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<br /> Jim Saul, 2780 Elinor, Vi ce Cha i rperson of the Future of Our Library <br /> Committee, said the committee decided new facilities for the library should be <br /> e considered because the population of Eugene has doubled since the present <br /> building was constructed in 1959, the number of volumes in the library has <br /> increased from 57,000 to over 250,000 since 1959, the library's annual <br /> circulation has increased to 1.2 million, about 400,000 people use the library <br /> annually, and about 1,200 meetings are held in the library annually. He said <br /> the airport probably is the most-used public facility and the library probably <br /> is the second most-used facility in the city. <br /> In planning for new facilities, Mr. Saul said the committee considered the <br /> many services the library provides. He reviewed the reasons why the committee <br /> recommended a future library of 90,000 to 120,000 square feet. He said the <br /> committee decided that an adequate main library is essential and that branch <br /> libraries should not be considered until later. <br /> Mr. Saul said several City documents indicate that the main library should be <br /> in the downtown. He said the purpose of the siting criteria in the report is <br /> to identify the best site for a future library. The committee indicated a <br /> weighting system for the siting criteria in the report. The criteria are: <br /> size of site, financing and cost considerations, access i bil i ty, public <br /> support/ease of acquisition, land use considerations, parking availability, <br /> and impact of the library on surrounding traffic patterns. <br /> Mayor Obie opened the public hearing. <br /> . <br /> Martha Rice, 2610 Highland Oaks Drive, said she represented a special <br /> committee formed by the Eugene Library Board of Trustees, the Friends of the <br /> e Library, and the Eugene Library Foundation. The committee has initiated a <br /> campaign to raise $200,000 for new library books. She said 80 percent of the <br /> library's books are over five years old and last year 8,500 books that were <br /> worth almost $170,000 were removed from the shelves because they were worn <br /> out. She said the library's annual book budget is only $90,000. The American <br /> Library Association estimates that five percent of a library's books should be <br /> replaced annually. That would cost $250,000 each year. She said problems <br /> have compounded because the library's book budget has not been adequate for <br /> several years. <br /> Ms. Rice said the organizations supporting the book acquisition campaign <br /> recognize that funding the library is a City responsibility. The campaign is <br /> a one-time effort to slow the deterioration of the book collection until a <br /> long-term solution is found. She asked the counci lors to support the <br /> campaign. She distributed a brochure titled 1I0verdue--Time to Renew.1I <br /> There being no additional requests to testify, Mayor Obie closed the public <br /> hearing. <br /> Mr. Holmer said the recommendations in the Preliminary Report are very broad <br /> and he is not prepared to approve them without knowing about costs. He <br /> referred specifically to the report's third recommendation which states that <br /> plans for satellite library facilities should be put into effect within five <br /> years of completion of the main library. Ms. Decker responded that <br /> e MINUTES--Eugene City Council December 8, 1986 Page 2 <br />