Madison Public Library board approves 2026 cost-to-continue budget and supplemental priorities for Imagination Center operations

The Madison Public Library Board on Tuesday approved the library’s 2026 cost-to-continue operating budget of $22,768,274 and a prioritized supplemental request to cover partial-year opening costs for the Imagination Center, a new library facility the system plans to open in 2026.

The vote to approve the base budget and the supplemental priorities was put by the board after a presentation by Tana, the library director, and finance staff. Tana said the base figure is the city’s “cost to continue” amount after adjustments and clarified that the city’s efficiency target for agencies was 0.77 percent for the library.

The supplemental request presented by staff totals roughly $326,040 for 2026 operating costs tied directly to opening the Imagination Center (staffing, part-year wages and supplies). The board approved a prioritized list of reductions the library would implement if the supplemental is not fully funded. Those reductions, in the approved priority order, are: (1) eliminate Sunday hours at Goodman, South…