County staff and Flagstaff partners presented a detailed account of a countywide tour of Coconino County libraries on Nov. 24, emphasizing the services libraries provide to rural communities and several near‑term investments.

Strategic initiatives director James Orlowski and Library Director Linda Tilson co‑presented. They described the library district’s unique partnership with the City of Flagstaff under an intergovernmental agreement and noted the secondary tax levy that funds district services. Presenters recounted stops including the bookmobile, the correctional facility library, the county law library, Sedona, East Flagstaff, Forest Lakes, Fredonia, Grand Canyon, Page, Tuba City and Williams.

The board heard several operational highlights: the county is procuring a new bookmobile (staff estimated delivery and build timing during the budget process), Mark from City IT is preparing deployment of 250 new public computers, and the County is working on RFID and self‑checkout procurement for Page. Linda Tilson noted improvements in city–county communications after the tour, and staff underscored partnerships that allow Flagstaff to provide cataloging and IT support for outlying libraries.

Presenters emphasized the libraries' role as community centers: Forest Lakes uses movable shelving and a community kitchen; Page maintains an extensive "library of things" (luggage, tools, 3‑D printer) and runs programming that won national recognition; Tuba City library furniture and seed libraries serve tribal communities; the county law library provides multilingual forms and free legal consultations.

Supervisors offered thanks and recognition to library staff and volunteers. Multiple supervisors stressed the bookmobile’s importance to rural access and asked staff to continue coordinating library needs with the upcoming budget process.

Next steps: staff will continue library coordination with the City of Flagstaff, proceed with IT deployments and RFID projects, and include facility needs in upcoming budget discussions.