A Library District for Boulder and beyond?

The Boulder Library Champions has advocated for 20 years to establish a new library district, and it may finally happen this November. Proposition 6C includes restored and improved literacy programs, including partnerships with schools to reach underserved students and students who fell behind during the pandemic; additional free and safe public spaces for community meeting, workshops, and programs; updated and improved collections of books and materials, including bilingual materials and e-books, movies, and music; extended hours at all existing libraries; a new branch in Gunbarrel; expanded access to stream programs, makerspaces, and free internet for young people, underserved communities, and seniors; and improved maintenance, cleanliness, safety, and security at all library facilities.

If Proposition 6C is passed, then the Boulder Public Library District taxes will be increased by a tax rate of 3.5 mills. That rate is estimated to be $23.80 annually per $100,000 of actual value for a home, and about four times higher for commercial property.

The proposed district boundaries include the City of Boulder, and all of Gunbarrel, both in the city and outside the city, but most of Niwot was excluded when the boundaries were finalized.

Arguments Against:

The TABOR booklet mailed to voters last month included statements that essentially said, “The system isn’t broken, and doesn’t need fixing.”

Comments included, “The City of Boulder Library System has won national and state awards.… In 2009, Boulder Public Library was named a four-star public library. In 2016, the Boulder Public Library won Colorado Library of the Year. In 2022 the City Library Budget was $9.18 Million and had 76 staff. For 2023, the proposed library budget is $11.1M and will add 11 staff. The proposed 2023 budget is a 21% increase from 2022 and a 44% increase over the last seven years.”

“This property tax is an overreach and could not come at a worse time, especially with other critical tax initiatives. Such a huge tax increase will adversely impact low- and moderate-income households, small businesses, and those on fixed incomes. Increases in property taxes will affect all property owners including the 51% of residential properties that are rentals. This will eventually be passed on by landlords to tenants making Boulder less affordable. Most business leases pass on property tax increases as part of the lease.”

Other arguments against the proposal include the loss of control to a library board with no voter oversight, and the fact that sales taxes, which now fund the Boulder library, will not decrease..

Arguments For:

“Libraries are a great leveler in our society, because they’re open to everyone,” said Joni Teter, a former Boulder Library Commissioner who is now co-chair of the Yes on 6C campaign. “They provide a platform for people interested in continuous learning for finding out information. Not everyone has access to 3D printers or other technological services or books. And so libraries were created at a time in this country, when the disparity in wealth between those who have and those who have not, was getting bigger and bigger over time. Public libraries were then created to provide opportunities for people and I just think that that’s really important. Especially for young people who have a hard road ahead of them and I don’t think that’s going to be different for future generations.”

“I actually wrote a paper against 6C back in 2019 or 2020,” said Doug Hamilton, who was dropping off pro-6C literature at people’s houses during a phone interview. “And then the pandemic hit and it pretty much decimated the library system that we have. So then I looked more into the library district proposal and I realized that it was probably the best way to fund our libraries. I started working with the campaign and eventually became the co-chair. …If 6C gets passed, we’ll be able to restore the original opening hours at the library, reopen the makerspace (the free community workshop dedicated to hands-on learning) and Carnegie Library.”

“The library is the living room of our community. I want it to be a functional space for everyone in the community to use and it would be nice to have a new library branch that’s closer to my home in Gunbarrel,” Hamilton concluded.