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I am really dismayed by the Public Libraries in the Triangle. Cary Library is an embarrassment for a city that is constantly mentioned as a top city/suburb in the country. My own branch, a storefront on Duraleigh near Glenwood, speaks for itself. A community is known for what it values. For too long, the Triangle has trumpeted "growth" at any cost. what this has meant is more roads, more far flung residential development, more talk and consultants fees on public transportation with nothing to show for it, etc. There are so many positives with the Triangle, and I believe the time is right with the economy to emphasize the "People's University" that public libraries were and continue to be. Compared to the projects mentioned above, it is a drop in the bucket. Thoughts?
As I said in that thread, "The libraries have been short of money. That's why I, and many voters, voted for a $45 million bond issuance in October 2007 to support a master plan that can be found here: http://www.wakegov.com/NR/rdonlyres/...erPlan2007.pdf (broken link) "
Durham and Orange Counties have seperate library systems and someone with more experience with them would have to comment on their status.
With the age of the internet do people even go to the library? Students most likely use the internet first then the library second...and only if required.
I take my son to the library once a week for a couple of hours so he can look at different books even if he does not check one out. I think the library is an excellent resource and environment for kids, especially young ones to learn how to pick out books and learn to enjoy reading.
Admittedly, I usually go to the library to get books for my kids, but I have been impressed with the selection of children's books at the Durham Public Library's Main branch downtown. The place is a bit run-down, but there are plans in the works for a renovation. And I don't mind it being the way it is...it's got character.
Prior to living in Durham we lived in Multnomah County in Oregon (Portland). Multnomah County consistently ranks #1 for library usage (most items checked out per resident) and quality of library resources. And we were and are HUGE supporters and users of our libraries. Coming from Portland we were library snobs.
It's difficult for me to directly compare libraries or anything in Portland with Durham (or Raleigh or Chapel Hill) because the size of the cities and tax bases vary so greatly. (Others moving from large urban areas are probably in the same boat.)
But I have been pleased with Durham County Libraries. While the building of the library we frequent is run down (Parkwood) the selection of books is good and the people are friendly and helpful. Durham has a good offering of kids programs too (my only complaint is that the offerings do not always correspond with the busiest library locations.... so I end up driving across town more than my gas bill would like). There have only been a few books that I have not been able to find at the Durham Public Libraries. But I wasn't always able to find everything in Portland either.
To me a library is about what is inside it, not what the outside looks like or if it's a grand old turn of the century building or in strip mall.
During the Summer we are at the library weekly .... during the school year we are there every 2-3 weeks. My children are VERY techno savy but when they get a research project the first thing they ask to do is go to the library. And our family saves A LOT of money by using the library instead of buying every book we read. Plus, we figure it's saving trees too.
With the age of the internet do people even go to the library? Students most likely use the internet first then the library second...and only if required.
I don't know about other people but our family goes to the library all the time. We all like to read books and I can't afford to buy all my books at the bookstore. We go to the Chapel Hill library. I have been very pleased with it and they are going to be expanding in the near future and that will make it even better.
I also have been quite pleased with our libraries here in Durham. I'm always in there picking up reserved books. I also take plenty advantage of inter-library loan. It saves me literally TONS of money. Southwest is about to close temporarily for renovations soon and I think Parkwood is too, but don't quote me on that one. I think this sentiment is shared by other Durhamites. There are plenty other libraries that are underutilized.
Oh and to the pp saying something about the library being obsolete because of the net....that simply isn't so. How do you think I learned about those books to go check out? The net of course. I read reviews on Amazon, then check it out at the library. If I think the book is really cool and want to keep a copy, then I order it online. They work together beautifully.
I am not from your area, but I retired from the library system and may be able to shed some light on this situation. We had a similar situation in Union County, North Carolina, and went to the state for money.
The problem is that our state had just had a horrible year with one hurricane after another and unlike some of the other states, we got very little help from the federal government. So are we going to get tax money for libraries when others don't even have a place to live? No way.
So our citizens went to work raising the money. We had every fund raising type of activity you could think of and the end result was that we won awards for renovations on two libraries in the county and two brand new libraries. We are presently working on getting another library with some help from our county government. The best part of this is that when you build with donations, you don't have to have your children paying for it years down the road. Just thought I would share our wonderful experience. We are all enjoying our better libraries.
Be sure to go to your local library and get a NCLive password to help your children with research. This service has a wealth of information using your home computer.
Hey: I am not from NC but hope to be someday. As for me, I LOVE libraries and came from Schaumburg Illinois, which had the very BEST. Now I live in Chandler AZ where most of the library shelves are empty or stocked with old old books. I usually visit Barnes and Noble, find a comfy chair and spend the day. What happened to the good old days, where people actually loved to read???
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