W. Salem Library Struggle Offers Several Alternatives

Next year the struggle will resume.

Salem Public Library

(SALEM) - Ah, sweet victory, at least until Spring 2013. Our West Salem Library won this round of lively debates of whether or not to face the budgetary ax and reduce its weekly hours from 31 to 6 as the city manager had proposed. We worked out a 16-hour compromise.

The struggle over reduced hours began when the Library Advisory Board learned in March that the W. Salem Branch was fated for an 80% cut. All of this was to help the city save funds since its revenues were reduced by the recession. I helped lead the good fight to find a middle ground.

It seemed such a drastic cut was unfair. It targeted W. Salem disproportionately. Virtually no other city service of that nature faced a cut that dramatic. I felt incensed and told the library board to be cautious, not to act abruptly.

A resolution was passed that voiced concern and asked that restoration of hours be the ultimate goal. At that point I brought the matter to the West Salem Neighborhood Assn. and Co-Chairs Heather Swenson and Don Homuth stepped up to the plate. We crafted a compromise calling for four days of four hours each. I put forth several alternatives:

• Recruit College Intern: This would allow a pre-screened Humanities student to spend the school year being trained by paid staff. Hence, no salaries or fringe benefits would be involved. And a young person could relate to young readers and their parents.
• Tap into Americorps: This federal program features literacy volunteers thru its VISTA program. Other government agencies have had success here, so why not Salem?
• Use Public Art for Revenues: Right now, the library's sizeable art collection is loaned out for free. However, if we face a severe budget crunch, does the old way still make sense. Salem's Public Art Commission needs to review this and install a loaner fee to bring in needed cash.

Local Fundraising: WSNA and various civic group can sponsor fundraisers during the year to help close the budget gap. Perhaps some individuals can contribute. It's worth trying out.

This year's drama ended with Councilors Chuck Bennett and Dan Clem getting the Council to OK the 16-hour proposal, shifting road repair funds for one year. Next year the struggle will resume. It is not too early to prepare and urge that College Interns and Americorps be part of the final solution.

If nothing is done, a 1-day schedule for Summer 2013 may resurface.

Please write the Mayor to share your opinion. Email: ampeterson@cityofsalem.net.

Send a "cc" to: dclem@cityofsalem.net as well.

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Salem-News.com Community Writer Barry Lee Coyne brings to our readers stories from his combined career of journalism and gerontology, and explains that these paths shaped his values. Lee Coyne once worked for The Civil Service Leader in NY State and covered the Legislature. He has also done features on mediation and arbitration, and believes in healthy skepticism. This writer-therapist often views the world as the masks of comedy and tragedy placed upon the scales of justice. For him, optimism inevitably wins. "Lyrical Lee" has traveled to 30 nations aboard and was once a press intern at the UN. His first published article was in The NY Daily News in '59, dealing with the need for integrity in public office.

He also launched the nation's first tele-conference on health education for shut-ins, created the Eldermentors project in VA to pair retirees with immigrant students needing role models, and was the main catalyst behind CCTV's "Public Public" panel show here in Salem. Lee received his BA in International Relations and an MSW in community organization. He currently serves as a member of Salem's Library Advisory Board. To send Lee an email, please write to this address: luckycoyne@yahoo.com

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