Pittsburgh Officials Look To Stave Off Library Closings

City may ramp up funding; structural deficit remains

Norman Oder -- Library Journal, 11/6/2009

• Library has relied on RAD, not city
• Branches targeted had fewer visits
• Final budget vote December 14

Perhaps five branches of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh (CLP) won’t be closing, as previously announced. Yesterday, as CLP submitted an updated 2010 budget to the Allegheny Regional Asset District (RAD), projecting a structural gap of $1.5 million for 2010, increasing to $5.1 million by 2014, City Council members announced a new effort to support the library. 

City Council President Doug Shields proposed a $600,000 grant this year and next—not enough to cover the entire funding gap, but a significant change in the city’s relationship with the library. The shift in city funds would be discussed at a Council meeting November 12.

The city itself contributes only $40,000 to CLP’s budget, which—before any additional funds—is expected to be about $23 million next year. Some $17.6 million of that total would come from the RAD, which was formed in 1995, supplanting the city as the majority funder of the library. The RAD was formed by Allegheny County to support regional cultural and arts assets via a countywide sales tax.

Closure issues
According to plans presented by the CLP board, three branches would close February 1, another would close sometime in the summer, and another would close as the result of a merger process beginning February 1.

However, CLP spokeswoman Suzanne Thinnes told LJ the situation remains in flux, as city, county, and state legislators deetermine how to help the library. The library board is supposed to take its final vote on December 14. 

Newly re-elected Mayor Luke Ravenstahl has pledged to help the library, Thinnes said, but has not yet announced a plan. He should release a preliminary budget next week.

Structural challenges
The Post-Gazette pointed out that CLP’s structural problems were longstanding and warned, "It's encouraging that so many political leaders are proposing ways to help fund the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh system, but it's too early for patrons to get their hopes up too high."

The newspaper also reported on a Carnegie-Mellon University study that explained that the branches targeted for closing were those with the lowest visits, and thus the highest cost per visit. The study also found that, while 81 systems examined have one branch for 45,000 residents, Pittsburgh, with a shrinking population, has one branch for every 23,500 people.