Low city funds hit library budget

Though the Gibson Memorial Library board brought an ambitious proposed budget to Creston city officials in December, a lack of city funds has slowed down the board’s goals.

The current budget from the city is just under $100,000. However, with a new furnace and server needed for the library, the original proposed budget for FY 2026-27 was $135,000. It wasn’t until after this proposed budget was completed by the library board that they learned the city had only $45,000 in new funds available to share between departments.

Changes to the proposed budget include decreasing the office equipment and phone budget and completely dropping the furniture budget.

While originally proposing $35,000 to purchase a new server, two laptops and a new microfilm reader, new quotes for the building’s server saves the library about $15,000. Additionally, other organizations have mentioned possibly donating towards the purchase of a new microfilm reader. This reader allows for patrons to view items on microfilm like previous editions of the Creston News Advertiser, dated back more than 100 years.

“We know that the server can’t be put off, and [Mandy Parsons] and Mike [Taylor] agree with that, too,” Library Director Danielle Dickinson Thaden said. “I also noticed that, when it comes to our telephone, we’re still budgeting what we assumed based on previous costs.”

The library can receive an 80% rebate on some tech and internet services, something pursued only in recent years. With this discount, the telephone budget line can be decreased by about $1,300.

With one of the main goals in the library’s five-year plan being the addition and improvement of comfortable spaces for patrons, the board also had included $5,000 in the budget for new furniture. However, this was completely dropped from the budget in the hopes of either finding grant money or purchasing the furniture next year.

Between these three line items, the proposed budget is now $110,900. The board hopes this is enough of a drop in budget, though they have other items in mind to decrease if absolutely necessary.

“Because our current budget is right around $100,000, if we ask for $1,000 extra, that’s already a 1% increase,” Dickinson Thaden said. “It’s hard for us to, any wiggle room is going to leave us at a percent that’s a lot higher than other departments.”

In the hopes of bringing in more money in the future, the board has also approved putting $400,000 from the library’s 411 funds into a one-year Certificate of Deposit. A CD is a type of savings account that pays a fixed interest rate on a deposit for a set period of time.

The library has about $700,000 in the 411 account. However, this money comes from donations and grants and can only be used for purposes designated by the donor. Any interest earned from a CD can be put toward anything the library board so choses.

The board does not expect to get more than a 3.75% yield from the CD, equating to $15,000 earned.

In other library news...

The library is working to update its genealogy room. Along with new lighting purchased a few months ago, the room has received new carpeting and paint in the last month. Library staff are finishing up repairs and plan to have the room back for use in the next few weeks.