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Library seeks funding to open a third evening and add maintenance staff
Summary
The library director asked the Greenburgh town board to fund a part‑time hire and seasonal DPW/caretaker to open the library one additional evening per week and to address maintenance and rising utility costs; the board raised questions about operating vs. capital funding and grant limitations.
The Greenburgh library director (speaker 14) told the town board the library is heavily used and requested additional part‑time staffing to open Monday evenings from 5:00 to 8:30 p.m., plus a seasonal DPW/caretaker to handle maintenance tasks. The director said she is proposing the extra evening in the part‑time line and estimated the annual cost for that single additional night at roughly $25,000–$30,000.
Why it matters: The library serves both unincorporated Greenburgh residents and users from neighboring villages and is a high‑traffic community resource; members questioned whether grants could be used to fund operating hours and stressed the difference between operational funding (staffing/hours) and capital needs (roof replacement, HVAC).
Direct details and context: The director said the library saw about 1,000 visits on peak Tuesdays during the summer and described rising electric costs that forced a proposed transfer from fund balance this year. On grants, she said grants typically fund technology or capital projects (for example, roof repair or laptops) but are not used to pay ongoing staffing costs: "Grants can come for the roof... but when you're doing the operations, grants don't work like that."
Questions from the board focused on cost estimate precision, HVAC and roof conditions, and whether opening another night would substantially raise utility expenses. The director noted the library board has already approved the plan to add the night but recognized the town board may cut the request during adoption.
Next steps: Director will provide more precise cost estimates and capital‑project grant plans; the controller agreed to provide fund‑balance numbers on request.
Ending: The library's request will be reviewed as part of the supervisor's proposed budget on Oct. 30 and may be adjusted by the board during the formal adoption process.
