National Friends of Libraries Week

September 15, 2016 | eva

United for Libraries celebrates National Friends of Libraries Week October 16-22, 2016. The Friends of the Canton Public Library was established in 1988 with the goal of advocating and fundraising to improve library services. Today, nearly 28 years later, the Friends continue to support the library by selling used books at the Second Hand Prose bookstore and holding fundraisers throughout the year.

These dedicated Friends volunteers have donated their time as well as books, furniture, equipment, and art to the library. Since 2003, they have given more than $500,000 in these categories, as well as funds specifically for library programming, such as our Connect Your Summer program; the library's endowment fund; and spaces such as the Friends' Activity Room and the Wings of Wonder Butterfly Garden.

Their efforts have made our library the award-winning library it is today, and I hope you will join me in thanking the Friends, their board, and their volunteers for all of their contributions and hard work!

Do you want to get involved? Please consider purchasing a membership with the Friends, volunteering in Second Hand Prose, or making a donation.

Great Friends groups make great libraries, and the Canton Public Library is lucky to have ours. Happy National Friends of Libraries week!

Community Unity & Peace Rally

August 19, 2015 | eva

The Library is proud to join the Canton Police Department and the Canton Response to Hate Crimes Coalition (CRHCC) at a Community Unity & Peace Rally on Saturday, September 26 from 6:30-9:30 PM in the Heritage Park Amphitheater located behind the library and the Township Administration Building. This community event will include activities such as: Solidarity Walk, Musical Entertainment, Guest Speakers, and a Community Discussion.

All ages are invited to attend this free event promoting inclusion and tolerance, which will celebrate Canton's pride and appreciation of its diverse population.

The rally is sponsored by the CRHCC, an award-winning coalition of local law enforcement, leaders and representatives of community organizations, faith-based organizations, public schools, and the community at-large who are committed to raising awareness of hate crimes, bias incidents, and bullying; offering support to victims of hate/bias/bullying; and restoring a sense of community when these incidents occur.

Canton Community Survey

April 29, 2014 | eva

CPL Strategic Plan GoalsThe Canton Public Library and Canton Leisure Services have teamed up with ETC Institute to conduct a statistically-valid community survey to assist in planning and prioritizing for both organizations. If you are one of the 3,000 randomly-selected Canton households to receive the survey, please fill it out and return it promptly. The 30-question survey should take about ten minutes to complete. Your responses will help us better understand your needs and prioritize our Strategic Plan efforts for the next several years. Your opinion is very valuable and we greatly appreciate your time.

Reciprocal Borrowing 2012 - Board Presentation

February 26, 2013 | eva

At the Board of Trustees meeting on February 21, 2013, Circulation Services Department Head Nancy Szczepanski provided an overview of reciprocal borrowing. Nancy reviewed 2012 checkouts from our library by residents of other communities, and vice-versa, particularly since the board approval of changes to our Circulation Policy last year. The updated policy affirmed our commitment to sharing with and supporting our neighbors while preserving primary access to Canton taxpayers.

Nancy's presentation, attached here as a .pdf, gave the Board good background on checkouts of our materials by patrons of other libraries, and I hope that you find it useful and interesting, also.

Best,
Eva Davis signature
Eva M. Davis, Director

Welcome to the new Library Board of Trustees

November 27, 2012 | eva

Library Director Eva Davis and Outgoing Chair Don Turner
On November 6, the people of Canton elected six residents to the Library Board of Trustees. Nancy Eggenberger, Sommer Foster, Michelle Farell, and Thomas Hartnett joined incumbents Jim Fausone and Kim Schulz on the board, all of whom were sworn in on November 15 by Canton Township Clerk Terry Bennett.

The Library Board is responsible for the governance and financial oversight of the library. They hire, evaluate, and fire the Library Director, and ensure that the library meets the needs of Canton Township residents. The library has successfully weathered the economic downturn so far, largely because of the successful direction and guidance of these dedicated trustees.

I thank the trustees for volunteering to serve in these unpaid positions for the next four years, and hope you will join me in congratulating them on their elections. I would also like to thank Michael Siegrist, George Snow, Don Turner, and Colleen Van Auken for their years of service to the Library Board; we wish you the best in your future endeavors.

Best,
Eva Davis
Eva M. Davis, Director

2012 Budget Hearing

September 14, 2011 | eva

Our Library Board of Trustees will hold the required Public Hearing on Thursday, September 15, at 7:30pm at the library to take public comment on and approve the library's 2012 budget (attached, with a comparison to our approved 2011 budget), levying a millage rate of 1.5437 mills to generate total revenue of $4.9 million. This is a reduction of about $40,000 compared to our 2011 budget, and a total reduction of about $1.9 million compared to our 2008 budget — 2008 was our "high-water" mark as far as revenues; the recession led to declining property values, which leads to reduced property tax collections and a smaller budget for library services.

The budget for 2012 is a very tight budget and reflects a number of cuts to every department and area of the library. As the recession continues and the library budget declines even more, we will be considering furlough days, layoffs, charging residents for certain library services, and further diminishing or discontinuing services, programs, and collections to meet our legal mandate to present a balanced budget. Thank you for your suggestions on how we can continue to provide the excellence you expect given the bleak financial outlook.

Update on Services to Romulus Public Library Cardholders

May 10, 2011 | eva

Eva DavisCongratulations to Romulus residents, and to all Romulus Public Library cardholders, on the Romulus City Council's recent decisions to establish a PA 164 independent city library and appoint a five-member library board.

The newly-created library board's announcement that they will open the Romulus Public Library for eight hours, one day per week, through the first week of July, and their plan to fund the library at .12 mills after that for service three days per week, is a great start to getting the new independent library started.

Services to Romulus Public Library Cardholders

April 22, 2011 | eva

Eva Davis, DirectorTo all Romulus residents, and to all Romulus Public Library cardholders:

In preparation for their anticipated closing on May 1, the Romulus Public Library has stopped checking out all materials. As a member of The Library Network cooperative, the Romulus Public Library had a reciprocal borrowing agreement in place that allowed you to use neighboring libraries.

While we here at the Canton Public Library are happy to reciprocate with other communities, that reciprocity is based on mutual sharing; we cannot bear the financial burden of serving Romulus residents when Romulus is eliminating funding for their library.

Because the Romulus Public Library has stopped lending to Canton residents in violation of our reciprocal borrowing agreement, the Canton Public Library Board voted at their April 21 meeting to stop lending to Romulus Public Library cardholders, effective immediately.

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