Saugus, MA Library Closes
May 25th, 2007It's been a threat for a while, and now it looks like the time has arrived: the library in Saugus, MA, has closed until further notice.
A friend of mine lives in the town, and I'm a librarian in Massachusetts, so I've heard a lot about this. At some point the town found its budget could not support the library's $500,000 cost. Various fees and taxes were proposed to preserve library funding, but none got support when they came to a vote.
The Library Director closed the library over the weekend due to a staff shortage, and now it is closed indefinitely. The staff who have not already left for other jobs have been told by the Town Manager to use up their vacation time before they all get fired.
Ever wonder what it would be like to live somewhere without a public library? Move to Saugus. Perhaps if enough people do, voting on library funding will come out differently.