Around the Creek: City Finds Way to Maintain Library Hours

One outcome of the City Council's goal-setting retreat last week was that it found funds to keep the downtown and Ygnacio Valley libraries open at the current number of hours for four years.

Walnut Creek voters passed Measure Q in 2002 to increase the hours at both libraries from 35 to 56. But Measure Q expired in July, the same month the new downtown library opened.

There have been questions about whether the city would need to return to voters and ask for another tax to maintain the 56 hours. The city initially said it could cover the costs of the hours for two years.

But the need now is less pressing, according to City Manager Ken Nordhoff. He announced at Tuesday's City Council meeting that the city had saved enough money to pay for those hours for the next four years.

Both libraries are operated by the county but Walnut Creek voters decided with Measure Q, passed in 2002, to help pay for the additional hours. The city will pay $539,000 to $635,000 each year to staff the additional hours.