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Family Bookmobile
Pierce County Library System stopping bookmobiles
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Pierce County Library System will serve children living in low-income neighborhoods:
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Sadly, Pierce County Library can no longer afford to serve communities with the Explorer Kids’ Bookmobile and family bookmobiles, which are aging and costly to operate, especially in today's economy.
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The Library has had a proud 65 year run with the bookmobiles. Nine years ago the Library started the Explorer Program to serve children in low-income neighborhoods. The Library is standing by its commitment to serve children in low-income neighborhoods by bringing books, movies, magazines and other items. The Library System is working on a plan, and expects to serve even more children in this new way than it did on the bookmobiles.
People are far more mobile today and the Library offers 18 libraries and an online library 24/7. Currently, Pierce Transit has bus stops at all of the locations the family bookmobiles and Explorer Kids’ Bookmobile stopped, and can get you directly to your nearby library. The libraries offer trained librarians and staff to help people, more books and materials, computers and W-Fi.
The Library thanks all customers who have visited the bookmobiles, and looks forward to serving people at schools, neighborhood libraries, and online.
More information
The Library’s Board of Trustees reached this decision following careful and thoughtful research and analysis by managers. Less than 1 percent of the Library’s 256,000 card holders use the bookmobiles. Approximately 700 people regularly use the bookmobiles, with a checkout of nearly 6,000 items a month.
The bookmobiles have primarily been serving low-income neighborhoods in central Pierce County—Frederickson, Graham, Waller, Midland, Summit, Parkland, Spanaway, Fife, and Lakewood.
Stopping the bookmobiles is a savings of $180,000. This savings is needed to help address an anticipated $2.6-$3 million shortfall in the Library’s 2013 budget. The budget shortfall is approximately 10 percent of the Library’s $26.8 million operating budget.
