Description

Libraries are costly endeavors, not only to construct anew but also to maintain and to refurbish. The procurement of funding for these efforts, both in the public and private domain, is therefore a crucial aspect of library planning.

The planning of private libraries and public libraries differs widely with respect to issues of funding. Funding is divided into government and non-government sources, private funds being part of the latter. Non-government sources include foundations, both private and community, corporations, and professional associations. Libraries funded by private monies and gifts are subject to stipulations of the individual donor but are otherwise free from the constraints of governmental or public funding regulations. Examples of private libraries include research libraries of private institutions, royal libraries, and libraries of corporations such as businesses and law firms. Notable privately funded libraries include the Bodleian Library at Oxford University and the Vatican Library.

By definition, a public library is established under government regulations to serve a particular community and is supported, in whole or in part, by public funding.[1] Government funding occurs at many levels and depends, in great part, on the structure of the individual government. The processes for funding vary and are particular to the many types of government.

Funding for operational use differs from funding for new construction or special programs. Depending on the scale, upgrade and refurbishment may be considered under either new construction or operational use. In the U.S., for example, funding for operations occurs at federal, state and local levels. Government funding comprises federal money, which accounts for less than 1 %, state money for less than 10 % and local money for over 80 % of library expenditures.[2] Funding for European libraries occurs on two levels; individually, through the structure of each country, and, collectively through the support of the European Commission for joint endeavors. In the former, each country provides funding through its own regulatory processes. For example, in Finland, the library is part of the citizen’s right to information, a right protected by the legislation, and the state has subsidized up to 40 % of all library expenditures.[3]

The process for a new library begins with a preliminary design and the selection of an architect. In Europe, this process is mostly conducted through an international competition. The design is subsequently used for fund raising. In the U.S., the planning process often begins with a needs assessment conducted by a library building consultant working closely with the library governing body and organizations within the community to define library programmatic needs. The cost of the preliminary design for a new library is often an operational expenditure. Financing for the construction of new libraries falls outside of operation costs and typically includes funding sources such as grants, donors and loans in the form of government bonds. In the U.S., new public libraries are usually funded through the issuance of treasury bonds that are paid for through the taxes of the community it serves. This type of funding requires public approval based on the preliminary design. A majority vote is required without which a project may not advance beyond this phase. In the case of OMA’s design for the Seattle Central Library (2004) the citizens of Seattle voted overwhelmingly to approve the U.S. $ 196.4 million bond measure for the new facility, whereas in the case of Mario Bellini’s winning competition entry for the Turin Central Public Library, this financing did not materialize and the project did not continue beyond the preliminary design. The continued development of the library typology will most likely lead to new and unique resources for the funding of future libraries.

In the U.S., alternate funding opportunities exist for specific programs or special services within the library. Organizations such as the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) awards grants for projects specific to the humanities while the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) supports programs in arts and literature. Legislation, too, has created funding opportunities for special services. For example, the American Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) with its focus on access to information technology has created flexible funding resources within the library to promote certain priorities. In American school libraries, funding opportunities may be found in Federal grants such as the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), originally enacted in 1965, that provide funds to schools in areas of high poverty or for schools focusing on bilingual education.[4]

In Europe, the structure of the EU affords additional funding opportunities through the European Commission, for library projects promoting the sharing of information between the EU countries. For example, the Telematics for Libraries Program began in 1990 with the objective of unifying information access for European nations. Funded projects were TESTLAB, a project for visually handicapped readers, and CHILIAS, a project to develop multi-media applications for children’s libraries. Recent opportunities include the European Commission’s support of the EDL project to integrate the bibliographic catalogues and digital collections of the National Libraries of 47 European countries and the ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) Program to develop a single European information space.

The concept of the digital library and information space has also spawned new funding possibilities. Within one country, projects such as Harvard University’s plan for the Digital Public Library of America redefines the boundaries of public and private libraries in the U.S. With their global reach, projects for digital libraries are not confined to even a particular country or region and have enabled a new accessibility to funding opportunities. For example, the American Andrew Mellon Foundation awarded a grant for an international non-profit organization based in Europe to create the National Library of Mongolia.

Recent trends in new projects include libraries that co-exist and share facilities with another institution. In Denmark, the Gellerup Library shares facilities and functions with the Gellerup Community Center. In London, the Idea Store (Adjaye Associates, 2005) combines the library with a learning center/educational facility. These collaborative efforts present different types of financing outside the realm of typical library funding. The continued development of the library typology will most likely lead to new and unique resources for the funding of future libraries.

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Originally published in: Nolan Lushington, Wolfgang Rudorf, Liliane Wong, Libraries: A Design Manual, Birkhäuser, 2016.