Library and City Score High in Satisfaction Survey

Every two years the City of Livermore conducts a citizen survey about the effectiveness of city services and the quality of life in the community. Conducted using the National Citizen Survey format, surveys are mailed to a random sample of 3,000 households in Livermore. Completed surveys were received from 27% of those mailed. Typically, the response rates obtained on citizen surveys ranges from 25% to 40%. The “level of confidence” or margin of error of this survey is plus or minus 3%. The results were weighted to reflect the demographic profile of all residents in the City of Livermore.

When asked to rate the overall quality of life, 23% of respondents thought it was excellent with only 1% rating it as poor. Livermore as a place to raise children received an average rating of 70 on a 100 point scale with 100 being the highest.

The highest rated community characteristics were overall appearance, sense of community, overall image/reputation and overall quality of new development. The three areas of concern for Livermore respondents were traffic congestion, drugs and too much growth.

When evaluating safety in the community, 75% of respondents felt somewhat or very safe. Participation in civic, social and economic life garnered 47% of the respondents volunteering in the past year.

When asked to evaluate the overall direction of service provided by the City, residents gave an average rating of 66 on a 100 point scale. The overall quality of service rated a 62 while employees of the City rated as 67 on the 100 point scale.

When rating library services, 81% of the respondents reported using the Livermore public libraries or our services in the past year. Usage of the Internet by respondents was at 94%. The quality of library services was rated at 79 on the 100 point scale while the variety of library materials offered was rated at 75.

Answers when evaluated in comparisons to other jurisdictions surveyed in the same manner indicated the quality of library services in Livermore ranked in the 88th percentile or above the norm to similar cities in the west coast states. The variety of library materials offered ranked in the 95th percentile, also above the norm. When compared to all jurisdictions in the countrywide database, the quality of library services ranked in the 95th percentile and the variety of library materials offered ranked in the 89th percentile.

Demographically, of those respondents living in Livermore more than 20 years, 87% had used the library in the past year. Of those living in Livermore less than 5 years, 71% had used the library. Of those with some college or less, 77% had used the library while of those with a graduate or professional degree, 90% had used the library.

The complete results of the survey for all areas studied can be found at any Livermore Public Library.

Another Successful Livermore Reads Together

In May, the library completed another Livermore Reads Together effort. Underwritten in part by the Friends of the Library, the community was asked to read any book in the Dune science fiction series by Frank Herbert, et al. The 88 Dune related items in the Library collection were borrowed 265 times during the month of February resulting in an average borrowing rate of 3 times for each item. The average borrowing for science fiction for the year is one so the emphasis on this genre during this time was quite successful. These numbers match the numbers for the previous Livermore Read Together project reading the book Zorro by Isabelle Allende.

Numerous programs around the science fiction theme were presented during the month of February. The most popular was the Planetarium of the Stars. Also offered was a visit with Kevin Anderson, the author of the current Dune books and a space music program as well as other informative events and a “space” themed art shoe in the Civic Center Library Art Gallery. The total attendance for the 11 programs was 471, averaging 43 attendees per program. This compares to the eight Zorro programs with an average attendance of 42. The generosity of the Friends continues to support efforts such as this.

Staff is currently developing the next Livermore Reads Together book for next February. If you have any suggestions for a title, please be sure to tell any staff member at any Livermore Library.

Teen Movie Makers

The Library recently completed the LSTA funded Reel Focus grant program at the Rincon Branch Library. With $50,000 provided by the California State Library, Reel Focus: Teen Learning through Video Production provided 17 youth in 5th through 12th grades residing in a low income area of Livermore with an opportunity to develop video production expertise while also learning work and study related skills. This project provided the means for low income youth to express their creativity and share content. Skills tests reflected improvement in all students. Sessions were held weekly with drop-in sessions held frequently once filming began. The program was able to include more field trips than planned and welcomed guest speakers and observers from among the community partner pool. A REEL FOCUS Film Showcase was held at the local cinema. Several final project DVDs were made and entered into the library’s collection. The final project videos have been posted on YouTube and My Space for viewing by the general public. They may be seen at http://www.ci.livermore.ca.us/library/reelfocusvideos.html.

Staff from the library presented a poster session at the annual American Library Association conference in Anaheim, Ca. The session featured posters and photos from the project. Many libraries expressed interest in doing a similar program in their communities.

Library Budget

As you have no doubt have been reading in the press, the State is going through another financial crisis. Unlike the State, the City must have a balanced budget in place for the next fiscal year which began July 1, 2008 and will run until June 30, 2010. For the next two years, the Library will have a budget over $5 million dollars and will not see any cuts in service. All libraries will be open their existing hours. However, the materials budget of just under $400,000 has not seen any increase in the past 6 years. With inflation, this means that the same amount of money from 2002 will buy less in 2008. The library will be shifting some of its expenditures from print resources to electronic resources in order to maximize this money. Most of these electronic resources will be available from the Library’s web site and will be able to be used by more patrons simultaneously, thus getting us more for our money. The Library continues to be committed to providing the most up to date resources to the community.

Free2 Campaign

If you have been coming to the library recently or seen our vans driving around town, you may have seen the Free2 signs and logo. The Free2 campaign is a marketing and branding effort for all of us who believe in libraries and their potential to be 21st century community centers of the highest order.

Conceived and supported by the 165 locations throughout the Bay Area Library & Information System, Peninsula Library System and Silicon Valley Library System, the Free2 campaign celebrates the empowering role that libraries play in our lives. No matter where we come from, no matter how young or old, no matter how big our dreams, Free2 recognizes that libraries help give us the freedom to connect, create, imagine, explore and succeed in ways that we never thought possible.

This campaign is designed to raise awareness of libraries in the Bay Area (at least initially). It encourages you to visit more often, whether that means stopping by your local branch to check out the latest video game or accessing the online catalog or participating in a program or activity. It challenges stereotypes of dusty bookshelves and shush-happy librarians. It promotes how libraries sit in the heart of our communities. It recognizes that our libraries are among our most revered public institutions. It honors their great legacy of innovative partnerships. And it demonstrates an important fact in the Digital Age -- that our libraries are the number one point of Internet access for millions without connectivity at home, school or work. We are hoping that Free2 will be come a buzz word signifying libraries and all that they are. You will see it on everything we here at the Livermore Public Library do.

Library Cafe

I am pleased to report that the Library Café has reopened. We are fortunate to have Tommie’s Deli operating the café as Tommie’s @ the Library. You may have experienced this wonderful deli at their other location on Second Street in the downtown. You can now get their same great sandwiches as well as coffee drinks, smoothies and other goodies when you visit the library. Stop in and get a treat and let them know you are glad they are here!

Summer Ends!

Summer has ended and with it our annual Summer Reading Program. This year our “Catch The Reading Bug” game was again very successful with over 2000 children participating. Final numbers are still being compiled but we plan on inviting over 800 Super Readers who read 100 books in our program to the annual City Council Recognition Night on Monday, September 22. More on this and the results of our other summer programs in my next blog.