Voters Approve Fee to Fund Library : Santa Paula: The $25-a-year increase in property taxes will raise an estimated $175,000 annually. Hours and services will be expanded.

Santa Paula librarians plan to extend hours at the Blanchard Community Library after local voters bucked anti-tax sentiment and overwhelmingly approved a $25-a-year increase in property taxes to benefit the city library.

Library boosters celebrating the hard-won victory of Measure W on Wednesday night pledged to add hours and offer more library services beginning next fall.

The parcel tax would raise an estimated $175,000 annually for the library, helping to make up for state funding cuts during the past two years that have forced a cutback in hours, book purchases and janitorial services.

“We bonded together to guarantee the future of Santa Paula’s library,” said Dan Robles, the city’s head librarian. “I know we’ll now be able to open on Saturdays, but we’re not sure yet how future state budget cuts will affect adding more hours. At least we know the state can’t take this money away.”

Santa Paula residents passed the measure by overcoming a hurdle established with Proposition 13 that requires a two-thirds majority vote to approve new property taxes. The Santa Paula measure passed with nearly 70% of the vote, and was only the third time that a jurisdiction in Ventura County managed to meet the steep 66.7% vote requirement, said Bruce Bradley, the county’s elections chief.

“They went to bat for their library; they deserve a pat on the back,” Bradley said. “They had signs on every street corner saying ‘Vote for Measure W.’ ”

Meanwhile, the success of library boosters in Santa Paula has inspired the county’s library director to consider a similar strategy for the county’s beleaguered 15-branch system.

“I’m so happy for the folks in Santa Paula,” said Dixie Adeniran, library director for Ventura County. “It’s an indication of how important library services are for people. We’ll certainly be contemplating if it has applicability for county services.”

Mike Saliba, executive director of the Ventura County Taxpayers Assn., said he had no quarrel with Santa Paula voters who decided to increase their own property taxes to protect their library.

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But, Saliba said he considers special property tax assessments unfair because the cost of libraries, police and fire protection should be covered by property taxes already collected by the state.

“When western towns were founded, the first thing they did was hire a sheriff, then they built a school, and a library came next,” Saliba said.

“These are basic services that should be paid for with taxes we already pay. But Sacramento has turned things around balancing their budget on the backs of local communities. Basic services like the library should be paid for with existing property taxes, not with new taxes.”

Library supporters said before the vote that Saliba’s point was well-taken, but they had to come up with money to fund the library in the face of state and county budget cuts.

With the passage of Measure W, at least part of the city library’s budget is guaranteed.

Eight years ago, Santa Paula voters approved a temporary $5 assessment to raise revenue for the library, but that assessment expired in 1990.

Library officials said they are not surprised at their success, given that Santa Paula is a small town with residents who care about their community.

“When we voted for a temporary assessment in 1985 to fund the library, we were the first city in the state of California to pass a property tax after Proposition 13,” said Library Commissioner Elizabeth Blanchard.

Blanchard’s husband’s grandfather donated the books and building for the first library 83 years ago. She added that such community spirit was again demonstrated with the overwhelming support of Measure W.

“Now we’ve worked really hard to let people know that the money for this measure is exclusively for the library,” Blanchard said. “And because this is Santa Paula, the people supported the tax.”