FRAMINGHAM – Plans to cut back weekend hours at the McAuliffe Library as part of city budget reductions appear to have changed, and the branch will likely keep its existing weekend schedule: open on both weekend days except in July and August, when it closes on Sundays (same as the main library downtown).
Background: The city is in the midst of trying to hammer out a budget after the City Council voted 9-1 to send Mayor Sisitsky’s initial $402 million back for revision. That budget had called for a 4.5% tax increase plus using a $14 million in free cash, according to Mary Kate Feeney’s District 3 update.
The revised budget recently presented to the City Council Finance Subcommittee included eliminating all weekend hours at the McAuliffe Library in July and August, and opening only on Saturdays the rest of the year. So, there would have been no Sunday hours at the branch library at all for the entire year. Meanwhile, operating hours at the main library downtown would not have changed at all.
A number of people including some City Councilors (and me) were unhappy about the branch service reduction.
However, Library Directory Dawn Dellasanta emailed me early this evening that “the City administration and City Council have identified funding to preserve the McAuliffe Branch weekend hours that were at risk. The Branch will remain open on Saturdays in the summer and Sundays in the fall.” I was told this was discussed at tonight’s City Council Finance Subcommittee meeting, but I wasn’t able to attend or tune in tonight.
The McAuliffe Library is the only indoor city public space north of Rte. 9 for adult Framingham residents (unless your house is on fire). There is no police station north of Rte. 9, no senior center, no City Hall, no adult education, no planned community center, no public meeting rooms . . . just the branch library. That’s it. (Hopefully someday the Athenaeum on Concord Street in Saxonville will reopen as a public space, but that will be awhile.) Most city services are not centrally located.
Given that larger view, it did not seem reasonable to ask the lone city service north of Rte. 9 for adult residents to take the entire brunt of library service cuts. I’m glad it looks like service will be maintained.
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