Not only did my father-in-law give me a great 'Tractor Supply Company" (see Stocks sidebar) baseball hat this weekend, he gave me this article regarding the fair city of Philadelphia's embattled mayor, Mayor Michael Nutter:
http://www.economist.com/world/unitedstates/displaystory.cfm?story_id=13109707&fsrc=rss
This story and stories like the one that appeared recently in Philadelphia Weekly, (http://www.philadelphiaweekly.com/articles/18160/cover-story) featuring Mayor Nutter being crucified, seem to embody what is happening on the national level.
In a tough economy, a few loud interest groups tugging on constituents heartstrings are mobilizing support for programs that there simply is not money to support. Do you really think Mayor Nutter wants to close libraries? No, but unlike his compatriots in Washington, he does not have the ability to guarantee reelection by printing money and bankrupting the City. He must actually balance a budget. So instead of whining about things that obviously need to be worked on and compromised on, maybe Philadelphians should and come up with a plan.
The solution on this one is relatively easy. People do not primarily go to the library for books anymore. They go to use the Internet - email, job postings, advertisements, etc. They go for a place to work and study. They go to chat and feel part of the community. In the end the library is an extension of the neighborhood. The thing is, Philadelphia's Free Library system is a series of cathedrals to books and knowledge, especially the grand Central Philly Fee Library http://libwww.freelibrary.org/branches/brnlist.cfm. By my count, 54 libraries for a metro area is a lot of libraries. Philly does not need 54 cathedrals.
Simply keep three to five of the biggest branches in their traditional form - giant book depositories. Sell the other branches - all of them. With the proceeds, buy or lease two to three room spaces, for the purposes of this post we will call them "Study Centers" (SC's), in most or all of the neighborhoods that lost their cathedrals. Where neighborhood space is a concern, the Free Library system could leaseback space in the buildings it sold, if that is necessary.
The point is the SC's will have a lower maintenance cost (energy, employees, books) because they will be so much smaller and bookless. Each SC will have more computer terminals than the old cathedrals, and will also have study tables and chairs where residents can work and congregate. Each SC will also have a manned desk where people can request books be delivered (this could be accomplished from over the Internet as well). The Free Library system already has a well run request and delivery system within its current branch system. That way the library system will be run more like Amazon.com's node model than the current dispersed expensive model, but the access to books will not be lost.
In the end, Mayor Nutter and the City will likely save more than the currently planned $8 million, they may make money, residents will have the community centers they fear losing, and Philly will be one step closer to balancing the budget. Stop whining and come up with some fiscally responsible alternatives!
The federal government needs its version of the SC's and Americans need to understand, just like Philadelphians, that getting through this economic slowdown is going to take fiscal thought and compromise. But like Mayor Nutter, the folks in Washington should not take their eyes of the budget. Unfortunately, it is getting more difficult to convince me that they have not.
-2outof4
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What makes you say "People do not primarily go to the library for books anymore"? I (and plenty of other people I know) check out books from the NYC Public Library all the time. Every time I'm there I see people getting books. I'm not sure your premise is accurate.
ReplyDeleteThe people in these articles are looking for a place of community and a quiet place to work and read. The premise is that generally they do not need a tomb of books around them to get what they want at a lot lower cost.
ReplyDeleteI have two library books on my bedside, but I could have just as easily ordered them over the net and picked them up at my local SC than at the current library.