4 public libraries seek more county funding to reflect expanded role in community

Photo by Tom Rivers: The four library directors of the public libraries in Orleans County are shown on Tuesday before their presentation to the Orleans County Legislature, asking for more funding in the county’s 2027 budget. Pictured from left include Elizabeth Haibach, director of Hoag Library in Albion; Melanie Norman, director of Community Free Library in Holley; Heather Rutherford, director of Yates Community Library; and Kristine Mostyn, director of Lee-Whedon Memorial Library in Medina.

ALBION – The four public libraries in Orleans County are seeking a boost in county funding to reflect the libraries expanded mission beyond loaning out books.

The libraries in Orleans Conty have requested $1 per person in funding from the County Legislature in recent years. That would be $40,343 based on county’s population in the 2020 Census.

That has been the request in recent years, but the Legislature has kept libraries at $10,087 since 2011.

“When you look at everything the library does, I think it changes how we should think about our funding for libraries,” said Elizabeth Haibach, director of Hoag Library in Albion.

The four public libraries in Albion, Holley, Lyndonville and Medina met with county legislators on Tuesday. The library leaders said their facilities host many community events, provide internet access, display county tourism materials, assist residents with technology questions and serve as warming centers during the winter and cooling centers during the hot summer months.

Albion opened Hoag Library in 2012 and that site’s three meeting rooms are very busy, including hosting programs for county departments – Emergency Management, Planning and Development, Office for the Aging, and Department of Social Services.

The library also is used as the polling place for the Town of Albion and for the school district’s annual budget vote and election.

Hoag also brings a services into the community, by hosting blood drives, mobile mammography, mobile lung screening and other programs.

Lee-Whedon Library in Medina recently completed an expansion and has seen a 42 percent increase in library users in the past two months, said Krsitine Mostyn, library director.

Lee-Whedon added meeting rooms which are already in demand and have been used by many community organizations. She listed 15 organizations that are using the meeting rooms for diabetes education, digital literacy, understanding addiction, educational programs, health insurance enrollment, babysitting courses, CPR training, mental health skills, community grant sessions, disaster preparation and planning for events.

Lee-Whedon, like Hoag and the Yates Community Library, also hosts a concerts series. All four of the libraries plan many events for their summer reading programs.

Heather Rutherford, director of the Yates library, said the site doesn’t have a meeting room for the public but there is space that is frequently used for tutoring sessions. She applies for many grants to expand programs and services, including one that resulted in a new Book House by the library that has used books and also outdoor materials that be borrowed to go fishing, birding and to explore nature.

Melanie Norman, director of Holley’s library, noted many agencies use the Community Free Library for programs. She said the libraries have proven to be “essential community spaces” that don’t charge fees to the public to access services.