Apr 27, 2015 4 min read

Chartiers-Houston Community Library will undergo another round of operational cuts Friday.

A three-member “transition team” that has been overseeing the library since its board was recalled in March decided to limit weekly operations to 40 hours – a reduction of 11 hours per week. The library also eliminated two part-time clerk and business manager positions.

Diane Ambrose, administrator of the Washington County Library System, said the reductions will result in “significant savings” for the cash-strapped library, allowing it to stay afloat for at least the remainder of the year. She said the new hours are based on an analysis of when patrons most frequently visit the library.

A library within a community of its size is required to stay open at least 45 hours per week in order to receive state funding. Ambrose said Commonwealth Libraries is aware of the cuts and the fact that the library is in a financial crisis.

Richard Metzler, a member of the transition team and vice chairman of the Chartiers Township Board of Supervisors, said the library might not have lasted a year with its current staff and hours of operation.

“The way they were operating, they could have continued to operate for about three-quarters of the year, and that is consuming all of their savings,” he said. “I think the cuts are temporary, but we won’t know that until we actually define what the program is going to be at the library.”

Ambrose said the library has about $120,000 altogether in its account and savings. Employees at the library did not wish to comment beyond confirming the operational cuts.

At one point, the library was open for 56 hours a week, which Ambrose said was more than average. Hours were reduced last year after the Chartiers-Houston School District withdrew its $50,000 contribution.

Christopher Hess, school director and member of the library transition team, said it’s too early to say if the district will reinstate its donation to the library for the 2015-16 school year.

“It depends on a number of things, including the school district’s own finances,” Hess said, adding that increases in school pension contributions have put a strain on the budget.

Chartiers Township donated $40,000 to the library last year, half of which came from the township’s impact fee allocation. Metzler said they budgeted for a $20,000 donation this year, and the board expects to authorize the first payment during tonight’s meeting. He said the first installment of $5,000 was withheld until a transition team was implemented.

Ambrose and transition team members said their first priority is to stabilize the library’s finances and outline clear goals before making recommendations to appoint new library board members. A library director will not be hired at this time, Ambrose said.

The library leadership was dissolved in March when officials from Houston Borough, Chartiers Township and the school district voted to remove their representatives from the board. Ambrose said that decision was based on the lack of a library director and the previous board’s failure to provide a plan for hiring a new director in a timely fashion.

Former library board President Demo Agoris could not be reached for comment.

A transition team with an appointed member from each voting entity stepped in during the interim period. Larry Scears, Vice President of Houston Borough Council, also serves on the team.

Rumors that the Washington County Library System is planning to shut down the Chartiers-Houston Library are unfounded, Ambrose said.

“We’re not here to close libraries,” she said. “We’re here to help them.”

The new hours of operation for the library will be from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Friday; from noon to 7 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday; and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday.