FAYETTEVILLE -- For the city's public library to survive, residents either will need to pay more for its services or expect some of those services to go away, members of a library committee said Tuesday.
The committee's five members are searching for a solution to the riddle of revenue that's flat-lined while library use and costs keep increasing. Tuesday was their second meeting. They had more questions than answers about whether they should provide less, ask the city and its residents for more or some combination.
At A Glance
Revenue Committee
Fayetteville Public Library Long-Term Revenue Committee members:
• Janine Parry, committee chairwoman and University of Arkansas professor of political science
• Jack Butt, Fayetteville lawyer
• George Faucette, CEO at Coldwell Banker Harris & Faucette
• Dan Ferritor, former library Board of Trustees president and former university chancellor
• Maylon Rice, library board treasurer
Source: Staff Report
"It's a zero-sum game," said committee member George Faucette, CEO at Coldwell Banker Harris & Faucette and member of the library foundation's board.
The library isn't out of money, but its board fears it will run through its savings soon. Library membership has almost doubled in the last decade, with more than 70,000 card holders. Money from a city property tax, city transfers, late fees and other library charges hasn't kept apace with the use or new expenses, such as eBooks and DVDs.
The trustees froze pay for the facility's 68 employees and left about $500,000 for material and programs unspent in this year's budget to bandage the shortfall, and facility upkeep has slowed to save more. The $500,000 shortfall could swell to $2 million within the next decade, according to a forecast from library accountant Stephen Davis, so the board created the revenue committee to find a more permanent solution.
The options discussed Tuesday ranged from small-scale to citywide. Some, such as raising late fees, were repeated from the committee's first meeting earlier this month.
Member Jack Butt suggested stronger efforts to recover late material and fees. Library cards are free for anyone in Washington County, Rogers and Bentonville -- maybe they should cost $5 a year, member Maylon Rice said. The library could also trim four open hours from Sunday or cut some of its programs, he said.
Member Janine Parry, chosen as the committee's chairwoman Tuesday, asked for a rundown of how much money would come from each option by the committee's Feb. 10 meeting. New member and former University of Arkansas chancellor Dan Ferritor warned of a backlash to cuts, as did library development director Susan Foley.
"There was a time when the board decided to close early on Saturdays, and it was a disaster," Foley said.
The most far-reaching option is a higher property tax millage, which Rice said would require a public vote. Fayetteville allocates one mill that pays for the bulk of the library's $4 million budget. The owner of a $150,000 home pays $30 a year.
Whatever options the committee endorses, maintaining the library takes priority over a proposed expansion to the facility's south, David Johnson, executive director, said after the meeting. The expansion is on hold while Washington County Circuit Court considers a lawsuit from the family that once owned the land. A hearing is scheduled for early March.
NW News on 01/28/2015