Independent library on the horizon

With a notification deadline just weeks away, the Whitefish City Council voted unanimously Oct. 18 to form an independent city library.

The council directed city staff to notify the Flathead County Library Board of Trustees of their intent to terminate its interlocal agreement with the county on July 1, 2011, and establish a separate tax-supported city library.

The decision was made on the same day the city received an opinion from the Montana Attorney General saying Whitefish residents could be exempted from the 5.95 mill levy the county currently collects for its valleywide library system if the city has its own tax-supported library.

The county currently collects about $120,000 a year from Whitefish residents for the Flathead County Library System (FCLS), but FCLS director Kim Crowley says the actual amount the county spends on the Whitefish library is higher. The total compensation for the Whitefish library staff alone is $114,000, she said.

To make up the shortfall in operating costs, the citizen-based Whitefish Library Association has pledged $15,000 a year for five years, and library supporters Jake and Connie Heckathorn have pledged $100,000.

A Whitefish Ad Hoc Library Committee was formed earlier this year to study conflicts between FCLS and Whitefish library staff and supporters. Their report addressed a long list of concerns, from heavy-handed administration in Kalispell to inequities in resources and unacceptable treatment of Whitefish library employees. The report also provided a detailed budget and plan to divvy up the library’s 44,603 items.

In a 21-page response to the ad hoc committee in June, FCLS board chairwoman Jane Lopp took note of “unresolved and unrelenting hostility by certain volunteers” at the Whitefish library and the possibility that “separation is inevitable.”

Lopp addressed the ad hoc committee’s concerns one-by-one, including the committee’s opposition to creation of a “separate teen space” in the library. The Whitefish library “is adjacent to a middle school, a perfect location to capitalize on this vibrant demographic,” she said.

Noting the funding, efficiency and professional advantages of staying within FCLS, Lopp questioned whether the ad hoc committee represented “all user groups” within the Whitefish area — “noticeably missing are generations X and Y,” she said.

“There appears to be a general dislike among the Whitefish study group for any type of modern library trend that goes beyond ‘traditional’ library services and standards,” Lopp said.

About 40 people at the council meeting showed their hands in support of a library secession, but only ad hoc committee member Michael Collins spoke. This is a long-term issue, going back to the 1990s, he said.

“This didn’t just crop up in the last few months,” he said, noting that revisions to the city-county interlocal agreement often “were detrimental to Whitefish.”

The residents of Whitefish “want a bigger say in how the library is run,” he said, noting that Whitefish residents do a good job of running numerous other public facilities.

Collins also pointed out that rural residents living outside the city limits would not be denied a library card, and an independent Whitefish library would partner with libraries across the state — including FCLS — for exchanging books.

Councilor Phil Mitchell, who joined mayor Mike Jenson in meeting with the FCLS board, said he went over the ad hoc committee’s budget and found enough money for staff. The $40,000 a year figure for book acquisition provided by the FCLS board was too high, but the ad hoc committee’s $4,000 figure is probably too low, he said.

Collins agreed that the county’s figure was too high “considering the history.”

“We need to start somewhere,” he said. “We know of a lot of books in private collections that are ready to be donated if this goes through.”

When Jenson asked about special skills needed by librarians, ad hoc committee member Anne Moran said the state provides training and certification, and the Whitefish Library Association has funded training in the past.

“Remember, the vast majority of libraries in Montana are independent,” she said. “This is not rocket science. We don’t need to reinvent the wheel.”

In light of city budget concerns, adequate funding remained a key issue.

“There’s about a $3,000 cushion between revenue and expenses,” Mitchell said. “The concern I have is that there won’t be enough money.”

City manager Chuck Stearns agreed that it would be a tight budget. Noting that most government agencies were consolidating in the current recession, not separating, providing for vacation and sick leave might be a concern, he said.

Mitchell made it clear that he didn’t want the library secession to cost local taxpayers.

“I’ll fight tooth and nail against any mill increase for the library,” he said. “We need to live within the budget.”

Stearns’ Oct. 19 “notice of termination” letter to FCLS expressed appreciation for the “excellent library services” provided by FCLS and hope for continuing cooperation during the transition.

Crowley said that from the county’s perspective, “as of July 1, 2011, the Flathead County Library System will no longer be providing services out of that building.” Until then, the county’s same level of service will continue at the Whitefish library.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do to get a transition plan in place,” Crowley said, noting that while that the city of Whitefish owns the building, the county owns the majority of equipment and materials in the branch library.