(Le Mars) — Officials with the Le Mars Public Library say they are in need of more funding and they are turning to the Plymouth County Board of Supervisors to request the county to ante up. Sue Kroesche serves as the librarian for the Le Mars Public Library, she says the digital age has placed additional expenses on the library. Kroesche says there is a great discrepancy between what the county invests, and what the city of Le Mars invests for library services.
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Plymouth County is far behind in terms of funding when compared to the rest of the state and with neighboring counties. The Le Mars librarian says the Le Mars public library and others within the county, receive only half of what is allocated compared to our neighbors.
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Kroesche says the library needs the additional funding in order to provide a full range of services to its patrons.
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Kroesche says Plymouth County ranks 81st in the state with library funding. However, the county ranks 8th highest in the state with per capita income. Kroesche says more than 85,000 people use the local public library on an annual basis.
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The Le Mars Public Library has a contract with the county that was dated in the 1970’s. Kroesche believes the original contract may need to be revised and updated to serve today’s needs. The librarian is hopeful a solution can be reached. But if not, some users of the public library may be asked to pay a fee for services.
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Kroesche is scheduled to meet with the county supervisors on October 1st to discuss the issue and find a suitable resolution.