admin posted on June 16, 2010 09:21
Special Meeting June 20, 2010
The Matthews Town Board of Commissioners discussed the funding needs of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Public Library System Monday night during their regular board meeting Monday night.
During the last couple of months Mayor Jim Taylor and Town Manager Hazen Blodgett have attended meetings with their counterparts on how the municipalities in the county could possibly aid the library in their budget shortfall. The Library System is facing significant budget cuts that include closing library branches and layoffs.
The Library System has asked the Towns of Matthews, Davidson, Huntersville, Cornelius, Pineville, Mint Hill, and the City of Charlotte to make a contribution to the Library. The Library typically receives no monies from these municipalities. The bulk of their budget is supplied from county property taxes.
“Matthews Town Board members are committed to keeping the library open however there has been no guarantee that if the Town commits money that the Matthews branch would remain open. The Library Board of Trustees has stated that any monies given to the library system would be used for the entire system and not dedicated to a specific branch. This is a problem for us. While we are sympathetic to their financial crisis we want to ensure that any funds we contribute allows our branch to remain open,” commented Mayor Jim Taylor. “The Matthews branch is the busiest one in the county and we know that thousands of people use it. We will continue to work with everyone to ensure that our branch remains open.”