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April 6, 2010

Somerville mulls joining county library system

March 31, 2010

c.n.com

SOMERVILLE — A panel exploring whether the borough should join the Somerset County library system is well underway in its studies.

Library Review Task force members are individually visiting the Bound Brook library — the most recent town library to join the county system — and plan on meeting with Bound Brook and county library officials and visiting the system's headquarters in Bridgewater later this month.
The review comes as the borough is contracting with the county for health department services and exploring a move to county dispatch.

Mayor Brian Gallagher has pledged to maintain a library in Somerville but also stressed the need to explore whether the county should manage the facility's day-to-day affairs.
The borough's library is attached to Borough Hall and located at 35 W. End Ave.
Deirdre Rosinski, chair of the task force, said the panel is trying to complete its recommendation in about three months.

"Our town has always looked to keep the cost of living low in Somerville while not sacrificing services," Rosinski said in an e-mail. "This is not the first time we have looked at the county option, so once again we are looking at all the facts. But one thing that is agreed upon is Somerville will always have a library."

The borough explored joining the county system in 2006, Rosinski said.
Thirteen towns belong to the county library system: Bridgewater, Bound Brook, Hillsborough, South Bound Brook, Montgomery, North Plainfield, Millstone, Rocky Hill, Warren, Watchung, Branchburg, Green Brook and Peapack-Gladstone.
County Library Director James Hecht said the county Library Commission is willing to share whatever information the task force needs to make an informed decision. Hecht said the commission voted to maintain a branch a Somerville when the issue of the borough joining the system was previously studied.
Hecht said, while residents of towns in the county system can look on their property tax bills to see what they're paying for the library, the costs of operating the independent libraries are rolled into the municipal budgets.

"I heard someone say once, "It doesn't cost us anything to operate as a municipal library, but if we join the county library it's going to cost us.' It costs one way or the other, it's just a matter of knowing what you're paying," Hecht said.

Hecht added that, if Somerville opted to join the system, the borough would continue to own the building and pay for utilities and other operating expenses. The county would cover staff, materials, databases, training and other nonfacility costs.
Martin C. Bricketto: 908-243-6609; mbricketto@MyCentralJersey.com

Posted by tumulty at April 6, 2010 5:52 AM

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