National City advisory board debates police officer at library after multiple incidents

At a recent meeting of the National City Library Advisory Board, members discussed the library’s decision to place a police officer on site for about 20 hours a week after staff reported several security incidents, including an instance involving a man with a knife.

The discussion centered on safety for patrons and staff, the board’s role as an advisory body and concerns that a uniformed police presence could deter some patrons. A library staff member said, “we did start the police officer, at the library. Essentially, we'll be at the library for 20 hours a week,” and described scheduled coverage as Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from roughly 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturdays until about 5 p.m., with no on-site police on Tuesdays and Fridays.

The library staff member told the board that staff had experienced “a man with a knife in the library” and multiple incidents that staff could not safely handle alone. The staff member said the officer was intended both as a visible deterrent and as a responder to higher-level incidents that private security or library employees cannot address.

Several board members said they were not notified before the staffing decision. Margaret, a board member, said she had “expressed at the council meeting my strong opposition to having this presence in the library,” adding she believed the presence could undermine the openness and inclusivity libraries are meant to provide. Another board member said they were “very concerned about undocumented people and feeling safe in some spaces,” while also noting librarians’ mental-health burdens from handling crises.

Board members and other speakers raised alternatives and follow-up questions: whether the library had explored other security vendors or nonpolice responses, whether officers assigned to the branch receive de-escalation or mental-health training, and whether the advisory board should have been consulted before the change. A speaker said there had been consideration of replacing the officer with an explorer program in future to reduce cost and the “intimidation factor.”

Library staff said the change was made after reviewing prior private security arrangements, which staff said were effective for lower-level incidents but insufficient for more serious situations. Staff also said the officer assignment was intended to reduce recurring problems from some regular patrons and from incidents involving teenagers and weapons.

Board members asked staff to provide more information about the decision-making process, the budgetary implications and the officers’ training. A board member said, “We are an advisory board not an administrative board,” and asked that decisions of this magnitude be brought to the board for discussion going forward. Library staff said they provide orientation for officers about library expectations and will seek to supply additional information to the board.

No formal change to library policy or to the staffing plan for the officer was recorded in the meeting discussion. The board asked staff to return with more details about alternatives, training for officers, and any budget impacts.

Votes at a glance

• Consent agenda (motion to approve agenda and minutes): approved. The transcript records a motion to approve the consent agenda and a roll call with an "Aye" from Chair Goksoff; the meeting transcript does not include a complete roll-call tally or named mover/second for the consent motion.