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Strong Communities funds drive uptick in library and recreation programs, staff report
Summary
City staff reported increases in program participation and new initiatives supported by the Strong Communities measure, including bookmobile circulation, a Play Mobile neighborhood program, teen college-and-career offerings and expanded aquatics activities.
Chris Ferro, director of community services, told the Strong Communities Advisory Committee on March 13 that several library and recreation programs supported by Measure M have seen increased participation and new offerings over the past year.
Ferro said the bookmobile experienced a 6% increase in circulation this fiscal year with more than 3,100 checkouts and renewals. He said winter reading drew more than 3,300 participants who logged about 73,000 books during the winter break. Ferro also reported that a newly rebranded junior NBA basketball program saw a 51% participation increase with 445 participants in one season.
Ferro described the Play Mobile, a mobile library and recreation vehicle that visits neighborhood parks from spring through fall; staff said it had made 80 park visits so far. He said the city launched a mobile library and recreation program last summer and that a new day-trip program for teens has provided supervised trips including visits to SeaQuest and the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
On aquatics, Ferro said the city’s aquatics unit hosted more than 11,000 pool patrons last summer and provided free swim lessons; the city is offering free lifeguard certification classes and has hosted college-and-career readiness activities for teens including financial-literacy classes, college information nights and a teen job fair run with the Stockton Kings.
Ferro said the Strong Communities expenditure plan aligns with objectives to restore services reduced during bankruptcy, prioritize investments with high community benefit, improve assets in underserved areas and leverage partnerships. He noted that the Strong Communities Tax went into effect April 1, 2017, and is scheduled to expire in February of the sunset year referenced by staff.
During public comment Julie Dunning urged the committee to consider reopening or repurposing a vacant teen impact center to provide services for teens; she said the center provided valuable services through mid-2020 and has remained vacant since then. Ferro and other staff acknowledged the comment and said the suggestion would be considered under future objectives.
