Dearborn’s Snow Branch Library to Close Sept. 2
Say goodbye to Dearborn’s Snow Branch Library, the first casualty of Dearborn’s budget cutting.
The last day of service to the community for Snow is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 2.
Dearborn, like many municipalities in the metro area, is faced with extremely difficult decisions in order to balance the budget.
While the closure of Snow Branch is an example of one of those decisions, the City is retaining all library services through the Henry Ford Centennial Library on Michigan Avenue as well as the Bryant Branch Library, 22100 Michigan Ave. and the Esper Branch Library at 12929 W. Warren Ave.
In addition, because of the reciprocal borrowing agreement with Dearborn Heights, Dearborn residents can use the Caroline Kennedy Library at 24590 George Street and the John F. Kennedy, Jr. Library at 24602 Van Born Road.
The return drop box at the Snow Branch Library will be open until the end of September to accommodate those patrons returning library material.
August 30th, 2011 at 5:41 pm
The worst aspect of the closing is that even if we Dearborn taxpayers approve the additional library tax of 1 mil, it won’t be spent on keeping the branches open, but on improvements to existing ones. Disgraceful.
August 30th, 2011 at 9:18 pm
What about the Public Health Department? That was slated to close as well. It is a shame a Library must close. Possibly put some type of fee system in place to help keep the Libraries open. Open it to those who are willing to pay for it. As for the Health Department, good riddance. I pay outrageous health care coverage for my family, I am glad to see some of my taxes will now not be used to fund others health care. If you can’t pay, you can’t have, simple math in today’s economy.
August 30th, 2011 at 9:23 pm
this is horrible news. instead of building up strong neighborhoods with local libraries we are “centralizing”. Lots of people walk up to Snow library. Now what? drive to Bryant? nowhere to park? this is a step backwards for Dearborn.
August 30th, 2011 at 10:33 pm
This is really so sad to hear. This was a great library and close to several schools. It will be missed. Too bad people did not rally around the libraries like they did for the pools. Libraries are at least used year around and by a wider range of people.
August 31st, 2011 at 12:01 am
So mayor puddin pants finally closed the library, hopefully next he can close the pools, sell camp Dearborn, scrap city lighting, layoff cops and fire, and then with the money he saves he can hire more third party contractors to write master plans in a city no one wants to live in. Congratulations on having the foresight to impalement the very 1996 polices In 2011 that destroyed our economy. More contractors, more project managers, new train stations and a new convention center. The best thing O’Reilly can do is take his ball and go home
August 31st, 2011 at 1:48 am
Elected officials in this town should be ashamed of their selves!! They will close that library and it will sit empty for several years, for the property to become run down and worthless.
August 31st, 2011 at 3:37 am
So poor people should not have health care. How sad.
August 31st, 2011 at 1:42 pm
do the books get recycled into the other libraries? I hope so! what is the status of Dearborn residents being able to use the State of Michigan reciprocal library system?
September 1st, 2011 at 1:15 am
Mary Anne
As cold as it may sound, I think the word “poor” is over used. I use poor choices. People who choose to spent money on cigarettes, getting their hair and nails done, cell phones, thousand dollar glasses…, the list goes on, they are not poor, they make poor choices. I should not have to pay for their lack of smart decisions in life. I pay for everything I have, if I can’t afford it, I don’t expect someone to give it to me.
September 1st, 2011 at 1:17 am
Bluto O’Reilly has struck again. Nice job big fella — u continue to amaze us residents, with your slip-shot management style (whoever is guiding u is as big a waste as u). Eat another whopper you big idiot.
September 1st, 2011 at 1:21 am
One simple solution, vote down everything on the upcoming election, because u haven’t seen any cuts yet by the big boy. Down with the millages.
September 2nd, 2011 at 6:15 pm
My mom worked here for over ten years [ plus another 12 yrs at Bryant and Centennial ] The week she retired, she came back to volunteer at Snow, and that continued for another 14 years. She had so many friends throughout the Dearborn Library system. I’m sure this would have brought tears to her. Best wishes to all the FOLD members
September 3rd, 2011 at 4:36 pm
Home values in Dearborn have fallen by around $100,000 (from an average of $153,000 in 2005 to $53,000 and still falling – see Dearborn Press & Guide 7/8/11). Since cities are so dependent on property taxes (both commercial and residential), it is hard to imagine that Dearborn would be able keep even half of its services without a millage. And though there is waste, the city has been fiscally responsible almost to a fault in some cases. Take for example the greatly reduced benefits for all new full-time general employees: they don’t get pensions (it’s been this way for about 10 years), they receive high deductible health care plans, and their health care ends when they retire. In other words, Dearborn has set itself on a path to virtually get rid of so-called “legacy” costs, at least for general employees. On top of this, all general employees are about to receive a 10% pay cut.
I believe Dearborn is a good city with good services. It has potential, doesn’t it? But without new revenue, the city services and quality of life here would be greatly impacted. There will be two millages on the Nov ballot: a 3.5 operating millage (for no more than 5 years) and 1 mill for the library (for no more than 10 years).
Here’s one of the advisory questions that will be on the ballot in Nov (this is from the City Council meeting minutes for July 12, 2011) – kind of a “multiple choice”:
A) DEARBORN SHOULD FUND THE MAIN CENTENNIAL LIBRARY AND 3 BRANCH LIBRARIES AT AN ESTIMATED ANNUAL OPERATING COST OF $5,000,000
B) DEARBORN SHOULD FUND THE MAIN CENTENNIAL LIBRARY AND 2 BRANCH LIBRARIES AT AN ESTIMATED ANNUAL OPERATING COST OF $4,800,000
C) DEARBORN SHOULD FUND THE MAIN CENTENNIAL LIBRARY AND 1 BRANCH LIBRARY AT AN ESTIMATED ANNUAL OPERATING COST OF $4,600,000
D) DEARBORN SHOULD ONLY FUND THE MAIN CENTENNIAL LIBRARY AT AN ESTIMATED ANNUAL OPERATING COST OF $4,400,000
E) DEARBORN SHOULD NOT FUND ANY LIBRARY BUILDINGS
Rumor is that if residents approve the millages and vote to have one main library and 3 branches, then Snow Branch *might* reopen. If residents vote down the library millage, the rest of the branches will close and maybe even the main library as well. If that happens, it will be a sad, sad day for Dearborn.
Please check out the rest of the Council minutes for 7-12-11 because there you will find the millage questions and other advisory questions – how many pools should Dearborn have? How much funding should the Historical Museum receive? Should leaf pickup be eliminated? Should the Civil Service System be eliminated? The minutes are located at cityofdearborn.org > government > city council > city council minutes > 2011 minutes > July 12 2011
September 4th, 2011 at 3:20 am
Milage schmilage. Snow closes so Somers can pay his verdicts.
Dearborn WAKE UP and smell the cheeseburgers.
Send a message to the city. Vote no to the Somers tax. Still won’t help the poor library.
September 4th, 2011 at 12:57 pm
We just had a milage increase to 15mil. The charter commission snuck that in and we voted for it in the approval of the new charter. They overrode the Headlee Amendment (I still wonder if that was even legal) Lets see what they do with that increase before we give them ANYMORE! VOTE NO!
September 6th, 2011 at 12:39 am
So each branch library costs $200,000 and the main library costs $4.4 million. I vote to keep three branch libraries for a cost of $600,000 and close the main library…
September 7th, 2011 at 3:03 am
Dbnresident,
Your words tug at me but I know too much about the poor use of our tax money. I can’t encourage anybody to give again. There was plenty and it was, and is, misused. Nobody should consider passing another millage for people to take money and use it improperly. We need ALL NEW leadership.
September 7th, 2011 at 11:20 pm
yes, sad truth I agree. I struggle every day and go without.
go to access, maybe they will do something.
helping hand is okay, but not all free. and i do not trust this mayor and his posse.
September 8th, 2011 at 11:35 pm
Judy, I think you have hit on something…the Centennial Library didn’t open until 1971 or so…can we have a viable library system without it? We did before 1971. And, why does that building cost so much? There are more computers there than at the branches, but $4.4 Million sounds like a lot.
September 11th, 2011 at 8:48 pm
The reason that it costs less to run each branch is that the central services are housed at Henry Ford Centennial. Also included in that figure would be all of the things that are shared out from there, like the books and DVDs and other stuff. It would cost more that $200,000 per branch to run them completely on their own.
September 11th, 2011 at 8:48 pm
The reason that it costs less to run each branch is that the central services are housed at Henry Ford Centennial. Also included in that figure would be all of the things that are shared out from there, like the books and DVDs and other stuff. It would cost more that $200,000 per branch to run them completely on their own.
September 15th, 2011 at 1:39 am
The Police Dept costs 10 mils and the Fire Dept costs 4 mils. That leaves 1 mil for everything else. And it seems to me, with the uptick in crime, this is not a good time to reduce Public Safety, which can’t be done anyway because of the minimum staffing level provisions in the Charter (which is interesting because I’ve heard that the city has never fulfilled the minimum level for Police).
Bottom line – if the millages are not approved, Dearborn will only have 1 mil for services other than Public Safety. Most of this is due to the financial crisis and its aftermath, but I wonder how Dearborn can continue to keep its reputation for good city services without approving the millages.