Local Libraries Facing Reduced Operating Hours
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By Laurie Jervis, Noozhawk Staff Writer
Budget issues force the Carpinteria, Montecito and Solvang libraries to close Mondays starting July 13
Three libraries within the Santa Barbara Public Library system will have their hours of operation reduced come July. The changes in hours are a result of budget limitations that come with the new fiscal year, which begins Wednesday, a library official said Thursday.
The Carpinteria, Montecito and Solvang libraries will be closed Mondays, beginning July 13, said Sarah Rosenblum, library services manager for the city of Santa Barbara. In addition, the Goleta Library will open at 2 p.m. Mondays instead at 10 a.m., beginning Wednesday, and the Bookmobile, which traveled to local schools and community centers, will cease service that day, she said.
Whether the library system will be forced to make further cuts in hours for the various sites “is hard to say at this point,” Library Director Irene Macias said Thursday.
The Goleta branch library, which previously announced a change in hours on Mondays and weekday evenings, is “pretty set for now,” Macias said. The Goleta branch will open at 2 p.m. instead of 10 a.m. on Mondays, and will close at 8 p.m. instead of 9 p.m. weekdays. These changes are also effective Wednesday.
Current hours for all branches of the library system are available on the Web site, Macias said.
Availability of the Bookmobile regularly slowed during summertime when local schools were on break, but it was still put to use during summer camps, and the Fun in the Sun program, Macias said. Despite the Bookmobile’s forced hiatus, the library system will strive to continue serving those who relied on access to the library on wheels.
“We will still be making contact with those populations,” she noted.
The Bookmobile provided information services, reading materials and educational resources to residents unable to visiti regular South Coast libraries because of transporation or economic barriers. The staff of the mobile library promoted literacy, a desire to read, children’s programs and storytelling, and worked to generate a positive image of the library by being visible in various communities, according to the library systems Web site, www.sbplibrary.org.
In addition to the reductions in hours at selected libraries, some fee and policy changes, approved by the Santa Barbara City Council, also will become effective Wednesday:
» For each hold placed, a 50-cent fee will be automatically charged to the patron’s account when the item becomes available, whether or not the item is picked up. Children’s materials will continue to be reserved for free.
» Holds will be limited to 20 at a time per patron.
» There will be a charge of $15 for materials requested through interlibrary borrowing from outside the Black Gold Cooperative Library System.
In addition to the budget-mandated changes in hours, all library facilities will be closed July 3-4 for the holiday.
— Noozhawk staff writer Laurie Jervis can be reached at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
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