Supervisor rips library chief over Felton closing (Santa Cruz)

[struggle4progress]

Stone: Behind-the-scenes actions ‘outrageous’
By JONDI GUMZ
Sentinel staff writer

FELTON — County Supervisor Mark Stone vowed Thursday to fight a proposal to shut the Felton branch library, berating county library chief Anne Turner for telling him it was a done deal prior to any public discussion. <snip>

Less than 48 hours after hearing their library was on the chopping block, they organized a protest rally Thursday afternoon outside the branch, More than 60 people showed up, carrying home-made signs reading "Felton reads," "Kids Need Libraries," and "Don’t Mess with Felton."

The protesters ranged from Zachary Clifford, 5, who comes to the storytime on Thursdays with his mother, to Dylan Carls, 12, a regular after-school visitor, Holly Tyler, 48, a once-a-week patron, and Fran Adamson, 76, who called the library "a treasure." <snip>

http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/archive/2005/April/29/local/stories/01local.htm

[LdyGuique]

1. This is sad

California has been having budget issues with libraries that go back at least 20 years -- extreme cutbacks, etc. Similarly, Buffalo NY recently had all of its libraries on the budget chopping block -- although they successfully rallied the public and got enough budget back to continue operating at all locations with fewer hours and services overall.