Library Board Approves Cuts

Posted on: Friday, August 22, 2003

By: Jonathan Knight

The Library Board of Trustees approved a wide range of cuts to library service at their meeting today. Without these cuts, the library faced a budget deficit of more than $2 million between now and the end of 2004.

The Dayton Mall Mini-Branch will be closed as of October 1, 2003 and Bookmobile service will be discontinued at the same time. The elimination of these two services will mean the layoff of 10 employees. Additionally, 12 other jobs will be eliminated and another 8 will be reduced. These layoffs will take effect in the next two months.

“These are extremely painful cuts for the library to make,” said Tim Kambitsch, library director. “This is the first time in our 156 years that we have had to lay off library employees. These are good people providing a good service to our community and it’s sad that the funding crisis has reached this point.”

The funding shortfall is primarily the result of decreased funding from the state of Ohio. The Dayton Metro Library will receive $2.1 million less this year than in the year 2000. The library had already saved more than a million dollars due to cost-cutting measures such as reduced hours, reducing purchases, leaving positions vacant and freezing salaries for managers.

The layoffs will include a range of staff levels. More details will be announced next week, after the effected staff have been contacted. Additional cuts in the budget for books and audio-visual materials as well as library aide hours are likely for 2004.

The Homebound Delivery Van Service, which takes books to people who are not physically able to come to a library, will be continued.