Maryville Public Library seeks levy increase
TONY BROWN/DAILY FORUM
Library Director Stephanie Patterson, standing at far right, addresses the Maryville City Council this week during a presentation designed to introduce city officials and the public to a proposed property tax increase that would add about $150,000 a year to existing library revenues. Patterson said the funds are needed to cover emerging maintenance needs as well as program and staff costs related to increased circulation.
Maryville Public Library Director Stephanie Patterson opened an informational campaign this week proposing an increase in the library’s property tax levy, which will likely go before voters during the April 4 municipal election.
Speaking before the Maryville City Council on Monday, Patterson said that the library’s current tax ceiling of 25 cents per $100 of assessed valuation was set in 1962 then cut approximately in half in the 1980s following adoption of Missouri’s tax-limiting Hancock Amendment, which ties government revenues and expenses to a percentage of personal income.
The current library levy stands at a fraction over 16 cents.
Patterson is proposing a 12-cent increase that would bring that tax rate to 28 cents per $100 of assessed valuation.
Patterson said the catalyst for the tax proposal was a recent roof replacement that forced the library board to spend $68,000 from reserves.
While the library still has reserves totaling around 30 percent of its annual $275,000 budget, Patterson said it is becoming obvious that the institution must either bring in more revenue or cut back on expenses.
The roof replacement, she said, included only the main library building, a former post office located at 509 N. Main St. just north of the downtown square.
An addition to the library built on to the east side of the old post office in 2000 will also require a new roof in the fairly near future, Patterson said, and other maintenance expenses are on the horizon as well.
“I’m not saying (the library) is a money pit,” Patterson told the council. “In fact, it’s a really well-built building. But our revenues are not sufficient to take care of it and also operate a library.”
Patterson said most other public libraries in the state with similar facilities have much larger budgets, and that libraries with similar budgets are housed in smaller buildings that are cheaper to operate and maintain.
In making her case to the council, Patterson said the proposed levy would cost taxpayers who own a home with a commercial value of $100,000 an additional $1.90 a month, or $22.80 a year.
If the measure passes, she added, Maryville property owners would see their tax bills increase 1.5 percent.
Patterson also said that, in her view, Maryville residents are already getting a lot for their money from the library, which conducts more than 75,000 circulation transactions each year on revenue totaling $3.70 per transaction.
The statewide average for libraries in comparable cities, she said, is $6.92 in revenue per circulation transaction.
What’s more, circulation has increased significantly since Patterson became director eight years ago.
In 2008, circulation stood at 59,686 before reaching a peak of 78,870 six years later, an increase in books and materials checked out of 32 percent.
That growth has slackened somewhat over the past two years, falling to just under 73,000, though Patterson said the most recent numbers appear to be trending upward.
Patterson told the council that, in her view, the need for increased library funding is “somewhat urgent,” and that in lieu of a tax hike, the library board may be faced with “some very tough decisions,” up to and including program cuts and moving the library to a smaller building.
If the election request, which does not require council approval, moves forward, it will be the second library-related issue placed before voters within the past two years.
In April 2015, Nodaway County citizens living outside Maryville soundly rejected a plan to create a countywide library system, an expansion that would have been paid for with a 15-cent per $100 of assessed valuation tax levied on property owners in all 15 townships.
Had it passed, the proposal, while slightly lowering library taxes for Maryville residents, would have produced an estimated $250,000 in additional revenue, nearly doubling the institution’s budget.
The proposed tax increase would add about $150,000 a year to library income.
Patterson said the current measure differs from the earlier proposal in that new revenues above capital improvements and maintenance would go for operations and programs benefitting Maryville residents, who, aside from paying taxes, use the library for free.
Library patrons living outside Maryville must pay $38 a year for a card enabling them to check out books and other items. If the levy increase is approved, Patterson said that fee will increase to reflect the added expense to local taxpayers.
Patterson said the library has about 6,100 card-holding patrons both inside Maryville and countywide.
Eighty-five percent of the library’s budget comes from the existing property tax. The institution also receives financial support from its Friends of Library organization, the Maryville Public Library Foundation, and private donations. Some funding also comes from state appropriations, occasional grants, and patron-paid fines and fees.
In addition to capital spending, Patterson said she wants to use funds from the proposed tax hike to hire a full-time education professional charged with creating and strengthening literacy programs serving both the Head Start early childhood program and local public schools.
She said the new revenue would also provide funding for an expanded book collection, additional digital resources, and the hiring of a part-time bookkeeper, which Patterson said would allow her to spend more time writing grants and working to improve library operations and services.
