Resolution No. 5307 - Laserfiche WebLink

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RESOLUTION NO. 5307 A RESOLUTION CALLING A CITY ELECTION ON NOVEMBER 3, 2020, FOR THE PURPOSE OF REFERRING TO THE LEGAL ELECTORS OF THE CITY OF EUGENE A MEASURE AUTHORIZING A FIVE-YEAR LOCAL OPTION LEVY FOR THE FUNDING OF LIBRARY OPERATIONS. The City Council of the City of Eugene Finds as follows: A. The Eugene Public Library's mission is to support an informed community, lifelong learning, and the love of reading by providing access for all city residents to the universe of ideas and information. The library provides inclusive and equitable information access for all of Eugene that contributes to the education, development, and growth of our community. The library is a leader in the areas of community building, public computer access, early literacy, and free, enriching programs for all ages. The library is heavily used by our community and has been repeatedly recognized as being within our nation's top three percent of public libraries for excellence in cost-effective delivery of key services. B. The City of Eugene has a history of supporting its library. In 1906, the first Eugene Public Library, named the Carnegie Library, opened at 1lth and Willamette. Over time, the Carnegie Library no longer met the needs of the growing community. In 1959, the library moved into a new building at Olive and 13th. By the 1990's, Eugene had grown significantly, and the community desired a larger library to meet its new needs. The Mayor and City Council, supported by the voters, decided to open two branch libraries as well as build a new downtown library. Since its completion in 2002, the Downtown Library has been an anchor to downtown redevelopment. In 2000, the Bethel and Sheldon Branch Libraries opened in leased facilities with levy funding. These neighborhood locations are vital to accessible service delivery for community members in all parts of the city, especially for kids after school. After two years with reduced hours, voter - approved levy funding doubled open hours at both branches beginning July 2016. C. In FY19, the library served over 3,000 visitors daily at three locations, and the library's collection was utilized over three million times. Annually, the library provides almost 2,300 free programs, ranging from story -times and classes to entertainment. Over 65,000 community members of all ages attend these free programs every year. The library's three locations provided over 1.7 million wireless sessions and over 145,000 Internet computer user sessions. D. The City's library services are funded by the City's General Fund, donated funds, and the five-year operating levy approved by the voters in 2015. The FY21 General Fund budget of $12,271,893 pays for the following services: a. Downtown Library services - 61 hours across seven days a week. b. Bethel and Sheldon Branch services - 26 hours over five days a week.