In the town of Shutesbury, Mass., a proposed $3.5 million library has finally passed through three rounds at the polls by a single highly contested vote – an uncomfortable 523-522 that will likely be petitioned for a recount by the new building’s opponents.
While I am highly in favor of a new library, even I – a bibliophile and academic with a library card bearing a sprawling third-grade signature – can understand why the proposal has endured such heavy resistance. These are hard times financially, and without the fundraising promised by library supporters, Shutesbury residents could see an average tax increase of $113 a year, totaling approximately $2,296 over the course of the 20-year bond required to pay off the building. At first, and for many, these figures seem daunting. But over 20 years that $2,296 boils down to about $9.50 a month, which is less than some of the caffeine-driven pay for a week’s worth of Starbucks and what seems to be a steal for a state-of-the-art facility.
A new library will provide a meeting place, a space for community and cultural events and expanded library services. And while one of the main arguments against the building may be the increased financial strain on residents who are already struggling, a contemporary library may be just what Shutesbury needs in this depressed economy. Modern libraries no longer simply provide access to shelves of plastic-jacket tomes and encyclopedias; they are also an incredible way to access otherwise expensive technologies for free. The Milwaukee Public Library saw a 23 percent increase in DVD lending when comparing the months of December 2007 and December 2008. Another Wisconsin library, Racine Public Library, saw its CD lending increase 23 percent and its DVD lending increase 18 percent. The members of these libraries have taken advantage of otherwise expensive rentals or purchases that can be obtained from their library with the simple scan of a plastic card (also free). In fact, if residents of Shutesbury borrowed just two DVDs or CDs a month from the library, the transaction would value more than the $9.50 paid in taxes.
What’s more, many libraries provide free wireless Internet access to laptop users and those who can afford neither computer nor Internet can access both at a library. The Racine Public Library even provides resources for the unemployed to receive help navigating largely online-based applications and job-finding search engines. This is a boon to jobless residents, who may no longer be able to afford a computer or Internet bill and have no hopes of obtaining one without first securing a job.
But let us not forget the library’s original offering: books. Again, when comparing December 2007 to December 2008, the Milwaukee Public Library has seen the lending of children’s paperbacks increase 76 percent and Racine Public Library has seen library card registration increase by 14 percent. (ibid) For a struggling parent, children’s books can be a luxury, and not a practical item to purchase; the same can be said of any literary purchase for themselves. Libraries provide a free avenue for the community’s academic and intellectual enrichment, and a new library would be a worthwhile investment for the future.
After all, the town’s current M. N. Spear Library will be a century old this year. Shutesbury residents know how to make their libraries last, and the proposed building could last just as long, if not longer. Furthermore, M. N. Spear suffers from the aches of its old age: built in 1902, the building is just 900 sq. ft., is not handicap accessible and has no running water.
The debate in Shutesbury draws into light the interesting power play between intellectual advancement and the economy, the effects of which we have seen at work on the UMass campus. As the University grapples with budget cuts, we must ask ourselves what that means for the perceived value of knowledge and education, and Shutesbury residents must do the same. From universities to libraries, the opportunity for erudition will allow our generation and the next to fashion a better, sustainable future and to reinvent the very economy that is holding us back.
And that is priceless.
Melissa Mahoney is a Collegian columnist and can be reached at [email protected].
