Last year, too, there was no kick-off event for the summer reading program, Wiles said. “We’ll have a grand opening event this year,” he said. The theme this summer, “Super Summer Reading Adventure,” set by the American Library Association, is about heroes and superheroes. Guilderland plans to involve local heroes like firefighters and police officers.

The quarterly newsletter, “GPL Kids,” has been reinstated. And there will be a contest this summer for kids to design a library card. The winning design will be used for a kids’ library card.

“It’s something for them to be proud of,” said Wiles. “They are job one.”

Electronic book circulation is up 55 percent this year, which Wiles called “really exciting.”

He also said, “A lot of people use our library from home now.”

There were 8,000 fewer visits to the library this year — 218,000 instead of last year’s 226,000 visits. There were also fewer programs — 691 this year as opposed to 703 last year.

Expenses

As with most libraries, the bulk of the cost is for salaries and benefits.  Guilderland has 58 staff members; 34 work full-time. The line for salaries and benefits is being decreased next year from $2.57 million to $2.45 million.

Wiles explained the decrease is because long-time staffers, who were paid more, have retired, leading to new hires with lower salaries. “We have a fresh, young staff,” said Wiles.

Guilderland currently employs 10 librarians and soon will have 11, said Wiles. A few years ago, Guilderland had 14 librarians. “Times have been tough,” said Wiles.

Next year, libraries and schools across the state are not required to pay as much into their employees’ pension plans. Because stock market investments did well, the state is shouldering a larger share.

Next year’s budget also has a decrease in spending on library materials, from $395,200 this year to $365,000 next year. “It’s a zero-sum game,” said Wiles, explaining the reason for the 8-percent decrease. “Building needs are acute.”

Other budgeted costs are $30,500 for programming and planning; $14,000 for staff recruitment and training and board development; $20,000 for equipment; $119,500 for business operating costs like supplies, printing, marketing, and postage; $40,500 for professional services; $60,500 for technology and communication; and $179,500 for physical plant costs like maintenance.

“A lot to offer”

“We are engaged in long-range planning,” Wiles concluded. “We’d like to hear from people who don’t use the library and find out why.”

A survey is being developed with typical reasons for not using a library, such as, “Everything is on the Internet.”

“I would love to talk to that person,” said Wiles. “There’s a lot you can get at the library. We have a very strong collection. We have a very strong staff. One of the real gems is two large well-equipped meeting rooms.”

These days, Wiles concluded, a library is in “competition for people’s time.” “We’re going to try to get our message out more,” he said. “We have a lot to offer to people and we’d like them to use the library.”

The library got a $10,000 grant from the Alfred V. Solomon Trust to defray costs for an electronic sign on Route 20 to publicize library events. The money has to be returned if enough can’t be raised to complete the project or if the sign doesn’t comply with town regulations.

Although the library is not required to follow town zoning because it is on land administered by the State Education Department, “We want to be a good neighbor and not cause a traffic accident,” said Wiles. “We want to play by the rules.”

More Guilderland News

  • The district had used some of its federal funds, meant to help with pandemic expenses, to hire an extra nurse since there were added needs with vaccinations. Those federal funds run out next fall.

  • “If the net cost is zero, why wouldn’t we purchase more?” asked school board member Rebecca Butterfield. “It comes down to being able to store them, charge them, and run them …,” responded Andrew Van Alstyne. “While free buses would be good … districts have seen them break down.” He said he hoped the technology will be more advanced before Guilderland turns over its fleet to electric.

  • “I mean it’s crazy,” said Guilderland School Board President Seema Rivera. “We’re asking for things for our kids … nothing exorbitant. And then … we have to send money to Crossgates. I think it’s insane.”

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