The Cupertino Courier
News
No library access to coffee shop or expanded hours
By Cody Kraatz
After hearing recommendations from the library commission, the Cupertino City Council voted unanimously Jan. 16 to hold off on expanding the library's operating hours.
The council also decided not to earmark $120,000 from the library's operating budget for automated checkout machines and new books. It instead directed city staff to ask Santa Clara County Library officials to find a way to open the Cupertino Library daily. Currently, the library is closed on Mondays.
The commission had recommended opening the library two hours earlier on Sundays and Tuesdays, starting July 1.
"Why not open the library seven days a week and take hours from other days for greater convenience to the community?" said Vice Mayor Patrick Kwok. "I think it would serve the community better to have it open seven days of the week rather than a few hours on Sunday. I think you get more bang for the buck."
The Cupertino Library is owned by the city but operated by the Santa Clara County Library system.
Agreeing with a commission recommendation, the council rejected a proposal to provide direct access between the library and the Coffee Society next door. The estimated cost was $115,000 to $150,000.
Kwok questioned the logic of spending money for the project when the library is not open every day.
Residents voiced concerns about noise and the potential damage to books and materials from beverages and food, and the resulting costs for cleanup.
"It is not the business of the city council to provide additional revenue to any business in the city," said Cupertino resident Barbara Rogers.
Her husband, Pat Rogers, added that he was more concerned that building a door or window would eliminate a quiet, comfortable reading area and require the removal of racks of magazines.
"Of course, I'm disappointed for our customers," said Jackie Streeter, co-owner of Coffee Society. "I was really hoping we could have made it possible to read in the library and enjoy coffee or have something to eat."
Other libraries in the Santa Clara County Library system are closed on Mondays. Several of them receive city funds to pay for extended hours, according to commission chairwoman Sheila Mohan.
Councilman Richard Lowenthal asked the commission to recommend ways to spend $120,000 in city funds, previously used to pay for extra hours on Sundays, that was made available when the city paid off a loan in October. The money had been redirected temporarily to pay off a $1.2 million loan to furnish the library when the 54,000-square-foot facility opened in 2004, said Mary-Ann Wallace, Cupertino's head librarian.
Before that, the money had kept the library open every day of the week, Kwok said.
The commission had chosen not to recommend the Monday hours because it would require hiring additional staff and cost $300,000 per year.
The commission recommended against the Coffee Society proposal, primarily because of the cost.
Under the commission's recommendation for the use of the freed-up funds, the library would have bought two 3M automated checkout machines for $24,000 each and spent $72,000 on the adult books collection.
"We do over 2.3 million circulation. We have a high volume of business, and another self-checkout machine would help a lot," said Wallace. The library has eight automated checkout machines.
If the council had approved the commission's recommendations, the library would have opened at noon Sundays, instead of 2 p.m., and at 10 a.m. on Tuesdays, instead of noon, starting July 1.
The Cupertino Library is open from 2 to 6 p.m. Sunday, noon to 9 p.m. Tuesday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
