Emily's Musings

Library Cuts

There's an article in today's Merc about the libraries around here:

More cuts ahead for beleaguered library system
By Kellie Schmitt
Posted on Mon, Dec. 20, 2004

"It's been a tough year to check out Silicon Valley's libraries."

In October, the Santa Clara County library system started closing its nine libraries on Mondays, and even more cuts are coming in next year's budget, said Melinda Cervantes, the county librarian. Along with inconveniencing customers, closing one day also means more materials are left on the shelves, which means less room to expand collections.

Even though the county's public library system ranked among the top 100 in the country, Cervantes isn't sure it can maintain that honor with less funding.

``I have a feeling that next year we're going to slip a bit,'' she said. ``The Monday closings are going to take a toll.''