St. Charles County residents rally against potential library closures
O’FALLON, Mo. – A crowd of residents showed up to protest the potential closure of three county libraries at Tuesday night’s St. Charles City-County Library Board of Trustees meeting.
A rally was held before the meeting at Middendorf-Kredell branch off Highway K in O’Fallon, which brought in a crowd once it began at 7 p.m. One by one, residents got up during an extended, 60-minute public comment period to urge the board to reconsider the potential closures.
County resident and mother, Kelly Schroeder, said the closures would mean her young family would have to drive much further to take advantage of the services they pay for through their tax dollars. She was encouraged by how many people showed up to make their voices heard on Tuesday.
“It’s hard to be divisive about a library. That’s one thing everybody can agree on,” she said.
Rising third grader Anna Gertsema showed up to help save Kisker Library, one of the three branches named last Friday in the board’s discussion about the potential closures.
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“They wanted to close it forever. And I was like, ‘That’s not going to happen,’” Gertsema said. “I just want to save it.”
The three libraries at risk of closing are McClay Library in St. Charles, Kisker Library near Weldon Springs and Deer Run Library in O’Fallon.
Last Friday, library CEO Jason Kuhl said rising costs of electronic books are partly to blame for a projected budget shortfall. The library reports spending roughly $50,000 per month on e-books.
Proximity is also a concern, but Kuhl said the three branches are close to other county libraries, meaning people would still have options close by.
The turnout Tuesday was larger than most board of trustees meetings, with dozens of people taking the podium to make their voices heard during the public comment period. One resident called for more transparency, while others emphasized the importance of keeping the branches open and cutting costs elsewhere.
County officials tell FOX 2 they still want to hear from residents, asking them to email the board at board@stchlibrary.org with their concerns.
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