Library has 1.5-mill levy on May ballot
Renewal plus increase would raise $783,000 to continue operations
Medina County District Library Director Carol Kowell shows supporters a cake to celebrate National Library Week and the Medina Library’s 110th birthday. Photo by GLENN WOJCIAK
MEDINA – Support for the Medina County District Library will be tested May 2 when most voters around the county will be asked to approve a 1.5-mill levy to fund library operations.
The issue will not appear on the ballot in Wadsworth, which has its own library.
The levy represents the renewal of an existing 1.25-mill levy plus a 0.25-mill increase that would generate about $783,000 a year to fund operations. If approved, the new levy would cost owners of a $100,000 house about $45 a year in real estate taxes, about $9 more a year than they are paying for the current library levy.
The library operates on an annual budget of about $9.7 million, 60 percent of which is funded by the current levy. However, operating costs exceeded revenue by about $400,000 in 2015 and have put the library in the position of finding additional revenue or trimming operating costs at some future date. The library had a $5.7 balance at the end of 2015 which allowed it to absorb the budget deficit without cutting services.
Library Director Carol Kowell said she does not want to see any cuts.
“MCDL is an award-winning library system and we want to maintain the level of service county residents have come to enjoy and expect,” she said. “We will continue our emphasis on literacy, storytime sessions for our youngest members and providing the books, movies and downloads you want when you want them.”
However, cuts will be inevitable if the levy fails and the district loses its biggest source of funding.
“We haven’t figured out exactly where we would cut, but it’s pretty clear we wouldn’t be able to continue the operating hours we now have at all our branches,” she said.
Part of the reason the library is facing a deficit is cuts in state funding. State support for public libraries has dropped 16 percent since 2008 when it was $450.6 million. The Ohio Library Council reports it dropped to $381 million in 2015 and was projected to be down to $379 million last year.
The Medina Library’s share of that state support was about $3.5 million in 2015. The 1.25-mill levy approved by district voters generated about $4.8 million for library operations that year.
The current 1.25-mill levy was last approved by voters in 2007 and expires at the end of 2017.
The district operates branches in Brunswick, Lodi, Seville, next to Buckeye and Highland high schools and has its main branch in downtown Medina. The district also operates a bookmobile that travels to various locations around the county.
The issue will not appear on the ballot in Wadsworth, which has its own library.
The levy represents the renewal of an existing 1.25-mill levy plus a 0.25-mill increase that would generate about $783,000 a year to fund operations. If approved, the new levy would cost owners of a $100,000 house about $45 a year in real estate taxes, about $9 more a year than they are paying for the current library levy.
The library operates on an annual budget of about $9.7 million, 60 percent of which is funded by the current levy. However, operating costs exceeded revenue by about $400,000 in 2015 and have put the library in the position of finding additional revenue or trimming operating costs at some future date. The library had a $5.7 balance at the end of 2015 which allowed it to absorb the budget deficit without cutting services.
Library Director Carol Kowell said she does not want to see any cuts.
“MCDL is an award-winning library system and we want to maintain the level of service county residents have come to enjoy and expect,” she said. “We will continue our emphasis on literacy, storytime sessions for our youngest members and providing the books, movies and downloads you want when you want them.”
However, cuts will be inevitable if the levy fails and the district loses its biggest source of funding.
“We haven’t figured out exactly where we would cut, but it’s pretty clear we wouldn’t be able to continue the operating hours we now have at all our branches,” she said.
Part of the reason the library is facing a deficit is cuts in state funding. State support for public libraries has dropped 16 percent since 2008 when it was $450.6 million. The Ohio Library Council reports it dropped to $381 million in 2015 and was projected to be down to $379 million last year.
The Medina Library’s share of that state support was about $3.5 million in 2015. The 1.25-mill levy approved by district voters generated about $4.8 million for library operations that year.
The current 1.25-mill levy was last approved by voters in 2007 and expires at the end of 2017.
The district operates branches in Brunswick, Lodi, Seville, next to Buckeye and Highland high schools and has its main branch in downtown Medina. The district also operates a bookmobile that travels to various locations around the county.