News Release

04/10/2006
PPL Looks to Shift Resources to Direct Services

Committed to using the current level of public funding appropriated by the City of Providence to yield the best, most efficient level of library service for city residents, the PPL Finance Committee today reviewed a recommended operations budget for FY07.

In February, 2006, the PPL announced an anticipated $700,000 dollar shortfall in the budget to run city library services at its 10 branches. The branches are funded by money received from the City of Providence and augmented by State and PPL private funds. However, with anticipated increases in fixed costs, such as utilities, health benefits, building maintenance and rent, the allocated funds will not sustain the current system. Privately funded programs and capital spending is facing a $200,000 shortfall.

A system-wide priority for library users was more hours, particularly in evenings and on weekends. In keeping with these requests, the recommended budget would operate four of the Library’s 10 current branches providing the maximum number of open hours system-wide. The proposed plan calls for increased hours of operation at the Central Library, Rochambeau Branch and Mt. Pleasant Branch, as well as operating the South Providence Branch Library at a schedule similar to its current hours.

“As we looked at options for spending the $3 million dollars Providence has allocated for library services, we gave considerable weight to the suggestions we received from citizens,” said Dale Thompson, library director. “Although this budget involves some tough choices, we are recommending the city use its limited library money to provide quality services, instead of having greater and greater portions of it used to heat, repair and maintain aging buildings.”

The proposed balanced budget looked for efficiencies system-wide and already includes a 30 percent reduction (FY06) in administrative positions and shifts available funds away from building and infrastructure costs and into direct library services.

“We view this as a temporary plan for the short-term while we continue to work on a long-range strategic plan that we envision being incorporated into the transforming city-wide service planning currently under way in Providence,” said Thompson.

Faced with the ongoing challenge of providing affordable, sustainable, quality library services for the city, the Providence Public Library, Providence City officials and community representatives have been working together on forming a long-term strategic plan that will provide a blueprint for the future.

Central to that blueprint will be innovations in efficiency and patron convenience, such as offering library services at alternative locations in the community, creating multi-function facilities or learning centers. This is an idea that is especially appealing to the Library since it would eliminate redundancies, replace an outmoded branch library system, and enable the Library to spend funds on delivering services rather than on repairing and maintaining aging buildings.

In order to allow more flexibility in integrating library services with citywide planning, PPL is considering changing its governance model to give city officials control over spending decisions regarding public funds.

City officials have been demanding more oversight over public funds and, while the FY 2007 budget proposal assumes $3 million in funding from the City of Providence, the City Council is threatening to withhold the money unless the private Library accepts political appointees on its board.

The FY 2007 budget proposal must be reviewed and approved by the Library’s full board.