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Library reports $47,000 in one‑time donations and large annual gifts; council acceptance required for major gifts
Summary
At the Carlsbad City Library Board of Trustees meeting on Aug. 27, Management Analyst Debbie Jo McCool presented a semiannual donation report showing more than $47,000 in one‑time donations for Jan. 1–June 30, 2025 and sizable annual gifts from library support organizations.
At the Carlsbad City Library Board of Trustees meeting on Aug. 27, Management Analyst Debbie Jo McCool presented the semiannual donation report covering one‑time donations received between Jan. 1 and June 30, 2025 and the annual contributions from support organizations.
McCool reported 18 individual one‑time contributors during the period whose gifts totaled more than $47,000. Of that amount, $1,527 was unspecified, about $525 was designated for book purchases, $1,015 supported genealogy and Carlsbad history programming, $4,500 funded a pop‑up art program at the 2025 TGIF Concert in the Park series and a $40,000 one‑time project was designated for an outdoor percussion‑instrument installation.
Annual support organizations reported donations presented to the City Council for acceptance under Carlsbad Municipal Code 2.080.1: $100,000 from the Friends of the Carlsbad Library; more than $195,000 from the Carlsbad Library and Arts Foundation (which also made the separate $40,000 one‑time donation and a $4,500 contribution); and $25,000 from the Carlsbad Friends of the Arts.
"It is always a privilege for me to present the donation report and highlight the many ways these donations impact the library and culture arts offerings," Debbie Jo McCool said.
McCool explained how donations are accepted (cash, check, credit card, online) and recognized: donors who request books have book plates placed in purchased items; donations above $250 are posted on the department web page for one year; donations of $5,000 or less may be accepted by the city manager per the city's delegation of authority; and donations greater than $5,000 are presented to the City Council for acceptance.
Trustees thanked staff and donors; McCool and Director Suzanne Smithson noted that support organization gifts fund programs such as Summer Reading, Carlsbad Reads Together, auditorium programming and gallery exhibits.
