Felton and Boulder Creek could lose their neighborhood library branches as the Santa Cruz Public Libraries system grapples with an ever-shrinking budget.

This year’s budget of $11 million was down from $12.6 million the previous year, with cuts that included a extreme reduction in hours at smaller branches, a downsized pot of money for books and materials, and a doubling of late fees, along with Friday closures across the system.

Scotts Valley Mayor Jim Reed, a member of the Library Joint Powers Board, said the system’s next budget is expected to be half a million less than this year’s, and it will likely drop by another $1.4 million in the 2011-12 fiscal year.

The Santa Cruz Public Libraries system comprises all county branches except those in Watsonville.

“The system is in desperate financial shape. The library system we have today is not financially sustainable,” Reed said. “One thing everyone can agree on is that nobody likes the service and hours we’re at today. The scary thing is we can’t even afford what we do now.”

The libraries already borrow money from the city of Santa Cruz to stay afloat and have no reserves, Reed said. 

While Santa Cruz County’s public libraries are some of the most used in the state, according to the system’s newly released Three- to Five-Year Strategic Plan, six of the 10 branches do not meet minimum state and federal staffing standards.

Reed, who is a driving force behind plans for a new, larger library in Scotts Valley, said the smaller branches are the least cost-effective in the system, and he thinks five of the six neighborhood branches must close to save money.

Reed said he expects a decision to be made sometime in May or June.

“The lowest-circulating libraries are the least cost-effective. The smaller branches are closed a lot, but there are still building costs, regardless of how little a branch is open,” Reed said.

Reed said closing the smaller branches might be an economic necessity. He has proposed keeping the system’s larger branches in Aptos, Live Oak, Scotts Valley and downtown Santa Cruz, as well as Capitola, because that city is about to build a new library.

According to library circulation reports, 85 to 90 percent of library visits are to the Aptos, Live Oak, Scotts Valley and Central branches, which have many more open hours, compared with the neighborhood branches.

Reed said he would like to see the smaller branches converted into independent volunteer community centers that would provide basic library services.

“We could turn the smaller branches over to community groups or nonprofits, which would mean turning over collections, furniture and operations,” Reed said.

Ben Lomond already has an all-volunteer library not connected to the public library system.

Reed said the county libraries could provide increased bookmobile services and storyteller visits.

However, Paul Machlis of the Felton Library Friends said closing the smaller branches should remain a last-resort measure, and he doesn’t think all other options have been fully examined.

“In 2005, the board voted that it would not close any branch except as a last resort. Difficult as the current budgetary climate is, we are not to that point yet,” Machlis said. “We’ve only begun to investigate alternate scenarios that could preserve our branch system.”

In 1996, county voters overwhelmingly supported Measure B, which included an expenditure plan to preserve existing libraries and extend services to the underserved areas of the county, like Boulder Creek and Felton.

Machlis said Reed has pushed the agenda of a four-branch system for some time, even though it goes against Measure B and the board’s priorities.

Voters in 2008 supported a renewal of the sales tax, which accounts for 49 percent of the operating budget of the library system.

“This radical reshaping of closing branches runs completely contrary to the letter and spirit of Measure B and the priority the board has given to Felton,” Machlis said.

Machlis said a system of fewer branches would obviously benefit the Scotts Valley branch with more money, staff and materials.

“But the big losers of his proposal would be children and seniors served by SLV branches — like those in Boulder Creek, Bonny Doon and Zayante, who would need to travel 10 miles or more to the nearest library,” Machlis said.

Laura Whaley, senior library assistant for the north county region, said that if the smaller branches are forced to close, some people will lose their jobs.

“It’s entirely up in the air right now. It depends on how many branches are closed and which positions would be eliminated,” Whaley said. “We’re in a holding pattern right now and are hoping the board decides quickly.”

Whaley said that while she does not want the smaller branches to close, it’s a necessary measure.

“It’s needed. It’s the only way we’re going to have a functional system,” Whaley said. “We cannot have 10 branches in this system. I wish we could, but financially, it’s not a reality.” 

But Joint Powers board member Nancy Gerdt, from Felton, said keeping only the four largest branches would fall short of a lot of community needs.

“Having a four-branch system for a county of our size — you would lose a lot of patrons, especially combined with the cutback in bus services,” Gerdt said. “It’s important to keep the branches we have to reach the population. You can’t just have four branches. We’d be losing a lot of patrons, like youth and elderly who won’t travel far to go the library.”

She said the board owes it to the community to look for creative solutions before shutting any doors.

“In the library world, it’s really hard to close branches, because the community gets really attached,” Gerdt said. “I think we’ve got to get creative. It’s not simple. It’s not black-and-white. We owe it to the public to think about solutions.”