GUILDERLAND — As the library gears up for its 50th year, its trustees are presenting the public with a $2.6 million budget.
"Our goal is to meet the community’s needs," said Barbara Nichols Randall, director of the Guilderland Public Library.

Over the last half-century, the library has grown along with the community; the town now has 34,000 residents.
"We have about a thousand people a day coming through the door," said Nichols Randall. About 1,700 items circulate each day, and about 337,000 people came to the library last year, she said.
If the Glass Works Village, a $100 million New Urbanist proposal, geared for people to walk rather than drive, gets built next to the library, the impact could be immense, said Nichols Randall. "There’s no other walkable neighborhood to us," she said.
Of planning the 50-year celebration of growth, Nichols Randall said, "It’s fun; we’ve been looking back and finding things some of us working here didn’t even know. It really makes you feel a part of history...We’ll have quirky, interesting, and exciting events."
Overall, Nichols Randall said, "The important thing is we constantly try to make the library a place for everyone."

This includes programs that range from consumer health to teaching English as a second language.

Close to 100 people have been trained through Literacy Volunteers to teach English, a program under the direction of librarian Maria Buhl.
"I believe you should share what you have and others will share with you," said Nichols Randall.

She cited several partnerships — with the National Library of Medicine, used for information from expensive data bases; and with local museums, such as the Shaker Museum or the Albany Institute of History and Art, where library patrons can sign out free museum passes.

Nichols Randall also pointed out that, in addition to being used for library events, the building is used for meetings of various community groups.
"People use us as a community center," she said. "We have to turn people away sometimes, the demand is so great."

If voters in the Guilderland School District approve the budget on May 15, the tax rate per $1,000 of assessed value for Guilderland residents is estimated at 90 cents, up 4 cents from this year. This means a Guilderland resident with a $200,000 house would pay $180 in library taxes next year.

A public hearing will be held on the budget on May 10 at 7 p.m. in the library’s Normanskill Room.

Voters will also be able to cast their ballots for two trustees — Douglas Morrissey and Carroll Valachovic; both are currently members of the library’s board. Valachovic came in third in a four-way race last year, and so earned a one-year spot on the board. Douglas Morrissey was appointed to the 11-member board several months ago when a trustee resigned.
The third vacant seat will be filled through board appointment unless someone mounts a write-in campaign. "A large number of people took information about running," said Nichols Randall, but only two turned in their petitions, due last week. "People get intimidated by elections," she said.

Ten of the trustees voted in favor of the $2,601,498 spending plan; longtime trustee Merry Sparano voted against it.

Her dissenting vote, Sparano told The Enterprise this week, was because an item, an electronic sign, was placed in the budget without the board having first discussed it. "My feeling is things should be discussed by the board before being put in the budget," she said.
Sparano stressed, "I have no problem with the budget. It’s a matter of procedure," which, she said, can erode without vigilance.

Expenditures

The biggest increase in spending at Guilderland’s library, as with most schools and libraries, is for salaries and benefits — up 5 percent or nearly $100,000 to $1.9 million for next year.

The Guilderland library has 54 workers, about half of them part-time, said Nichols Randall. The increase is because of a negotiated pay raise with the union; 47 of the workers are in the CSEA (Civil Service Employees Association) while seven are in administration, said Nichols Randall.

The contract that the board negotiated over a year ago adjusted salaries so that they are closer to other libraries in the county, she said last year. The starting annual salary for a librarian at Guilderland is in the $40,000 range; all librarians have master’s as well as bachelor’s degrees.
"They have to come from the Albany County Civil Service list," said Nichols Randall this week. "We haven’t had anyone turn down jobs because of the salary as they have in the past," she said.

Another reason for the increase is that the library will expand its Saturday hours this summer, due to public demand, said Nichols Randall. The library will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. as it is the rest of the year.

Costs for materials will increase from $325,650 this year to $335,420 next year, mostly to keep pace with inflation, said Nichols Randall.

A video game collection was added this year, which is very popular with kids. The library has close to 130 games which are hardly ever on the shelves, she said.
Tech manuals that go with the games are popular as well, she said, and the youth services librarian, Trevor Oakley, is flagging "read-alikes" or books with themes that relate to the games to inspire the game enthusiasts to read as well, said Nichols Randall.

Other materials added recently include e-books and down-loadable audio books.

Total materials at the Guilderland library number 182,000, which includes 95,000 adult books; 57,000 children’s books; 27,000 tapes, videos, and CDs; and 2,000 electronic media items such as journals through websites.
The collection fits in the library, Nichols Randall said, because "people keep taking things out." She went on, "If everything came back, we’d be in trouble." The library has only about 10 empty stacks, she said.

Costs for programming and planning will increase from $24,450 this year to $38,375 next year.

Some of the increase will pay for consultant and planning work, said Nichols Randall.
A group of citizens, called Growing for Generations, will present the trustees with a report, making recommendations for the library’s future. "They have looked at our strategic plan to make recommendations to the board. We’re in the fourth year of the plan and have to ask: Is it still valid""

Some of the money will also be used for special programs celebrating the library’s 50th anniversary in 2007.

Services that have recently been added will also be maintained. This includes outreach to the far ends of the age spectrum. In partnership with Borders, the library has been holding story times at Crossgates Mall, attracting about 40 children and adults weekly.
To serve the other end of the age spectrum, librarian Eileen Williams delivers programs to older adults. "She has been getting to know the activities directors of the assisted-living facilities and has held book discussions on site," said Nichols Randall. Also, a lending library of large-print books will be made available to those who may not visit the library.

Costs for the physical plant are to increase from $192,425 this year to $202,425 next year, primarily because of the increased cost for utilities, said Nichols Randall.
She said, too, "We’ve put a little more money into contracting work out."
The library employs three full-time and one part-time maintenance worker but they are so busy inside, cleaning and setting up meeting rooms, said Nichols Randall, that the library has gotten "a little shoddy" outside.

Equipment costs will increase from $49,185 this year to $53,685 next year.
The library will purchase two new Internet computers. "I don’t know how many computers we would have to have to have vacant computers," said Nichols Randall. "They’re in use from when we open to when we close...A lot of people don’t have computers at home. And a lot do, but come in for the fast connection."

The library is WiFi connected so many patrons bring their laptops from home and use them in library, she said.

Revenues

The lion’s share of library funding comes from the local tax levy — $2.6 million.

Other sources for income include gifts and donations at $10,000, investment income at $45,000, reserve funds at $55,000, and miscellaneous income at $84,750.
The library is counting on close to $10,000 more in miscellaneous funds next year. Nichols Randall said this is both from grants and fines. The library charges 10 cents a day for overdue materials. "We have found the number of fines has gone up," she said.

The library has difficulty securing grants, she said, because many are geared for rural areas or areas with high rates of poverty.
The library has gotten some gifts, she said, that it will use to set aside an area for "tweens," patrons between the ages of 9 and 12 who feel too old for the children’s section and have their own literature to read.
The library has budgeted $10,377 in state aid for next year, up from $8,890 this year. "We didn’t know what we’d get from the state until April," said Nichols Randall. "It’s based on the 2000 census, rather than the 1999 census."
The Guilderland library is still lobbying, along with other libraries, for more state aid. "The amount of money the state puts toward libraries compared to the number of citizens who benefit is disproportional," said Nichols Randall.

She also said that Albany is one of the only counties in the state that doesn’t give money to its libraries.

Nichols went on to say how grateful she was for the library’s Friends and Foundation, which raise funds.

The library follows the boundaries of the school district for taxing purposes. While the town of Guilderland accounts for most of the district, small parts of three other towns are included as well.

If the budget passes, the tax rate for Bethlehem and New Scotland residents is estimated at 75 cents per $1,000 of assessed value, up from 72 cents this year. The rate for Knox residents is estimated at $1.16, up from $1.10.
Referring to the rate increase for Guilderland resident, Nichols Randall concluded, "I really think 4 cents per $1,000 is a bargain for what we’re going to add. The trustees are cautious; we try to give value rather than just take."