AGENDA #

AGENDA #6b

MEMORANDUM

TO: Mayor and Town Council

FROM: W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager

SUBJECT: Library Master Plan Report

DATE: February 11, 2002

The purpose of this memorandum is to discuss issues presented in the Five Year Service Plan: 2001-2006 and Long Term Facilities Needs Through 2020 for the Chapel Hill Public Library, as presented by consultant Ruth O’Donnell on October 10, 2001 (Attachment 1).

This memorandum is Part B of a two-part item that includes a report from the Library Board of Trustees (Agenda #6a).

The consultant report contains specific recommendations for Council action, for which we have provided accompanying resolutions and a budget ordinance:

Resolution A would adopt a statement of basic services to be provided by the Chapel Hill Public Library.

Resolution B would direct the Manager to consider Library resource needs outlined in the report as the budget proposal for 2002-03 is developed and in the development of future budgets.

Resolution C would authorize the Mayor to request, on behalf of the Council, discussions with the Orange County Board of Commissioners about additional County funding for library services in acknowledgment that the Chapel Hill Public Library serves the population of southern Orange County.

Resolution D would authorize the Manager to engage a Library building consultant to revise the 1991 building program (Attachment 2) at a cost not to exceed $11,000.

The attached budget ordinance would authorize the use of $6,000 in Library Gift Funds to supplement the existing $5,000 allocation available to hire the consultant.

BACKGROUND

In October 1997, in response to a request by the Library Board of Trustees and the Chapel Hill Public Library Foundation, the Council appointed a Library Needs Assessment Task Force to “study what the community wants from its public library and the library’s short and long-term service needs” (Attachment 3).

A 13-member Task Force presented its report to the Council in June 1999 (Attachment 4). The Task Force report concluded that additional space will be needed to either maintain or expand the current level of library service. The Task Force recommended that the Town select a consultant to advise the Council on space issues included in the report.

In November 1999, the Council authorized the Manager to hire a consultant to work with the Library Board to review the Task Force’s findings, to project service costs, to develop timetables to maintain and expand Library service, and to update the Library building program adopted by the Council in 1991 (Attachment 5).

In October 2000, the Manager submitted an information report to the Council (Attachment 6). The report included 13 possible priority service areas recommended by the Public Library Association which, if selected, point to specific activities and implications for service.

The Library Board of Trustees reviewed the Five Year Service Plan: 2001-2006 and Long Term Facilities Needs Through 2020. The Board’s recommendations are included as Agenda Item A in the Council packet for tonight.

DISCUSSION

The Five Year Service Plan: 2001-2006 and Long Term Facilities Needs Through 2020 outlines several issues for the Council’s consideration, which we summarize below:

Services

The consultant report tailors the service area developed specifically for the Chapel Hill community.

The Chapel Hill Public Library provides services that are not available at specialized libraries in the County. As the Library Board of Trustees report has pointed out, the University Library is available to citizens of North Carolina for a $10 UNC Library card fee ($5 annually for renewal). Cooperative arrangements with the University Library are desirable, such as sharing licenses for electronic resources. However, the University libraries are academic in focus, providing specialized information, with less emphasis on the services targeted by the Chapel Hill Public Library. The University Library system, for example, does not provide comparable children’s information or recreational reading materials. Parking is also a frequent barrier to Town residents from using the University Library.

The Orange County Public Library is the other public library system in the County. In addition to basic public library services, it also provides a local history and genealogy service. The Orange County Public Library has a branch located in the middle school media center in Carrboro after school hours. It is open 20 hours per week.

Based on review of the community needs, the Library consultant recommends that the Council adopt the following as basic services to be provided by the Chapel Hill Public Library:

· Current recreational reading, listening, and viewing materials, and information about contemporary culture and trends, for adults and children.

· General information through answering reference questions and provision of specialized reference services, both paper and electronic.

· Information and programs to support life-long learning for adults and children.

· Instruction in finding, evaluating, and using information resources, both paper and electronic.

Library Board of Trustees: The Board requests that the Council “acknowledge a set of services that distinguishes the Chapel Hill Public Library from other local libraries in the way that it serves its patrons.” The Board endorses the above list of primary services.

Another priority outlined in the report and endorsed by the Library Board is additional “Commons” space. This could include a variety of meeting and gathering spaces and possibly an electronic means of assembling such as videoconferencing facilities. We agree that more meeting space in the Library is necessary and recommend that such features be considered as part of a building consultant’s proposal.

Manager’s Recommendation: Adoption of Resolution A, which would adopt a statement of basic services to be provided by the Chapel Hill Public Library.

Recognized Library Resource Needs

The consultant’s report provides an implementation plan for new or augmented services for the Library through 2006. We recommend that the Council consider the resource needs identified by the consultant as part of the 2002-03 budget process and in future years. Key needs identified by the consultant are:

A larger collection of books and other print materials. Although the number of print items per capita in the Library is average, the turnover (checkout) rate is high. This indicates high demand on the existing collection and low availability to meet service demands.
New and expanded electronic resources to include:

o loans of videos, specifically for instructional and educational purposes;

o increased number of audio recordings, which is currently low for the entire service area;

o electronic databases not available through NC LIVE.

Staffing. The report indicates that the number of staff is inadequate to provide the demanded level of service. The Library has less than ¾ of the staff recommended by the Guidelines for North Carolina Libraries resource guide, although use is high. Specific recommendations include:

o One Internet, database, webmaster, and computer professional for expanded electronic resources and services.

o One children’s librarian to staff the children’s desk all hours the Library is open and to expand children’s programming.

o Two technical services staff for materials processing.

o One educational outreach specialist.

Equipment. The report indicates that the number of public access computer workstations – and therefore access points for electronic information – is inadequate.

o Additional Internet stations and ancillary equipment are needed, including a teaching facility for use of electronic information resources.

o The report also suggests consideration of automated checkout equipment if such equipment would permit reassignment of existing staff to less repetitive tasks.

Library Board of Trustees: The Board recommends that the Library, using Chapel Hill and other governmental funds, provide the above services and resources through fiscal 2002-03.

Manager’s Recommendation: Adoption of Resolution B, which would direct the Manager to consider Library resource needs as the budget proposal for 2002-03 is developed and in the development of future budgets.

Funding and Target Population

The Chapel Hill Public Library serves both the Town of Chapel Hill and Orange County outside Chapel Hill. Most Library users live in either Chapel Hill or the southern Orange County area. The report recognizes that because the Library receives funding from Orange County, it must by law provide the same services to all citizens of the County.

The 2000 Census estimated Chapel Hill population as 48,715, with an Orange County population outside of Chapel Hill totaling 69,512. Recent annexations have resulted in an estimated Chapel Hill population of 51,598.
Of current Library registrants, about 57% live in Chapel Hill, while more than 36% live in non-Chapel Hill southern Orange County. (Of the other registrants, 3% live outside the County and 4% live in northern Orange County.)
In 2000-01, Orange County contributed $242,347 to help pay for operations of the Chapel Hill Public Library, while the Town paid $1,277,552 from the General Fund.

The consultant concludes that the County is “seriously under funding its residents’ use of the Library.” The report explains that funds contributed by Chapel Hill, per capita, are above the national average and well above national population peer libraries and State averages. County contributions, however, are low given the number of people in the south portion of the County.

Based on past practice and experience, we believe it is reasonable to expect that the Chapel Hill Public Library will continue to serve the residents of Carrboro and other southern Orange County residents who do not live in the Town limits of Chapel Hill. If the Library is to continue providing an adequate level of services to both the Chapel Hill and southern Orange County populations, a change in funding is needed. The consultant recommends that the Council encourage Orange County to expand its support of Library services for southern Orange County residents to relieve the stress on the Chapel Hill Public Library. The County should either:

· establish a full-service branch of its library system; or

· participate in an expanded Chapel Hill Public Library to meet the needs of County residents.

Library Board of Trustees: The Board recognizes that southern Orange County remains the key service population for the Library. The Board recommends that the Council “explore new ways to increase funding from governments outside Chapel Hill as the Town increases its own contribution to the Library.”

Manager’s Recommendation: Adoption of Resolution C, which would authorize the Mayor to request, on behalf of the Council, discussions with the Orange County Board of Commissioners about additional County funding for library services in acknowledgment that the Chapel Hill Public Library serves the population of southern Orange County.

Facility Needs and Funding

The consultant recommends that the Town expand the existing Library facility as soon as possible to the maximum size affordable and appropriate for the site. The consultant also recommends that new space gained through expansion of the Library should be almost exclusively public use space.

According to the consultant’s report, public libraries should plan 20 years ahead for facilities. A new public library building should be of adequate size to meet the needs of its service area for about two decades before expansion or replacement is needed. The building program used for design of the existing Library building called for a Phase I building of 46,758 square feet, with a total of approximately 64,000 square feet in Phase II by 2010. The building reduced to 27,315 square feet because of funding limitations.

If we use accepted State or national library standards for buildings, even for a target population restricted to Chapel Hill alone, the current building is too small. When the entire County service area is considered, a building of between 70,000 and 76,000 square feet likely would be needed by 2020.

A library building consultant would use service needs and population data from the Five Year Service Plan to produce a building plan that an architect could translate into a proposed building expansion. We would request that the consultant:

propose options for facility space using a 0.6 square feet per capita national standard, as adopted by the American Library Association;
propose options for facility space using a 0.65 square feet per capita standard, as adopted by the N.C. Public Library Directors Association, to accommodate new services such as computer workstations for public staff;
analyze elements of service that will be provided and the resources needed to achieve them;
use formulas, where needed, to determine space needs for each element of service based on a range of square footage options;
use official Town population figures to project internal space needs for collection, technology, public seating, and staff;
consider the components of library space that were deleted when the previous plan for the library building was reduced in size, with special emphasis on public use space.

Library Board of Trustees: The Board endorses expansion of the Library and states, “Considering that materials circulation for the Chapel Hill Public Library is 47% greater than the North Carolina average, the space shortfall becomes even more urgent.” The Board asks that the Council proceed with the building consultant study and begin to identify funds for a larger Library.

Manager’s Recommendation: Adoption of Resolution D, which would authorize the Manager to engage a Library building consultant to revise the 1991 building program at a cost not to exceed $11,000. The attached budget ordinance would authorize the use of $6,000 in Library Gift Funds to supplement the existing $5,000 allocation available to hire the consultant.

RECOMMENDATIONS

We recommend that the Council adopt the attached Resolutions A-D, which would:

· adopt a statement of basic services to be provided by the Chapel Hill Public Library;

· direct the Manager to consider Library resource needs as the budget proposal for 2002-03 is developed and in the development of future budgets;

· authorize the Mayor to request, on behalf of the Council, discussions with the Orange County Board of Commissioners about additional County funding for library services in acknowledgment that the Chapel Hill Public Library serves the population of southern Orange County;

· authorize the Manager to engage a Library building consultant to revise the 1991 building program at a cost not to exceed $11,000.

· The attached budget ordinance would authorize the use of $6,000 in Library Gift Funds to supplement the existing $5,000 allocation available to hire the consultant.

ATTACHMENTS

October 10 Memorandum to Council, with Chapel Hill Public Library: Five Year Service Plan: 2001-2006 and Long Term Facilities Needs Through 2020 (p.13).
1991 Building Program for Chapel Hill Public Library (p.53).
October 13, 1997 Memorandum to Council, Establishment of Library Needs Assessment Task Force (p.174).
June 14, 1999 Memorandum to Council from the Library Needs Assessment Task Force (p.177).
November 22, 1999 Memorandum to Council, Response to the Library Needs Assessment Task Force Report (p.189).
October 23, 2000 Memorandum to Council, Report on Library Master Plan (p.195).

RESOLUTION A

A RESOLUTION adoptING a statement of basic services to be provided by the Chapel Hill Public Library (2002-02-11/r-6a)

WHEREAS, the Chapel Hill Public Library provides services that are not available at other specialized libraries in the County; and

WHEREAS, Chapel Hill residents borrow more materials from the Chapel Hill Public Library than from any other library in the State; and

WHEREAS, the Chapel Hill Public Library study, a Five Year Service Plan: 2001-2006 and Long Term Facilities Needs Through 2020, recognizes these key services based on a review of community needs; and

WHEREAS, the Library Board of Trustees endorses these key library services;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Council hereby adopts the following Basic Services to be provided by the Chapel Hill Public Library:

· Current recreational reading, listening, and viewing materials, and information about contemporary culture and trends, for adults and children.

· General information through answering reference questions and provision of specialized reference services, both paper and electronic.

· Information and programs to support life-long learning for adults and children.

· Instruction in finding, evaluating, and using information resources, both paper and electronic. Beginning in 2002-03, the Library will formally train 100 people each year in finding, evaluating, and using information in electronic formats.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council authorizes consideration of additional “Commons” space at the Library to include a variety of meeting and gathering spaces and possibly an electronic means of assembling such as videoconferencing facilities.

This the 11^th day of February, 2002.

.
RESOLUTION B

A RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING RESOURCE NEEDS FOR THE CHAPEL HILL PUBLIC LIBRARY AND CONSIDERING THESE NEEDS AS PART OF THE 2002-03 BUDGET PROCESS AND IN FUTURE YEARS (2002-02-11/r-6b)

WHEREAS, the Chapel Hill Public Library study, a Five Year Service Plan: 2001-2006 and Long Term Facilities Needs Through 2020, recognizes several key resource needs; and

WHEREAS, the Library Board of Trustees endorses these needs;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Council hereby recognizes the following needs for the Chapel Hill Public Library and considers these needs as part of the 2002-03 budget process and in future years:

A larger collection of books and other print materials.
New and expanded electronic resources.
Increased staffing, especially in the areas of electronic and technical resources, children’s services, and educational outreach.

Additional equipment, especially in the areas of Internet stations.

This the 11^th day of February, 2002.

RESOLUTION C

A RESOLUTION authorizING the Mayor to request, on behalf of the Council, discussions with the Orange County Board of Commissioners about additional County funding for library services in ACKNOWLEDGMENT THAT THE CHAPEL HILL PUBLIC LIBRARY SERVES THE POPULATION OF southern Orange County (2002-02-11/r-6c)

WHEREAS, the Chapel Hill Public Library study, a Five Year Service Plan: 2001-2006 and Long Term Facilities Needs Through 2020, recognizes that the Library serves both the Town of Chapel Hill and southern Orange County; and

WHEREAS, of current Library registrants, about 57% live in Chapel Hill, while more than 36% live in non-Chapel Hill southern Orange County; and

WHEREAS, the Library Board of Trustees recommends that the Council explore new ways to increase funding from governments outside Chapel Hill as the Town increases its own contribution to the Library;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Council hereby authorizes the Mayor to request, on behalf of the Council, discussions with the Orange County Board of Commissioners about additional County funding for library services in acknowledgment that the Chapel Hill Public Library serves the population of southern Orange County.

This the 11^th day of February, 2002.

RESOLUTION D

A RESOLUTION authorizing the Manager to engage a Library building consultant to revise the 1991 building program at a cost not to exceed $11,000 (2002-02-11/r-6d)

WHEREAS, the Chapel Hill Public Library study, a Five Year Service Plan: 2001-2006 and Long Term Facilities Needs Through 2020 recommends that the Town expand the existing Library facility as soon as possible to the maximum size affordable and appropriate for the site; and

WHEREAS, the consultant study also recommends that new space gained through expansion of the Library should be almost exclusively public use space; and

WHEREAS, the building program used for design of the existing Library building called for a Phase I building of 46,758 square feet, with a total of approximately 64,000 square feet in Phase II by 2010, which was reduced to 27,315 square feet because of funding limitations; and

WHEREAS, when the entire County service area is considered, a building of between 70,000 and 76,000 square feet likely would be needed by 2020; and

WHEREAS, the Library Board of Trustees recommends that the Council proceed with the building consultant study and begin to identify funds for a larger Library.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Council hereby authorizes the Manager to engage a Library building consultant to revise the 1991 building program at a cost not to exceed $11,000.

This the 11^th day of February, 2002.

AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND “THE ORDINANCE CONCERNING APPROPRIATIONS AND THE RAISING OF REVENUE FOR THE FISCAL YEAR BEGINNING JULY 1, 2001” (2002-02-11/O-2)

BE IT ORDAINED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Budget Ordinance entitled “An Ordinance Concerning Appropriations and the Raising of Revenue for the Fiscal Year Beginning July 1, 2001” as duly adopted on June 25, 2001, be and the same is hereby amended as follows:

ARTICLE I

Current Revised

APPROPRIATIONS Budget Increase Decrease Budget

LIBRARY GIFT FUND 119,840 6,000 125,840

REVENUES

LIBRARY GIFT FUND

Fund Balance 74,840 6,000 80,840

This the 11^th day of February, 2002.