|Penny Hilton|
June 18th was the first day the New Gloucester Public Library was open since the Covid-19 emergency forced closure in May, and according to librarian Suzan Hawkins and assistant librarian Carla McAllister, it was a good day.
But different. Though they served patrons, they were the only people inside the building. There’s no more browsing. If you want a book – or several – you either go online, log in to your own account on the library’s website (last name and library card number), and search and order books; or you call the librarians and make a request. (No emails, please.) The duo said they mostly got calls, as people wanted to say hello as well as order books. Once they find the books, the librarians now call back those who ordered them, and make a date to set the books in a bag out on the porch, for the patrons to come by for “curbside pick-up.”
On their first day they collected two crates full of books, returns and donations. But these books won’t be back on the shelves for another seven days. That’s how long they will stay in quarantine, in a tote labeled with their date and time of return. When the week is up, they will once again be “checked in.”
One surprise: they cannot get onto the Library’s website to update anything! Hawkins says she has put in many calls to the company that manages the site, and has had no reply. A project with a team from the high school to design a new website also came to an abrupt halt when the schools were closed.
For now, the library’s – and librarians’ – hours will be Thursday and Friday, noon to eight PM, and Saturday nine to 3 PM, for a total of 22 hours a month. The librarians will not be working in the library while it is closed.
But that’s just for now. Hawkins says she had no idea when the library hours will expand. It’s a decision that ultimately is made by Town Manager Brenda Fox-Howard. At a recent Zoom meeting of the NG Library Trustees, Fox-Howard noted that the more immediate steps to open the library to the public with Covid-19 protections in place needed some thought, as she hated to interfere with the beauty of the old building, though ultimately some renovations to layout should be designed to update its offerings. She also shared her own experience as a youth who went to the library “every weekend”; and as a financial officer for several towns which included assisting several libraries through growth and development, including in Peterborough, New Hampshire, home, she said, to the first free public library in the country (the website says “first tax-supported.”) She urged the Trustees to look ahead five years and develop a vision for how they would like the library to grow, and then make sure they communicate that vision to the board of selectmen well before next budget cycle.
Library hours will also be determined, in part, by whether or not the voters approve the library budget line when they vote on July 14.
The change to a ballot vote instead of town meeting requires that the budget lines be separated more than in past warrants, which means, says the town manager, that any line not approved by the voters will be brought back for a special vote, but those lines that are passed will not need to be voted on again. How much to cut/fund the library was the most controversial issue discussed by the select board and budget committee during a budget process that was repeatedly extended through special board of selectmen meetings. At one point, cuts in positions or hours to personnel in public works, town planning, and parks and recreation were approved, as well as elimination of the assistant librarian. All these cuts sparked disagreements from the public, but the library cuts were by far the most controversial, with many people sending e-mails and expressing their opinions in the Zoom meetings that allowed public input. The budget amount as it will finally appear for vote reflects cuts of six hours to the librarian position, retaining benefits; and sixteen hours to the assistant librarian, dropping benefits, while restoring the hours and positions in the other three departments.
But for now, you can hear the librarians smiling over the phone. They are just going to take it day by day, and it’s great to be back!
