Library built 30 years ago for a much smaller Gilroy
population
There’s little doubt that Gilroy needs a new library. Besides a
laundry list of problems that could close the library, the current
facility is simply too small. It was built more than 30 years ago
for a city more than two-thirds smaller than Gilroy’s current
population. Librarians report that they often don’t have enough
seating for patrons trying to use the library.
Library built 30 years ago for a much smaller Gilroy population
There’s little doubt that Gilroy needs a new library. Besides a laundry list of problems that could close the library, the current facility is simply too small. It was built more than 30 years ago for a city more than two-thirds smaller than Gilroy’s current population. Librarians report that they often don’t have enough seating for patrons trying to use the library.
Not only that, but times have changed, meaning that the ways that libraries deliver information have changed also. Much more information is delivered in forms besides books.
Libraries serve an important role in allowing people who can’t afford access to information – today, that often requires a computer and Internet access – to get to that information. That means more computer terminals and more space for computer terminals.
What’s clear from the survey is that there is solid library support
A recent survey of 400 Gilroyans offered hopeful signs – 64 percent, just under the two-thirds majority needed – support a bond to pay for a new library. That support diminishes when numbers were attached to the bond.
Two-thirds of those surveyed said they’d been to the library, and 79 percent place a new library above a new arts center and sidewalk repairs on the city’s priority list.
The city has repeatedly tried and failed to obtain state money for building a new library, a situation that neighboring Morgan Hill found itself in. Morgan Hill was able to build a beautiful new library thanks in large part to its redevelopment agency. Gilroy doesn’t have an RDA, so short of a rich uncle deciding to foot the bill, the only way to finance a new library is with a bond.
Library supporters will have to campaign to get a bond passed
Now, it’s up to library supporters to work on educating the community about the important role that libraries play. They need to remind the public that the library is much too small and very out of date. Perhaps a few field trips to Morgan Hill’s new library might inspire more residents to support a bond.
If Gilroyans want a new library, they’ll have to pay for it with a bond, and that requires convincing two-thirds of voters to support it. The good news is that based on these survey results, that goal is within reach.
Act now:
Send an e-mail to Mayor Al Pinheiro at:
Al*********@ci.us
