Library Consolidation

Published: 10/13/2004

On Tuesday, October 5 the Town Board and the Library Board of Trustees held an informational meeting pertaining to the proposed consolidation of the Main Library and the Janes Branch Library. The Library Trustees originally made the proposal as part of their budget presentation to the Town Board on September 21.

For those of you who may not be familiar with the Janes Branch Library, it is located at 200 Fairport Road on the easterly side of Harwood Lane. The property includes a 2,834 square foot stucco house that sits on 6.5 acres, most of which are heavily wooded.

Former New York State Senator Rodney Janes left the house and land to the Town due to his desire to see this beautiful piece of property protected from development. As part of his gift, the Senator stipulated that the house be used as a library. The Janes Branch was opened in 1979. Today the branch operates 26 hours per week and specializes in a popular book collection as well as children's books and activities.

In September 2005, our new Community Library will open on State Street in the Village. This library, which received overwhelming support from Pittsford residents in an October 2003 referendum, will be 30,000 square feet in size, over two and one half times bigger than the old library. The new library provides ample room for the collection of fiction, non-fiction, magazines, DVDs, CDs, books on tapes, etc. The new library provides clearly defined space for young adults, and a special area designed for our youngest readers. Additionally, patrons will find comfortable chairs to sit in, tables and study carrels to work at and rooms that will provide additional space for study and/or reading groups.

The Library is controlled under a section of Education Law. In accordance with this law, the Town Board appoints the eight members of the Library Board of Trustees and approves the annual budget. The Library Board of Trustees is responsible for the day-to-day operation and administration of the Library including payment of bills and all other financial matters.

The Library Trustees are responsible for preparing and submitting an annual estimated budget. This year I asked all of my departments to be cognizant of the fact that the library bond payments would begin in 2005 and would have a significant affect on our budget and ultimately your taxes.

To their credit, the Library Trustees prepared estimates for a 2005 budget (includes the fourth quarter increases for the new library), as well as a 2006 budget (includes full year increases for the new library). Their estimates show that the budget to cover library services alone would grow by almost $73,000 in 2005 and an additional $131,000 in 2006. An additional $48,000 would be needed in 2006 to cover the cost of building operation and maintenance as well as property maintenance.

As they further analyzed their findings, the Library Trustees realized there would be a significant financial impact on the Pittsford taxpayer when also taking into consideration the bond payment. Further, they recognized that the $104,000 budget to support the Janes Branch was redundant and somewhat unnecessary since some of the major functions of the Janes Branch, such as childrens' services, would be absorbed by the new Community Library.

After careful consideration, the Library Trustees recommended that the Janes Library be converted to an historical library to house the Town Historian and the local history collection. They have proposed hiring an archivist to inventory and manage the collection and to have the Local History Library open 20 hours per week. This would allow improved access to our town history. It would also allow us to accept private collections of historical documents and artifacts. Former Supervisor Paul Spiegel has more than 19 filing cabinets of photographs, interviews, newspaper clippings etc that are invaluable and probably irreplaceable.

The soundness of this proposal is supported by the fact that we are able to enhance our library services as well as our local history services at less cost. A consolidated library and the establishment of a local history library reduce the amount of budget appropriations by $43,000 in 2005 and by $98,000 in 2006 and every year thereafter. In a 10-year period, savings reach the $1,000,000 mark. These are significant dollars in an era of tight budgets.

The Town Board and the Library Board of Trustees understand that this is a difficult issue for those who use the Janes Branch. It is a unique building with a staff that is very committed to providing a high level of library service. There is a special bond between the patrons and this service. I assure you that we are taking this into account as we weigh this issue.

Ultimately, this is a decision that needs to be made as part of the budget discussion. At this point, we are looking to adopt the 2005 Operating Budget on Thursday, November 4th. In the meantime, if you have thoughts you would like to share on this matter, please write to me at 
11 So. Main Street, Pittsford, NY 14534 or send me an email.

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