Agenda - 01-23-2007-9d - Laserfiche WebLink

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15 orange County Library Long-Range Facility Planning The jurisdiction of the Orange County Library system includes all areas of Orange County exclusive of the Town of Chapel Hill, although services are extended free of charge to Chapel Hill residents. The system includes a central library located in a 12,650 square foot facility in Hillsborough, the Cedar Grove Branch Library located with other Orange County services on Highway 86N, the Carrboro Branch Library co-located with the media center in the McDougle Middle School, and the Carrboro Cybrary recently opened in downtown Carrboro. An analysis of registered borrowers of the Orange County Library system by township residence in 2001 indicated that the highest percentage of library borrowers lived in the Cheeks, Hillsborough, and Chapel Hill Townships, with the majority of the Chapel Hill Township registrations representing Carrboro Library borrowers. Further analysis indicates that not only do the borrowers from Cheeks and Hillsborough represent a large percentage of the total library borrowers, but a relatively high percentage of the total population of these townships (46% and 50% respectively). Although the central library is housed in a facility with other Orange County government offices, it has gained an identity as "Hillsborough's library," rather than "Orange County's Library." It is the sense of the Task Force that this identity has contributed to the lack of understanding among the public of library governance and funding responsibilities. The progress made in the last several years to extend and improve services to the Town of Carrboro has been the result of approaches from Carrboro residents directly to the Board of Commissioners. Although the resulting services are under the auspices of the Orange County Library administration, a competitive tension appears to have developed that could interfere with library progress overall if the County does not assume a more comprehensive approach to library service and facility development. • The development of library services for Orange County residents has been fragmented at best, resulting in great disparity in the level of library services provided throughout the county. o The facilities and resources of the Orange County Public Library system are significantly below the standard required to provide effective public library services. Library staff has been creative and resourceful in "making do" with very limited resources. Chart #1 compares the resources available in 2002-2003 to Orange County residents from the Central Library with those at the Chapel Hill Public Library and in the State as a whole. It demonstrates the disparity in available resources and the inadequacy of resources in relation to state averages and professional standards. 2002-2003 is the most recent year that comparative figures are available for North Carolina as a whole,