Sweeping changes -- including library closures -- proposed in Timberland facilities plan

Timberland Regional Library system released a 2018 Capital Facilities Plan this week that proposes sweeping changes to the five-county system, including closing and consolidating some branches.

Board members will take their time digesting the report before taking any action, said TRL communications manager Jeff Kleingartner.

“We are planning for the year 2020 to kick off a new strategic plan,” Kleingartner said. “The Capital Facilities Plan is really just a ‘get people talking’ with some ideas about what libraries might look like in the near future.”

Among those proposals are that the Tenino branch would close down and combine services with the Tumwater location. Some services at the e-Library in Yelm would be discontinued as well.

Amanda Park, Hoquiam, Montesano, Oakville, Packwood, Salkum and South Bend are additional branches that would be closed under the proposal and services consolidated with other small branches nearby.

The staffs of the closed locations would be moved to surrounding libraries: Hoquiam to Aberdeen, Montesano to Elma, Oakville to Elma and Centralia, Packwood and Salkum to Mountain View, and South Bend to Raymond.

The plan and its proposed changes will not be made without public input, Kleingartner said. The earliest the vote could come would be on Oct. 24, but Kleingartner thinks it will likely be “weeks or months” before board members feel comfortable making a decision.

The proposals come amid financial issues for the Timberland system.

“Over the past few years, TRL has reached the point where revenues are not keeping up with expenditures,” the plan reads. “If we were to make no changes, TRL anticipates a deficit approximating $700,000 for 2019 and 2020.”

While some locations in the report are being proposed to shut down, there is expansion planned as well.

In both Lacey and Olympia, there are proposals to open buildings with a drive-through window, indoor seating and an expanded collection of books and movies along with a community meeting room.

Thurston County is a integral financial component of TRL. County taxpayers contribute 55 percent of the system’s revenue, but they receive 41 percent of the budget, according to the plan. There are currently five libraries in the county.

This story was originally published September 26, 2018 at 6:06 PM with the headline "Sweeping changes -- including library closures -- proposed in Timberland facilities plan."