Changes to Library Hours and Services

July 7, 2009
 
Dear Citizens of Gwinnett County,
 
It is Gwinnett County Public Library's honor and privilege to provide high-quality, comprehensive, and convenient library services and programs to the wonderful people of this community. As the county has grown and flourished, the library too has adjusted to the many changes. With the support of our citizens, we have been able to open branches all over the county, increase staff to satisfy library user needs, develop a website for our remote library users, and offer programming for children, teens, and adults.
 
In an effort to balance the County budget, Commissioners will undoubtedly implement cuts that impact all aspects of Gwinnett County, including Gwinnett County Public Library. While the Library does receive a small amount of funding from the state, the majority of our funding is from the County. 
 
The Library has made a number of significant cuts over the last six months, and we anticipate further cuts in 2010. Unfortunately, due to the difficult financial times, the library administration has been forced to make some drastic decisions that impact library hours, services, and programs. We have already implemented a hiring freeze and have now reached the tipping point where we can no longer provide full service with our reduced staff.
 
Regretfully, our customers will be impacted by these changes. Branches will be open fewer days and hours, and when they are open, they will be operating with reduced staff. There will be less programming, fewer titles from which to choose, and materials will not be shelved or placed on hold as quickly as customers expect.  
 
Therefore, the following changes will be effective August 9, 2009:

• Branches will reduce operating hours in order to adjust service to the reduced staff resources. Branches will observe the following schedule:

   

  Sunday:	CLOSED
  Monday:	CLOSED
  Tuesday:	10:00 am - 7:00 pm
  Wednesday:	10:00 am - 7:00 pm
  Thursday:	10:00 am - 7:00 pm
  Friday:	10:00 am - 6:00 pm
  Saturday:	10:00 am - 6:00 pm

   

• Security officers will no longer be scheduled at the six branches where they are currently used. We have made every effort to alert local law enforcement to increase their presence at the library branches in an effort to keep our library users safe and comfortable in our facilities.

In addition, the following changes will also occur:

• The annual Gwinnett Reading Festival is being suspended until further notice.
   
• The Materials budget (books, databases, DVDs, etc.) is being reduced by 8%.
   
• There will be a reduction in programming for children, teens, and adults at all branches.

While we hope to restore full services as the County's financial outlook improves, rest assured that, as always, our staff is committed to serving our customers with outstanding customer service and will continue to do so into the future.

Respectfully,
 

Nancy Stanbery-Kellam

Executive Director

Gwinnett County Public Library