Public Library Takes One On The Chin For City Budget

It was a tough night budget wise with Council scrambling to quickly approve recommendations from Administration in hopes of reducing the Operating Budget enough to have a zero percent tax increase in 2020.

At the end of the evening Council was able to vote through budget cuts of over $670,000 resulting in the mill rate going down .08 percent for 2020.

SEE RELATED - Outdoor Pool Not Opening Part Of Budget Cuts

As part of their review Administration recommended reducing funding to third party organizations the City funds with the number one contributor to the zero tax increase being the Moose Jaw Public Library (MJPL)

The Library, gave up the lion's share of all third party arm's length organizations, giving back $150,000 previously budgeted for it in December 2020's Operating Budget. Third party organizations had initially been looking at losing just over $166,700 of their budgets due to reduced operations in face of the COVID - 19 pandemic.

Speaking to Council by video conference MJPL chair Sarah Simison said despite closing its physical doors to the public the library is still operating book loans and programming virtually.

“It's not at the sane level of service as being (physically) open,” Simison said. “While the library has been closed since March there are still programs going on “

Three areas the library is still operating it’s programming on-line are:

  • Maintaining staff at a virtual help desk

  • Operating youth programs on-line

  • The digital library program is functioning at increased usership levels

“We have come to be responsible stewards of public funds,” she said adding the library never requests more funds than it needs to operate and the $150,000 operating reduction is only because the MJPL will be closed for at least four months.

Once the MJPL re-opens fully the $150,000 reduction will not be available in 2021 as the funds are required for the library's operation.

“The only reason the library was able to handle that amount this year is the Library has been closed this year due to COVID.”

“It should be manageable as long as we open within the time frame as set out,” head librarian Gwen Fisher said.

The MJPL is expected to re-open its doors in some shape or form August 29th.

Fisher said there would likely be some type of ramping up in the Library's operations as they get ready to re-open.

Ramping up may include such things as some form of curb-side pickup of books. Patrons would order books from the Library and then pick them up outside without entering the physical library.

“We believe we can handle a little bit of that with our current service level,” Fisher said.

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