CAMILLE GAVIN: Libraries are democracy in action - don’t close them
| Tuesday, Jun 01 2010 03:54 PM
Last Updated Tuesday, Jun 01 2010 04:46 PM
The Kern County Board of Supervisors will open the floor to public
discussion of the proposed cuts to the library and other services at a
meeting at 7 p.m. Monday at the supervisors' chambers, 1115 Truxtun Ave.
I admit it. I get downright angry when I hear about libraries being closed. It’s happening across the country, including right here in Bakersfield.
If the Board of Supervisors follows the county administrative office’s proposals, only two of the seven branches in the metropolitan area will remain open. That leaves the more than 400,000 residents in the area with only two choices: Beale Memorial in the central part of our sprawling city or the century-old Baker branch in east Bakersfield.
Certainly, the current recession is the major cause for shrinking the library budget. Yet this is nothing new. The county has failed to adequately fund the library for at least the last 10 years.
The library has met this challenge by severely reducing the number of hours its branches are open. Currently, none are open past 7 p.m. Some, such as the Baker branch, are open only one day a week and then only for eight hours.
This troubles me for a number reasons — some practical, some a little closer to my heart. In the early 1970s I worked as a children’s librarian at both Baker and Beale. I know the positive impact books have on young people. I have seen it reflected in the eyes of thousands of kids as they open the pages of a storybook. My own three children became frequent library users at an early age, and one of my daughters made librarianship her career. She works at Cal State Bakersfield’s Walter Stiern Library, which is funded by the state, not the county.
My professional library experience, coupled with my role as an active member of the Friends of the Kern County Library, leads me to ask several questions about the closures.
First, what will be done with the thousands of books and dozens of public access computers now housed in the other five branches? Will they be left in those shuttered buildings as an invitation for thievery? If they are warehoused, will these valuable items be protected by heating and air-conditioning systems? Books and computers are sensitive to extreme cold and heat.
Or perhaps the county plans to shift the books and computers to Beale and Baker.
Sorry, but that’s no solution.
Baker lacks adequate space to shelve additional books. I also wonder if the historic building’s infrastructure can support the additional wiring needed for computers. Beale probably could absorb a portion of the book collections from closed branches but it, too, would require additional wiring for Internet connections.
Providing more public access computers is a fine idea. Getting on the Internet is the main reason patrons now wait up to two hours for their turn. The waiting must be especially hard if you’re out of work and searching for a job. In addition, many companies accept only online applications.
To me, the library is the only truly democratic institution in our country — it’s free and open to everyone. I urge the Board of Supervisors to keep it that way.
