Library to close for 10 days after holidays

Declining property tax revenue has prompted the Sonoma County Library to schedule a 10-day shutdown over the year-ending holidays to help achieve a $1.7 million budget cut.

All 13 libraries will be closed from 2 p.m. Dec. 24 until Jan. 4, with more than 200 library workers and managers furloughed for that period, Library Director Sandy Cooper said.

The library Web site and all online services, which have become increasingly popular, will be shut as well.

Cooper said the closure will be a hardship for library patrons, but given the system's budget crunch, it seemed a better alternative than laying off staff, eliminating programs or raising fees, such as overdue book fines.

"We are the free public library," she said. "We serve everybody."

Last year, about 2.6 million people visited public libraries and checked out more than 3 million books, DVDs, audiobooks and other items.

Cooper said the shutdown will save about $163,000 in wages. The rollback of a 2 percent pay raise and an increased retirement contribution -- both accepted by the library workers' union -- will save an additional $195,000, she said.

In all, those cuts amount to a 4.75 percent reduction in library employee pay for the year, Cooper said. Early retirements and other operating cost cuts bring the savings to $1,244,000, leaving a deficit of $500,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30.

Sagging home prices caused a drop in the assessed value of property in Sonoma County for the first time in history, resulting in an estimated $9 million drop in revenue for local government services, officials said earlier this year.

A similar 10-day library holiday closure was imposed in 1992, also to offset a budget deficit, Cooper said.

The county library system is a joint powers agency created by the county and cities, deriving 90 percent of its revenue from property taxes.

The Library Commission is waiting to see how property tax revenues fare before deciding on steps to close the estimated $500,000 budget gap.

"We are trying to beef up fund-raising," Cooper said.

Volunteer groups help support the system that includes a Central Library in downtown Santa Rosa, 10 regional libraries, two rural stations, bookmobile service and online library services.

The system's annual operating budget is $16.6 million.

You can reach Staff Writer Guy Kovner at 521-5457 or guy.kovner@

pressdemocrat.com.