Exerpts from an article by Craig Gustafson, UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

City leaders plan to break ground next month on a new $185 million main library in downtown San Diego despite concerns that the project could leave taxpayers on the hook should private donors fail to raise enough money to pay for it…

…Library supporters, including Qualcomm founder Irwin Jacobs, who has pledged $20 million to the project, promised the money would be raised to complete the project. While the city is taking a $32.5 million risk, they said the city would lose $80 million in outside money committed to the project if it didn’t approve the plan Monday.

Former professional basketball player Bill Walton, a San Diego native whose mother had a 21-year career as a city librarian, said there is no greater mission and no grander goal than building a new library…

… The new library would be built at the corner of Park Boulevard and J Street in the East Village. It would be a nine-story domed centerpiece and twice the size of the existing 1954 library on E Street. Two floors would be used for a charter school serving about 400 students.

Funding for the library would come from several sources, including $80 million in city redevelopment funds, $20 million from the San Diego Unified School District and a $20 million state grant…

To read the whole article click here.

The Toronto Public Library is reporting its busiest year ever with more than 31-million items borrowed from its branches during 2009.

TPL says the numbers jumped five per cent from the previous year, with customers borrowing a record number of books, DVDs, e-books and music files.

The use of in-branch computers also soared by 11.5 per cent over the previous year, while the number of visitors topped 17 million.

“Libraries play an important role in the city, offering access to information and resources that give everyone an equal chance to succeed,” said TPL city librarian Jane Pyper.

“Increased activity shows that more and more people are relying on their public library and we’re here to respond and connect people to the resources and help they need,” said Pyper in a news release.

TPL says the big jump in library usage is due to a number of factors including, the economic downturn, library renovations and free wireless internet access in every branch.

Link to the story.

Stockton, CA is on many lists, and its pretty well known…but not for the right reasons. We thought being on Forbes “Most Miserable Cities” list was bad…until we became the number one city. That was bad. Not only is Stockton climbing the ladder to notoriety in the business world, but it’s violent crime rate has now become California’s second highest, right after Oakland.
Stockton has potential-that’s why it hasn’t been completely abandoned. But the residents of the San Joaquin Valley cannot reply only on the government or City Council to make change. Lasting change comes from the ground up. Unless the citizens of Stockton take matters into their own hands, anything the government does won’t help us. City Council is doing their part, but are we doing ours? The only way to fix the problem is to become active in our community and take ownership of the city.
Until the residents of Stockton can learn to do that, Stockton, CA will be famous, but for all the wrong reasons.

By David Siders
Record Staff Writer
June 02, 2009 6:00 AM
STOCKTON - Stockton in 2008 had the second-highest violent crime rate among California’s largest cities and the eighth-highest violent crime rate nationwide, according to statistics released Monday by the FBI.

Stockton’s rate of 14.7 violent crimes per 1,000 people was second statewide to Oakland for the third consecutive year, according to the FBI, which reported on cities with populations of at least 100,000.

The number of violent crimes in Stockton - including murders, rapes, robberies and aggravated assaults - increased 2.5 percent from 2007, to 4,322 in 2008. Nationwide, the number of violent crimes decreased 2.5 percent, the FBI said.

In Stockton, the increase owed primarily to a 6.5 percent rise in aggravated assaults, to 2,628. There were 112 forcible rapes, up from 105 the previous year, according to the FBI. Robberies were down 3.5 percent, and homicides fell to 24, the fewest since 1976.

Deputy Police Chief Mark Helms said violent crime declined in the first four months of 2009, down 13 percent from the same period last year, and for that reason, Mayor Ann Johnston said, “I think next year’s stats will show a different story.”

Helms attributed early decreases in the violent crime rate this year to “some pretty healthy staffing levels in patrol.” He said, “We’re still doing a lot of self-initiated work.”

City Hall issued layoff notices in May to 55 members of the Police Department’s force of about 400 officers, part of a citywide cost-cutting campaign to fix a $31million budget deficit. It remained unclear how many of those officers will be laid off when fiscal 2009-10 starts July 1, but it is almost certain the department will shrink significantly.

Johnston said a department reorganization to put more officers on patrol, and partnerships with agencies such as the California Highway Patrol - which is temporarily deploying dozens of officers in Stockton to help fight gang violence - could maintain the successes of early 2009.

The number of property crimes in Stockton in 2008 was down 3.9 percent from the previous year, to 17,955 crimes, according to the FBI. Nationwide, property crimes were down 1.6 percent.

St. Louis had the highest violent crime rate in the nation in 2008, at 20.7 violent crimes per 1,000 people. It was followed by Flint, Mich.; Oakland; Detroit; Memphis, Tenn.; Orlando, Fla.; Baltimore; and Stockton.

 Usually, people think of a library as a place to read books and check them out. The library is much more than that. It provides people a place to sit down and relax and enjoy the quietness. It also provides magazines, computers, printers, and DVDs for the people that can not afford it. Its high book shelves are filled with knowledge for young and old to learn. It provides free entertainment and activities for the community. The Library benefits several people world wide if used the right way.

By Jennifer Swanick

April 10,2009

If you need resources to help in a job search, or simply need a getaway from the stresses of everyday life, the Hennepin and Carver County public libraries offer a wealth of resources that more residents are taking advantage of during the hard economic times.

Michael McConnell, a coordinating librarian for Hennepin County Libraries, said there are generally just more people in the library including people using the library as a place to think, dream and get away from daily pressure.

The activity McConnell said he notices in the library reminds him of the library traffic during the mid-’70s and early ’80s, when the economy was also struggling.

The type of people seen in the library during the day has also changed in recent times, with a lot more men using the public libraries, McConnell said.

McConnell also sees more families using the public libraries as a safe place to bring children for free activities, such as story times, and for a place for kids to use puzzles, books and computer games.

Janet Kinney, the branch manager of the Chanhassen Library in the Carver County Library System, said families are making good use of the resources in her library and borrowing what they used to buy.
The story time programs at the Chanhassen Library are very popular, Kinney said, and include a lap-sit story time for infants and story times for toddlers, preschoolers and families.

The Tuesday morning preschool story time at Chanhassen Library will typically have around 23 to 24 kids show up, Kinney said.

Residents using the Chanhassen Library have also been making use of the meeting rooms, which are available for free to nonprofit groups, Kinney said. “We are booked all the time.”

A variety of groups use the meeting rooms including Boy Scouts, co-op groups, a radio club, Chanhassen Little League and book clubs, according to Kinney.

One particularly successful group seen at the Chanhassen Library is the master gardeners from the University of Minnesota who are offering six meetings on gardening topics. The master gardener meetings have sparked plans to grow cucumbers in the flower box at the Chanhassen Library, and leftovers will be donated to a food bank, according to Kinney.

“During more challenging times we need to get together and share information,” Kinney said of the master gardener meetings.

The rental of DVDs from the public library provides free entertainment for residents, who can reserve DVDs online and pick them up. “The DVDs just fly out of here,” Kinney said. The Chanhassen DVD collection is in the thousands, she said, but it looks like they don’t have many because they are always being checked out.

Adult classes available as a resource in Hennepin County include a computer basics workshop, offered several times throughout April and May, and introductions to Microsoft Word and Excel. These classes are also offered throughout Hennepin County in other languages, including Spanish and Somali.

Residents have also been using the library resources for searching for new jobs, building resumes and learning to file them online through the Job and Small Business Centers located at Minneapolis, Brookdale, Southdale, North Regional and East Lake Libraries. The centers are targeted to residents looking for a job, changing careers or wanting to start a new business.

The Job and Small Business Centers offer guidance through consultations with community experts and experienced library staff, research databases, recommended Web sites, and books, according to the Hennepin County Library Web site.

SCORE, a nonprofit association dedicated to the success of small
business, works in collaboration with the libraries and offers small business counseling by retired members of the business community, McConnell said. The counselors offer free, confidential help with business start-up and management, according to the Hennepin County Web site.

Aside from utilizing the job searching resources Hennepin County has to offer, some residents choose to go to the library for free wireless Internet access during their job hunt, including Eden Prairie Library user Jim Terpstra who said he has been using the library for the wireless Internet access to search for a job online after recently being laid off.

McConnell said aside from the staff and partners that can offer personalized help at the libraries, there are many job and career planning resources available for free through the Hennepin County Library Web site. The Web site also includes unemployment resources.
The library is a great place for people to regroup and figure out how to get started during the hard economic times, Mcconnell said.
“The library connects them with all those resources and helps them set forth a plan,” he said.

Kinney said the job search resources at the Chanhassen Library are mostly self-help, but they try to keep residents informed of where informational classes on jobs and careers are held and are expecting over the next few months to see what they need to provide to residents that is not already being provided.

The revitalization of public libraries has become a widespread trend that is crossing the nation as communities everywhere have begun to get involved in encouraging healthy activities and safer environments. In Cambridge, Massachusetts, Vicki Soloman put together a teen advisory board in the hope to make the Cambridge Public Library a foundation for teenagers in the community to get involved in constructive activities, relax, or enjoy reading. Most teenagers spend time at the mall or the movies with their friends on the weekends, and the aim of the advisory board is to add the library onto this list.

By Meghan Colloton, Globe Correspondent | February 6, 2005

The shopping malls teem with them after school, and the movie theater is their usual Friday night hangout.

But Vicki Solomon wanted to create an environment where teenagers could feel they were doing something a little more constructive, or just relax and enjoy reading.

So she started a teen advisory board to help the Cambridge Public Library become that haven.

Three years ago, the library served only adults and children. There was a small collection of young adult novels, but the majority of the library catered to children younger than 12.

Solomon, the young-adult librarian at the library, wanted to change that.

So she put together a 16-member board of junior and high school students, as well as one very ”well-read” sixth-grader.

Their mandate was to recommend books, CDs, and DVDs that the library should acquire, invite guest authors, and start other activities that could make the library a teen hub.

”The library is a great place to socialize,” said Sonia Booth, 17, a member of the board. Booth has been involved in library groups since she was young. ”It is a great way to spend my time because it is such a great atmosphere.”

Cambridge is not the first library in the area to seek teens’ advice; Haverhill Public Library also has an advisory board.

Of the 53 public libraries in the regional system, 15 have a young-adult librarian, like Solomon, or someone in a similar position.

”Junior high and high school kids always came to the library,” said Solomon. ”We wanted to make a home for kids who love to read.”

Since many of the public schools in Cambridge are near the library, swarms of students have always darted over to the library when school is dismissed.

Solomon’s vision for the board was not merely a book club.

”I did not want this to be like school,” she said.

With plans for renovation of the current library at 449 Broadway in Cambridge, the teens have met with the architects twice to voice their ideas for the young-adult section, which will be separate from the children’s area.

”The group has given the architects their own ideas for the room,” said Solomon. ”They have talked about what type of space they want and what kind of furniture would work.”

During monthly meetings, the teens organize possible author visits to the library. The group has already brought in local authors like Kim Ablon Whitney, who wrote ”See You Down the Road,” and Katherine Lasky, author of more than 100 books.

In recommending books, Solomon has found the group likes graphic novels (which are in a comic book format), science fiction, and fantasy books.

After speaking with other local librarians, Solomon learned it is difficult for young-adult librarians elsewhere to bring in graphic novels because of resistance from the library directors.

”We didn’t have that problem here. Everyone has been very supportive,” said Solomon.

When attempting to form her group, Solomon encountered one slight barrier. She found it was difficult to reach teenagers who were not frequent visitors to the library. So with the help of librarians from the Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, Solomon encouraged teens to get involved through fliers posted at the local junior and senior high schools, in the Cambridge newspaper, and in the library newsletter.

Cambridge Rindge and Latin School also helped share the expenses of hiring authors and hosting teen poetry slams.

Hoping to receive some money to fund future young-adult projects, Solomon applied for the Starbucks Foundation Literacy Grant. To her surprise, the library won it. The grant provided money to host more elaborate teen poetry groups, hosted by a Chicago-based poet.

With a building relocation looming, Solomon wants to keep the group’s momentum going. Members built gingerbread houses this past December for homeless shelters and wrapped books that were provided to these shelters.

The main problem with service-oriented projects, Solomon said, seems to be the time commitment for the teenagers.

Her one piece of advice: ”Make sure you have food.”

BY Clare Trapasso
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Friday, February 13th 2009, 2:56 AM

With the worsening economy, more people are turning to libraries - borrowing books instead of buying - to help weather the financial storm.

Patrons made almost 140,000 more trips to the Queens Borough Public Library’s 62 branches last year than in 2007. And they checked out almost 1.7 million more materials.

“We’re seeing a tremendous influx of people coming into the library to take out a book or to take out a DVD because they’re looking to save money,” said James Van Bramer, the library’s chief external affairs officer.

“In times such as these, people need libraries more than ever, because all of our programs and services are free,” he said.

Free is music to the ears of LaGuardia Community College student Jocelyn Donaire, 20.

Before the recession, the veterinary technician student would buy all of her textbooks. Now she heads to the library.

“In a year, I would spend close to $400,” said Donaire, of Jamaica, as she surfed the Web on a library computer. “But then everything started going up.”

Tyanda Smith, 33, of Kew Gardens, also stopped buying books when the economy turned sour.

The aspiring pastry chef now goes to the library’s job information center on her lunch break to find out what it would take to open a small café.

The center offers help with résumés and cover letters. It also provides materials on finding a job or starting a business.

“In these hard economic times, you need something to fall back on,” Smith said as she searched books on the food industry.

The city is set to slash the Queens library system’s budget by about $13.9 million, Van Bramer said. This is on top of a potential $1.3 million cut in state aid and a $5 million cut in city aid last year.

The problem is compounded by the state Department of Taxation and Finance’s move to stop mailing income tax packets. The agency is instead urging people to go online or pick up the forms at their local libraries.

“This is the worst possible time to do this,” Van Bramer said. “It costs us.”

If all the cuts go through, he said, the library would be forced to slash weekend service, as well as programs that teach immigrants English, provide homework assistance and computer instruction.

This was upsetting news for Donaire. “Most of the time, I’m here is on weekends,” she said. “I just hope that doesn’t happen.”

We know studies like these cannot be taken at face value. But they do point in a frightening direction. Last year, Forbes ranked Stockton as the 2nd most miserable city. According to Forbes, we are now the most miserable city in the United States. Our community needs solutions. It is in times like these we are forced to look at our foundations and build upon them. We hope that the Stockton/San Joaquin community realizes that our library system, an institution whose mission it is to better the quality of life for those in our community, ranks in the 7th percentile of the state. This means that 93% of libraries in the state of California rank higher than ours. Our community needs to come together and invest in our collective future.

Excerpts from America’s Most Miserable Cities
By: Kurt Badenhausen

Topping the charts is Stockton, Calif., which was the runner-up on our list last year…

…Stockton ranks in the bottom seven in four of the nine categories we looked at: commute times, income tax rates, unemployment and violent crime. Only New York City has a higher income tax rate than what Stockton, and all California residents, are forced to pay.

Stockton was ground zero for the housing boom and now the subsequent bust. Home prices more than tripled between 1998 and 2005 and then came crashing down last year. Stockton had the country’s highest foreclosure rate last year at 9.5%, according to RealtyTrac, an online marketer of foreclosed property. Things are not looking much brighter in 2009 as housing prices are expected to fall another 36% on the heels of a 39% drop in 2008. Also, unemployment is expected to jump to 13.3% from 10.4%, according to economic research firm Moody’s Economy.com.

“We are engaging the entire community and encouraging everyone to get involved and help us find solutions that meet the needs of our community,” says Stockton Mayor Ann Johnston. “Volunteerism is encouraged, looking out for your neighbor, and taking personal responsibility where individuals can make a difference. We are partnering with all community organizations–schools, churches, non-profits– to provide support services and help individuals and families get through these difficult times…”

…Only 15% of Stockton adults have a college degree, which is one of the lowest rates in the U.S. Unemployment is expected to hit 15% in 2010, while housing prices should keep falling back to their mid-1990s level when the median home price was $130,000…

…We compiled our rankings by looking at the 150 largest metropolitan statistical areas in the U.S., which meant those with a population of at least 378,000. We ranked those metros on nine factors: commute times, corruption, pro sports teams, Superfund sites, taxes (both income and sales), unemployment, violent crime and weather.

Metro International summed Stockton’s position in the Forbes ranking:
With only 15 percent of adults having achieved a college degree, and the likelihood of unemployment hitting 15 percent by 2010, there’s not much to envy in Stockton.

Click here to read the full Forbes article.
Click here to read the full Metro International text.

Libraries are playing a critical role in helping people get back on their feet. They continue to report that many patrons are using library computers to prepare resumes and cover letters, find work, apply for jobs online and open e-mail accounts. Less than 44 percent of the top 100 U.S. retailers accept in-store paper applications.

Many libraries design and offer programs tailored to meet local community economic needs, providing residents with guidance (including sessions with career advisers), career training and workshops, job-search resources and connections with outside agencies that offer training and job placement.

Libraries are also helping people obtain government services. For example, in Virginia we heard from a library director that she spent most of a day helping a woman re-establish her disability payments. “You can’t look for a job. You can no longer go to the Virginia employment office (which had closed several satellite offices). You have to do it online.

The bad news? Libraries are being asked to do more with less. Public libraries are facing the most severe cutbacks in decades, as budget shortfalls hit cities, towns and rural areas across the country. Some libraries report they are cutting hours and services; some are even facing the threat of closure at a time when their support is needed most.

To read the rest, click here!

To watch the video, click here!

By Jennie Rodriguez
Record Staff Writer

STOCKTON - The rules have changed in 2009 for public library users in San Joaquin County.

Driven primarily by budget considerations, the Stockton-San Joaquin County Public Library has reduced its hours, implemented stricter policies for overdue materials and reduced the number of items that can be checked out.

Amid those changes, the library is gearing up to reopen its busiest branch, Margaret Troke on Benjamin Holt Drive.

Steps have been taken by library administrators to address problems on two fronts: a $1 million reduction in funding and $3.4 million in unpaid fines.

Staff reductions and shorter library hours have reduced some costs, but the system also is taking steps to tackle mounting fines.

When patrons owe $9.99, their library privileges are blocked. When they owe $24.99, their name will be sent to a collection agency. The thresholds were $14.99 and $49.99, respectively, before Jan. 1.

In addition, the number of materials that can be checked out at one time has been cut in half - from 50 to 25.

“These reductions were absolutely necessary,” said Ken Yamashita, deputy director of library services.

Yamashita said most people, including staff, have been understanding about the library’s financial situation and unavoidable service reductions.

Click here to finish the article.

Newspapers and magazines around the country have been reporting the dramatic increase of library patronage in the last year. The historical role libraries have played in economically depressed times are now been witnessed once again. More than ever individuals are turning to their local libraries in search of the tools to help themselves and their families. The Wall Street Journal published an article today bearing witness to these events here in San Joaquin Country and around the country.

Folks Are Flocking to the Library, a Cozy Place to Look for a Job

By JIM CARLTON
Wall Street Journal

TRACY, Calif. — The financial crisis has caused a lot of withdrawals at the public library.

A few years ago, public libraries were being written off as goners. The Internet had made them irrelevant, the argument went. But libraries across the country are reporting jumps in attendance of as much as 65% over the past year, as newly unemployed people flock to branches to fill out résumés and scan ads for job listings.

Other recession-weary patrons are turning to libraries for cheap entertainment — killing time with the free computers, video rentals and, of course, books.

Last Friday, there was a particularly long waiting list of 157 to check out the popular vampire novel “Twilight,” by Stephenie Meyer, from a branch of the Stockton-San Joaquin County Library here in Tracy. This central California town has been ravaged by mortgage foreclosures, and area libraries report a surge of traffic. Shamika Miller huddled over a laptop at the Tracy branch. Laid off from her job as a bookkeeper at Home Depot more than a year ago, Ms. Miller, 29 years old, says she has visited the library “if not every day, every other day” since October to check job listings with her computer.

“I come here, first of all, because it’s a free Wi-Fi spot,” says Ms. Miller, who supports a 10-year-old daughter on her unemployment compensation. And, she says, “there’s something about the library that helps you think, at least for me.”

To read the rest of the article, click here