Viking Library System seeks 2.5% increase from Stevens County, highlights outreach and bookmobile service

Erin Smith, director of the Viking Library System, presented the system’s 2025 annual report to the Stevens County Board of Commissioners and asked the county to approve a 2.5% increase in its 2027 appropriation request. "A total of $71,159 is the appropriation request that we're seeking, and that would be a $1,736, or a 2.5 percent increase over the 2026 budgeting situation," Smith said.

Smith summarized services that the regional system provides to six member counties (Stevens, Douglas, Grant, Otter Tail, Polk and Traverse) and 11 member libraries, including five regular bookmobile stops in Stevens County and delivery services between Hancock and Morris libraries. Local librarians described recent programming: Anne Prechtler of the Morris Public Library described a summer “Plant a Seed, Read” program that included tree-planting and a seed-library pilot; a Hancock Community Library representative recounted a 100th-anniversary celebration and ongoing outreach to school groups. Smith said the system is preparing a request for proposals to review its integrated library system (catalog software) and is updating its strategic plan.

The presentation noted both operational services (delivery, interlibrary loan, e-resources such as OverDrive/Libby funded by the state) and outreach to childcare and group homes through mobile collections. Board members asked routine questions about circulation and scheduling. The board did not take a funding vote during the presentation; Smith left the appropriation request with the county for consideration in the 2027 budget process.