City of South Pasadena Library Board of Trustees Annual Report 2008 Annual Report to the City Council February 4, 2009

Throughout 2008 South Pasadena Public Library has continually made significant strides in its service provision. The year was filled with many high notes in the Library’s endeavors to meet the sizeable educational, informational, and cultural needs of all members of the community. The City Council, City Manager’s Office, and fellow departments deserve special credit for all of the strong support they provided. The Library is also very appreciative of its terrific Friends of the Library non-profit support group, its dedicated corps of volunteers, and of course, its outstanding, teamwork-oriented staff. Gratitude is also extended to the multitude of local patrons, taxpayers, and voters who have continued to be so undeniably supportive through the years, not only with their steady, avid usage, but also with tax dollars and previous support at the ballot box.

Although South Pasadena is relatively small –especially by LA County standards—with a population slightly greater than 25,000, the Library has more than 30,000 active cardholders who paid more than 261,000 visits during FY 2007/2008.  Much of this is attributable to the fact that the Library’s Budget has remained remarkably consistent. Thankfully, the Library’s FY 08/09 Budget is again very solid with the total allocation increasing to $1,555,283 for FY 2008/2009 over 07/08’s $1,546,040. Most of this increase was due to the slightly higher staff compensation to keep the same size staff. The Library’s Operations and Maintenance Budget rose to $434,988 for 08/09 from $417,200 for 07/08 attributable mostly to the increased costs databases for the public allocated under Electronic Reference Resources.

During 2008 the Library has enjoyed enviable stability among its staffing ranks, not only those in the Senior Management team and other supervisors (most possess 15 or more years of public library experience) but also among its still vitally important Library Clerks and Aides. This constancy has helped enable the Library to continue its steady progress.  The Library is also appreciative of the City’s recognition of a pair of its staff members for their dedicated longevity at the Annual Holiday Luncheon.

The Library's total annual circulation remained remarkably consistent with 374,144 items checked out for 07/08 as compared with 375,931 for 06/07. The annual 07/08 Children’s circulation totals also remained very impressive with more than 180,000 items checked out by and for young people. The number of participants for the 2008 Summer Reading Program for children and teens rose convincingly about 2% to 2,281 from the previous year. In contrast, the total number of minutes spent reading by the participants dipped about 20% to just under a million. The drop may be due in no small part to the absence of a new Harry Potter blockbuster during the year.  But the attractiveness of the Summer Reading Program, no doubt fueled by its outreach measures, its exciting program performers, and the reading incentives donated by the many local sponsors, is extremely heartening. In all, 380 children’s programs were presented throughout 07/08 –obviously averaging more than one per day—and attendance for these programs reached 19,833, climbing from a still-noteworthy total of 17,104 for 06/07. These regularly-scheduled events included storytimes for various ages, craft workshops, music appreciation sessions, and journalism and ‘mock trial’ workshops, as well as a 'Grandparents and Books' read-aloud' series.

Adult programs also increased in frequency and in popularity, as 103 were conducted, up from 79 in 06/07. The total audience for these Adult programs climbed to 3,509, constituting an increase of more than 50% over similar attendance for 06/07. Overall, the Library provided 486 free programs for the benefit of the community during 07/08 and their combined attendance extended to 23,417 from 19,116 for the prior fiscal year.

In January Rick Thomas, author of several recent books on South Pasadena history, appeared to a large, appreciative audience. February saw 3 ambitious and popular programs focusing on Leo Politi, the artist and author whose earliest remaining public mural adorns the Children’s Room. These were part of the Leo Politi Centennial Celebration taking place during 2008 around Los Angeles and beyond. The culmination of the Politi presentations was a standing-room-only event in the Community Room that featured gourmet hors d’oeuvres, live music, 3 expert presenters, an exhibit of original artworks, and a multitude of community partners.

Three major events were offered in March, the first being the ‘Ray Bradbury Day” Author Event at the South Pasadena High School Auditorium with more than 600 applauding the legendary writer and his illustrious achievements. Many prestigious awards were given to him and film clips from Moby Dick and Fahrenheit 451 were screened. The show was opened by AlmaNova, a flute and guitar duo from South Pasadena Music & Conservatory. As a fundraiser the Friends sold autographed books and held a silent auction of signed bottles of dandelion wine. Later in the month, a one-man play about World War II concentration camp survivor, Viktor Frankl was shown.  Also in March the Library Board of Trustees coordinated a Volunteer Recognition Luncheon for about 100 attendees who enjoyed the keynote address of Gerald Haslam, nationally-known writer and speaker, on South Pasadena’s own Lawrence Clark Powell, a famed scholar, librarian, and writer. The next night Professor Haslam gave a talk for the public on his award-winning book Workin’ Man Blues: Country Music in California. Fittingly, Grammy award winner Dave Alvin and his band played a well-received musical set capped off by numerous encores. California Poet Laureate Al Young made a return engagement with live jazz on April 25th, the night after local resident and earthquake expert Susan Elizabeth Hough, discussed her book and slide show on Charles Richter, the famous seismologist from Cal Tech.

Other programs during the year presented bestselling author Mary Tillman, mother of fallen war hero and pro football star Pat Tillman; Academy Award winner Ernest Borgnine; J. Michael Walker, artist and author of All the Saints of the City of Angels; Lissa Reynolds from the Fremont Centre Theater; and acclaimed true crime writer Steve Hodel. During October the Library presented no less than 5 programs as part of its ‘Big Read’ series with the National Endowment for the Arts and The Huntington Library focusing on Jack London’s classic adventure tale The Call of the Wild. The series kicked offwith aRead-In for which about 50 community members each read a page for a videographer in continuous fashion. Mayor Philip Putnam began the proceedings which also included City Manager Lilian Myers and Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Brian Bristol. For the month the Read-In and a public service announcement about the entire project aired on community access cable television.

The Library partnered with the Friends throughout the year to present a wide array of educational and culturally enriching projects. The collaborative efforts were co-sponsored by groups by the likes of Vecinos de South Pasadena, the South Pasadena Chinese American Club, South Pasadena Chamber of Commerce, the Living History Centre and Poets & Writers, Inc. The Restoration Concert Committee of the Friends produced monthly classical and jazz live music programs as fundraisers for the Community Room. The Library also coordinated a monthly book discussion series and three Teen programs.

A Staff Training Day was coordinated in August during which the Library’s Local History Photo Project, the City’s Strategic Planning efforts, emergency preparedness, and many other timely topics were covered. The Library also launched a highly successful popular music CD collection with funding from the Friends.  During 2008 the Library partnered again with the Rotary Club of South Pasadena for the continuation of the Golden State Collection that has been expanding the Library's collection of California-related books. On February 12, 2009, along with the Kiwanis Club of South Pasadena and the Institute for the Redesign of Learning, South Pasadena’s largest employer, the Library will launch the Raising Abilities project to provide more new materials to help families with disabilities. An Author Night with Amalia Starr, who penned Raising Brandon: Parenting My Son to Live Successfully with Autism, Epilepsy, and Learning Disorders will be presented at 7:00 p.m. in the Community Room that evening...

During the year Library staff has also been working on an Exterior Beautification plan to beautify the Oxley Street side of the Library. South Pasadena Beautiful has already donated $6,000 toward the multi-dimensional collaborative that will involve many local experts and stakeholders as it moves toward completion in 2009. The Library has also been immersed in a project to publish an expanded and updated edition of Jane Apostol’s acclaimed South Pasadena Centennial History. On November 1, a Book-Release Party and Signing was scheduled and more than 200 buyers picked up copies autographed by Ms. Apostol. To date, the Friends’ fundraising effort has sold an impressive 750 copies. The Friends have been extremely active in so many areas, but perhaps most prominently with their 7-day a week Book Store. They also conduct a number of special book sales, including their monthly silent auctions housed in the flat display case by the front door.

The Friends Annual Meeting for 2009 took place in the Community Room on January 22, 2009. For the first 5 minutes or so, they covered some important business, including the approval of a new slate of officers. The rest of the program consisted of an Author Night presentation by nationally-known mystery writer Naomi Hirahara, who attended South Pasadena High School, and a live set by the combo of Elliott Caine, an accomplished jazz trumpeter who resides within the city.  This was another celebration of South Pasadena arts and culture for the entire community.

Thankfully, the Library has been able to continue to provide 7-day a week public service hours including 3 nights throughout 2008. This means that for almost 3,000 hours during the year residents of all ages and backgrounds had free access to top-notch literature, newspapers, magazines, music, computers, information services, and films and cultural and educational programming. This level of availability would be the envy of most other small cities –and some large ones as well. It should also be mentioned that the Library website provides information, including many practical and powerful databases around-the-clock.

During 2008 the Library has been awarded a grant from the California State Library to cover a major portion of the 2009 cost of its extremely popular ‘after school’ online tutoring service. The Library has also recently subscribed to World Book Online, a resource that should prove very valuable to community members of all ages once a publicity effort is in place.
By their prolific usage and support, South Pasadenans of all ages are expressing their desire for outstanding library services and resources. The Library Board of Trustees is proud and honored to be able to respond to these important, far-reaching needs. We appreciate the wonderful generosity and positive energy demonstrated by entire community and we are thankful for this opportunity to express our gratitude.  Clearly, the South Pasadena Public Library story is a continuing one, filled with challenges and accomplishments, and searching and discovery. And at the Library, everyone can be a leading player with a prominent role.

Annual report 2008
Annual report 2007
Annual Report 2006