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Avon library leaders urge sustained funding as usage and digital costs rise
Summary
Avon Free Public Library trustees and treasurer told the Board of Finance the library remains heavily used—citing 38,000 program visits and 285,000 items borrowed—and warned that flat municipal funding risks shrinking licensed e‑book collections.
Leaders of the Avon Free Public Library told the Board of Finance the library is "a very vital asset to this community" and asked the boards to sustain municipal support in the face of rising publishing and licensing costs. Paula Schwartz, Vice Chair of the Library Board of Trustees, said the library serves people of all ages and that staff and the library director Glenn Grube have worked to maintain services amid budget pressure.
Robert Berman, the library treasurer, provided specific usage statistics to underline the case for funding: "285,000 items were borrowed from the library," he said, and added that residents used free Wi‑Fi for nearly 37,000 hours and the library fielded roughly 32,000 reference questions last year. Berman warned that flat funding does not maintain digital license access—licensed e‑materials can shrink if subscription funding is not maintained—and urged continued town support.
