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Vanderbilt Beach residents urge commissioners to keep branch open; volunteers present petitions and funding ideas
Summary
Residents and the Friends of the Vanderbilt Beach Library told the Collier County Board of County Commissioners that the small branch draws steady local use and they urged the county not to close it amid budget review. The group presented thousands of petition signatures and proposed sponsorship and public‑private funding options.
Members of the Vanderbilt Beach community addressed the Board of County Commissioners on June 10 to urge the county to retain the Vanderbilt Beach branch during the upcoming budget process.
Susan Zender, representing the Friends of the Vanderbilt Beach Library committee, told the board petitioners had collected over 3,600 signatures and more than 1,700 in‑person signatures supporting the branch. She described the branch as important for Summer Reading Program visits, a long‑running book discussion group, and as a local source of Wi‑Fi, printing and computer access used by students, jobseekers and mobility‑challenged patrons.
Marcia Onik, who also spoke on Zoom on behalf of the library committee, highlighted a county strategic plan goal to deliver high‑quality public services and proposed a menu of funding options the committee identified, including sponsorships and public‑private partnerships. Onik said one potential revenue source could be implemented by Sept. 1 if approved and noted the library advisory board and library administration had received the group’s funding strategies.
County staff told commissioners there is no decision to close the branch and that library funding strategies are under discussion as budget workshops approach. Commissioners asked staff to consider community proposals and to include library funding options as part of the budget process.
No formal board action was taken at the meeting; the speakers asked commissioners to protect the branch and to consider faster implementation of donation and sponsorship mechanisms.
