GLENDALE : Renovated Library Lacks Book Funds

With the completion of a $1.8-million renovation, the Glendale Central Library has all the latest technology, including automated checkout, Internet workstations and a CD-ROM research database. But chances are it might not have that book you’re looking for.

City and library officials are proud of the project, which took two years to complete and added about 12,000 square feet of space, including new administrative offices and a periodicals section on the second floor. There is a revamped children’s section with a “reading tree” for preschoolers, and a new business materials section.

Before the renovation began, the 20-year-old library had become technologically and organizationally outdated, and officials say many of those problems have been solved. But some are still frustrated that the budget for new books has hovered for the last three fiscal years at about $200,000--less than half what it was for the 1991-92 fiscal year.

“Even if we still had a book budget of $400,000, we’d be able to buy less books than we could three years ago because of inflation,” said Chuck Wike, community services manager for the city’s library system. “Providing information is the heart and soul of what the library is all about, and our ability to do that is severely limited.”

The library was one of several departments hit hard by cuts implemented during the recession to wipe out budget deficits. In addition to the general books budget, the library’s children’s book budget is about $34,000 this fiscal year, compared to $79,000 for 1990-91.

City Manager David Ramsay said that the city’s sales taxes and other revenues that influence the general fund have begun to pick up in the past year, but that there is no telling when the library will get a reprieve.

“We’re painfully aware of the situation and would like to do something about it,” Ramsay said. “I can’t say we have a definite plan, but it’s certainly our intent. It’s just a matter of prioritizing scarce resources.”

With the financial crunch, library administrators said they, too, have had to decide how to best spend their money. Fewer copies of bestsellers are being purchased in favor of building up and maintaining the library’s core inventory of nonfiction and reference books. As a result, the waiting list for a new popular title is often 50 to 75 names long. About 50 newspapers, magazines and other periodicals also have been dropped.

“It certainly is a disappointment to me that we are not able to purchase all the materials that the community needs to have a first class library,” said Laurel Patric, the city’s director of libraries. “The past few years have been hard, but we hope it won’t stay this way forever.”

On a positive note, Patric said the library has been steadily increasing the number of community programs it offers, including an adult literacy program, children’s story hours and weekly programs on everything from the information superhighway to creative writing.

And she said some of the financial woes are being defrayed, in part, by the Friends of the Glendale Library, a volunteer group that holds fund-raisers throughout the year.

The rededication of the Glendale Central Library will be at 9:15 a.m. March 11. Events are scheduled throughout the day at the library, 222 E. Harvard St.