By Sue Loughlin, The Tribune-Star
sue.loughlin@tribstar.com
TERRE HAUTE - The Meadows, Southland and North branches of the Vigo County Public Library will close under a budget reduction plan approved by the library board on Monday.
The West Terre Haute branch, already owned by the library, will remain open, but its library collection will be modified and Internet access will be strengthened.
Closing three branches will mean fewer layoffs systemwide, while hours and services will be preserved at the main library.
The board voted 6-1, with board president Pat Minnis voting against the budget reduction plan. She said she wanted to try to keep two branches open.
Library director Nancy Dowell recommended the option approved by the board, previously listed as "Option 4."
"This recommendation comes with a heavy heart," Dowell wrote. "The branches have served a vital role in providing quality library services to the Vigo County community. However, the bottom line is the VCPL can no longer afford to maintain the facilities. Property tax revenue will not support five locations in a county that is declining in population and where property values and economic development continue to decline."
The budget reduction plan will result in about $900,000 in savings. It calls for as many as 14 staff layoffs - eight hourly and six salaried. The actual number may be less, Dowell said.
She said it's difficult to lay off employees, whom she described as "loyal and trustworthy and horribly underpaid to begin with."
The Meadows branch, which is under a temporary lease, could close at the end of this month, Dowell said after the meeting. The North and South branches could close in four to six weeks.
A major concern of the board's was preserving the main, downtown library and laying off as few employees as possible.
"We can't do anything to jeopardize this [main library] even though in our hearts we want to do something else," said board member James A. Brown.
Board member Rose Dixon also said she did not want to diminish the main library. "I can't see the point of having it eroded to keep the branches open," she said.
The focus of the West Terre Haute branch would change, and it would become a "popular materials and Internet access location." More computers with Internet access would be added, something the West Terre Haute community needs, Dowell said.
In another change, the West Terre Haute branch probably will only be open five days a week instead of six, she said.
The goal would be to eventually find or build a new West Terre Haute facility, which currently has many needs and is not in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Fundraising would be needed to construct a new facility.
After the meeting, Dowell said that materials from Meadows, North and South branches would be donated to community organizations and absorbed at the main library.
Some of the computers at the branches likely will go to the main library.
After the meeting, board member Andrea Myers said it was difficult to make the cuts. "It's never easy when you're dealing with someone's livelihood," she said. "I think the thing all of us were focused on was maintaining the highest level of service we could, given the restraints and constraints we had to work with."
The main library "is a wonderful facility," Myers said. "I think it's so important to maintain the integrity and the services of this building."
The budget reduction option chosen will mean fewer layoffs than some of the other possible options, she said.
Dowell said the library will work to accommodate the needs of branch patrons who are disabled or elderly and cannot visit the main library. The library will look at how it can provide outreach services for those individuals.
The library had to make the permanent cuts to bring its budget in line with less property tax revenue. About 90 percent of its revenues come from property taxes.
The budget shortfall has been described as an unintended consequence of House Enrolled Act 1001, which changed the state's property tax system.
In 2008, the four branches cost $1.1 million to operate, a figure that includes rent, utilities, staff salaries and library materials.