ST. PAUL – Town of St. Paul councillors want to discuss a $30,000 funding cut by the County of St. Paul that will significantly affect the St. Paul Municipal Library.
Reporting to council during the June 9 Town of St. Paul council meeting, Coun. Norm Noel, who represents the Town on the St. Paul Municipal Library board, said the funding cut left the library with a reduced budget of $16,000 from the County.
Noel said when the library board received the service agreement from the County, "There was a line in it that kind of caught our eye."
That line, he said, states that County residents using the library shall continue to enjoy services equivalent to those of Town residents. The line is not new to the agreement, according to Noel, but the board is hesitant to sign the agreement in light of the funding cuts, as it may limit their ability to adjust fees or services in response to the reduced budget.
Town of St. Paul Mayor Maureen Miller asked if this would be the second funding cut from the County of St. Paul.
Noel affirmed, noting the County of St. Paul cut funding from the St. Paul library by about $10,000 a couple of years ago.
Coun. Ron Boisvert asked if other libraries that receive funding from the County also had funding cuts. Noel said no, adding the Elk Point Library, for example, received a slight funding increase.
During discussions, Coun. Nathan Taylor also asked Noel what the current implications of the funding cut are.
Noel said the library board had to withdraw $15,000 from its $30,000 savings. "There will be no summer reading program this year," he added.
"With the County being our biggest regional partner, was there any talk between the Town and the County before they did this?" asked Coun. Brad Eamon. Noel said no discussions took place.
Eamon suggested the Town have conversations with the County about official agreements, including library and recreation agreements.
Miller said there are plans to talk to County representatives to discuss the funding cuts, but there have been challenges to confirm a date for discussions.
"So, is that [discussion] going to happen before election or is this just all going to roll over [until] after an election?" asked Eamon.
Miller replied, "I don't think this should be handed over to the next watch."
"Considering what I'm hearing, I'm pretty frustrated knowing that there's no rec agreement in place and now we're wrestling over the library over funding," Eamon replied. "Lord knows why. It's pretty sad."
