Olive voters on Tuesday will decide whether to approve a nearly 50% funding increase for the Olive Free Library. The referendum seeks to expand the taxpayer contribution to the library’s budget from the $193,142 to $289,642, a jump of $96,500.
The increase, which would amount to about $59 a year for the average Olive household, is intended to help staff and operate the library’s new Shokan branch, and raise salaries for existing staff up to industry standards, according to Library Board Member Kim Daley.
“Opening the Shokan branch was huge for us,” said Daley, one of the architects of the proposition and a candidate for Olive Town Clerk. “We have hopes and dreams that we would never realize without more funding.”
Among those hopes, Daley said, are expanding the library’s free offerings to the public — including access to apps like Hoopla and Libby, which provide e-books and other media; additional free subscriptions to newspapers such as The New York Times; and hosting activities such as yoga and tai chi classes, sewing groups, mahjong clubs, ukulele lessons, art exhibitions, and live music events.
“The checking out of digital and physical media are at all-time highs,” Daley said. “We know it’s a big ask, but there are some small towns that don’t have libraries. It is vital for Olive.”
The library, a nonprofit organization that receives private donations, is not operated by the Town of Olive. It is allowed, through its designation as an “Association Library”, to directly solicit taxpayers for funding via referendum. The library’s total budget is $363,000.
In neighboring Shandaken, another referendum is asking taxpayers to approve increases of 33% and 17% for libraries in Pine Hill and Phoenicia, respectively. The average increase per household would be $7.31 annually.
“This addition to our budgets is to meet rising expenses since our last budget vote two years ago,” said Elizabeth Potter, the Phoenicia Library director. She said the increased funding would go toward higher book and utility costs, cost-of-living adjustments, and growing expenses for building maintenance and technology.
Jim Rich is a senior reporter for The Overlook. You can reach him at jim@theoverlooknews.com.