Efforts to help library patrons connect to digital resources is beginning to pay off. Great Bend Public Library Director Gail Santy told library board members Monday afternoon during the board’s first Zoom meeting. Since the beginning of the shut down order, an additional 9,000 people have registered with the Sunflower digital library, and Hoopla users have increased by a factor of between two and three. 

“In our community, we have a mechanism in place for patron self registration for Sunflower,” Santy said. The registration is good for the next two months, and allows users to check out digital materials only. “They can also register for a state library card, and we’ve been processing up to 10 a day.” 

Santy offered praise for library staff who are working to answer patron questions via social media through the library’s Facebook page and website, as well as increasing content and easing groups onto digital platforms. Rather than offering story time by staff members, they are providing links to many of the entertainers currently offering their talents online. They have also been posting on several community forums, including Great Bend Cares, Great Bend Connects, and Great Bend Rocks. 

One high school part-time staff member, C.J. Gibson, had prepared for a foreign language test in Spanish prior to the school closings. She has been pushing out information to the library’s Hispanic patrons and interpreting Spanish for the staff.

“You never know where these talents are until you need them, it turns out,” Santy said. “Everyone has really stepped up and I’m very proud.”

On behalf of the staff, Santy thanked the library board, and shared their appreciation for the decision to allow them to continue to work from home. 

Staff looking ahead to reopening 

Santy has been convening weekly staff meetings, where a plan for reopening once the stay at home order is lifted is beginning to take shape. She described a phased step reopening, beginning with a thorough cleaning and disinfecting of the library and drop box items. 

Next, a limited number of staff could be assigned to quarantining, disinfecting and returning items. The step will be two-fold in its focus, with items being quarantined both for treatment for the virus and for the presence of bedbugs, which the library is equipped to neutralize. Then, items would be thoroughly disinfected. 

Santy spoke briefly about factors the library is taking into consideration which the Centers for Disease Control initially overlooked. Most books, she said, are inside plastic covers, plus users often lick their fingers and then turn pages, as well as sneeze on them, etc. Therefore, decontaminating them will require personal protective equipment the library does not have and can not get at this time because while they are vital, they are not an essential service in a pandemic. Gloves, masks and virus-killing disinfectant are still in short supply, and most suppliers are only filling orders for hospitals and first responders, she said. 

Additional phased-in steps could include curb side service, where orders of checked- out material could be assembled and made available to patrons on a scheduled pick up type service. Reopening the building to the public will likely be limited to five patrons at a time at first. Use of the library computers will require social distancing and disinfecting between users, and the library’s technical expert is currently working on procedures for doing that. Once the complete plan is worked out, Santy will present it to the board for their input and approval.

Summer library will largely be a web based, take-it-and-go experience this year. Staff will assemble craft and science projects patrons can pick up and take home with them. They will use materials and supplies currently on hand. The program will likely run through July, rather than June and July as in years past.  

“We have to play it by ear,” Santy said. “Things are changing day to day. We need to do what is best for the community.”

Library bracing for lean 2021

A discussion of the upcoming budget was touched upon. Santy recently visited with both Great Bend City Administrator Kendal Francis and the Kansas State Librarian. She was assured no library will lose state aid if they don’t collect the amount of revenue they have in the past, Santy said. 

This is important because Santy learned earlier in the month that Kansas municipalities are anticipating a 15 percent decrease in sales tax revenue with retailers around the state shut down. This could continue into the third and fourth quarters of the year she said. Also, more defaults on property taxes are expected with many people facing unemployment that could extend past the shutdown. The amount the library is granted will depend on what the city collects, she explained. 

The library, she said, will request the same amount of funding in the upcoming year as it did for 2019-2020, knowing full well they will likely not receive it. Other cost saving measures have been discussed, including cancelling all performances that require the library to pay a fee, charging customers for all copies, rather than providing the first 10 for free, and turning down the heat and air conditioning in the building.