Regarding the Proposal to Close the Downtown Library
Dear Library Supporter,
Several organizations, including the Long Beach Public Library Foundation are united in addressing the City's proposal to close Main Library. Below is an update on the issues and what you can do to help us.
There are three main issues we are trying to communicate and address:
1) Does the City HAVE to close the Main Library due to Health and Safety immediately? We are trying to determine if there is definitive, concrete dangers that require the immediate closure of Main. Otherwise, we'd like to see Main Library remain a temporary solution until a new building is built.
2) If a new temporary library must be secured, we want it to meet the needs of the community and function like a library. The Friends of the Long Beach Public Library President and the Executive Director of the Foundation have joined a task force with the City to help provide input on a temporary library. The City is exploring costs, sites, services, and timing... however nothing has been determined yet. We are concerned with the cost and time efforts. We are also concerned about what the timeline is, as Mark Twain was a temporary library with no bathrooms for nearly 50 years!
3) The future of Main library. As we understand it, funds for the new Main Library are supposed to be funded through the November Parcel Tax. However we are unsure of what size and quality library the funds will pay for. Many of us would like to see a fully functioning, comparable Main Library downtown and we are concerned that we may only get a tiny branch library. If the parcel tax doesn't pass then there are even greater concerns.
How you can help:
(1) KEEP INFORMED AND KEEP OTHERS INFORMED: A website http://savelbpl.blogspot.com has been set up which is updated with new information several times a week.
(2) ATTEND COMMUNITY MEETINGS: On September 2nd, at 3:30PM, in the City Council Chambers, the City Council will be addressing the library issue and will allow public comment. We would love it if you could all attend that meeting and ask questions and provide feedback.
(3) PETITIONS: People all over the city are collecting signatures from concerned people. We have nearly reached 3,000! Attached is a sample petition. We will need all the final petitions by the September 2nd meeting. They can be mailed to the Foundation office, faxed, or brought early to the Sept 2nd meeting. If you bring them to the meeting, please total them ahead of time. Click here to download a petition.
(4) WRITE CITY COUNCIL! Click here to download a Form Letter you can use to email City Council. We really need everyone to write the entire City Council about this issue!
You can email all of them at:
mayor@longbeach.gov, district1@longbeach.gov, district2@longbeach.gov, district3@longbeach.gov, district4@longbeach.gov, district5@longbeach.gov, district6@longbeach.gov, district7@longbeach.gov, district8@longbeach.gov, district9@longbeach.gov, Citymanager@longbeach.gov
and please cc: savelbpl@yahoo.com
The Long Beach Public Library Foundation "Promoting Literacy One Reader at a Time"
VOTE
The NAACP urges you to register to vote and to make sure that your family, friends and neighbors are registered. We are asking that all Long Beach Branch members personally register one voter per month.
The NAACP urges you to register to vote and to make sure that your family, friends and neighbors are registered. We are asking that all Long Beach Branch members personally register one voter per month.