Item C02BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY
Meeting Date: October 17, 2012 Division: Deputy County Administrator
Bulk Item: Yes x No _ Department: Library Services
Staff Contact Person/Phone #: Norma Kula / x7349
AGENDA ITEM WORDING: Approval for the Key West Branch Library to close on
Saturday, October 27, 2012
ITEM BACKGROUND: See attached memo from Headquarters Administrator
PREVIOUS RELEVANT BOCC ACTION:
CONTRACT/AGREEMENT CHANGES: N/A
STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS: Approval
TOTAL COST: N/A INDIRECT COST: N/A BUDGETED: Yes No
COST TO COUNTY: SOURCE OF FUNDS:
REVENUE PRODUCING: Yes No AMOUNT PER MONTH Year
APPROVED BY: County Atty OMB/Purchasing Risk Management
DOCUMENTATION: Included _ X_ Not Required_
DISPOSITION:
Revised 1/09
AGENDA ITEM #
C
}UiNTY SVLORIDA33040
ONROEKEYWEST {{
(305) 294_4641 l= _
Monroe County Public LibraiN-
700 Fleming Street
Key West, FL 33040
(305) 292-3595 — Phone
(305) 295-3626 —Fax
DATE: September 12, 2012
E BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
Mayor David Rice, District 4
Mayor Pro Tem Kim Wigington, District 1
George Neugent, District 2
Heather Carruthers, District 3
Sylvia 3. Murphy, District 5
MEMORANDUM
To: Debbie Frederick, Deputy County Administrator
Through: Norma Kula, Director of Libraries
From: Christine Dunn, Administrator, LibraiN- Headquarters
RE: Justification to close the Key West Library on Saturday October 27, 2012
The Monroe County Public Library is located just two blocks from Duval Street in Old Town Key West.
During late October, the 10-day long Goombay & Fantasy Fest activities occur in close proximity to this
library. In past years, the Monroe County Sheriff Deputies have been unable to fill security posts at the
library throughout Fantasy Fest, but especially on the days of the the weekend festivities, due to need
elsewhere in the County. This frequently results in compromising the safety and security of the library
facility, the staff and patrons.
Fantasy Fest activities scheduled throughout Old Town during this 10-day period turn our parking lot, rest
rooms and facility into a pit stop for people not using the library for its designated purposes. We have had
out-of-state cars left for days in our parking lot. Our program attendance drops during Fantasy Fest week
because many regular patrons avoid driving to Old Town. We have cancelled Saturday programs
(especially in the Children's department) due to such disruptive incidents as having to evict —without the
help of an officer —inebriated adults who wandered into our children's movie on Saturday or attempted to
camp out in the Young Adult area or our reading room to sleep.
Last year, the County's Clerk of the Court office closed at noon on Friday, the Tropic Cinema cancelled
its Saturday schedule, and even Fausto's closed early. We too recognize the difficulty in conducting
normal operating functions during this festival and make this request to ensure safety and security for
library staff and patrons while better providing services.
To provide for full patron service during the work week, we request that the Key West Library staff work
Monday through Friday the week of October 22 through 26, 2012 on their regular shifts, and that the
Library branch be closed on Saturday October 27, by scheduling the day off for all staff at the Library in
Key West to be on this day. All staff would work a full week, with no extra time off involved.
If feasible, Key West -based County vehicles (vans, cars and tricks) that usually park at the Courthouse or
elsewhere on the streets of Old Town, plus those from the Gato Building, could be relocated to the
Library parking lot off Elizabeth Street by midday on Friday October 26 before the Old Town street
parade takes over Fleming Street. (Moving County vehicles from the Gato Building would open more
spaces for their fundraising efforts at selling parking.)
Additionally, if feasible, the Library parking lot could be blocked off from Friday by 5 PM through
Monday morning after Fantasy Fest for the protection of those County vehicles and to ensure that
non -county parkers cannot double/triple-park, leave vehicles on the grass areas (further damaging our
buried waste pipes), or camp out in the secluded areas behind the library.
Closing the Key West Library on Saturday, October 27, 2012, would have minimal impact on Library
patrons and services, and it would serve to keep Library staff and patrons from being negatively affected
by Fantasy Fest participants thronging Old Town on the final day of the festival.