It is déjà vu all over again – as Yogi Berra would say.
More red ink, budget shortfalls, less money from Albany, belt tightening here, 10 percent across the board cuts there – and our Queens Library suffers again.
Voted the best system in the country just last year, they have been bombarded by steady budget cuts of nearly $9 million over the past two years, forcing Queens Library to announce last week that they will close 14 branches on Saturdays and keep only the Central Library in Jamaica open on Sundays, but only from noon to 5 p.m.
Queens Library said that the branches targeted for closing were chosen based on utilization and proximity to other branches that will continue to be open on weekends.
Unfortunately, the Kew Gardens Hills library was among the branches slated to close on February 1. Patricia Dolan of the Kew Gardens Hills Civic Association wondered, "How the Kew Gardens Hills branch, with its unique collection of Judaica, which is especially important to the many Orthodox Jews who reside in Kew Gardens Hills who are unable to use the library except on Sundays, was chosen for closing?"
Last June, the City Council saved six-day library service across the city from budget cuts. Hopefully, the Queens delegation will be able to raise some discretionary funds to reopen the branches due to be closed and prevent others in the 63-branch system to curtail services and hours down the road.
Barring that, it may well be time to consider a system of paid Library cards. Just five or 10 dollars a year would prevent this kind of catastrophe from occurring repeatedly in the future.
Corporate sponsors could pay for the cards that would be emblazoned with their logos or slogans – and make those “free” cards available to schoolchildren and seniors.
We call on the mayor, the City Council and our lawmakers in Albany. This is not a partisan issue. Work together for the benefit of the people, all the people, regardless of their political affiliation.
We must make sure this greatest of resources remains available to all the people, as many days and hours as possible.
