CLEVELAND, Tenn. -- A 2 percent salary step increase is on the table for the staff of the Cleveland Bradley County Public Library.
In a recent meeting, the library board of trustees voted 5-0 to approve the recommendation, made by treasurer Richard "Tiger" Jones.
"We're holding the costs, but we want to be able to give people a raise," Jones said. "The city and county employees got raises [last year], but our people did not get a raise. Personally, I think that's wrong."
A proposed $25,000 increase in funding from local government, split between Cleveland and Bradley County, would encompass the $16,000 needed for the salary step increase plan, said Andrew Hunt, the library director.
The overall proposed library budget for 2015-16 amounts to about $1.3 million in expenditures, Hunt said.
Jones also urged that special consideration be given to strategic planning for the purchase of materials in coming years, especially in light of trends that have seen an increasing demand for digital content by library patrons.
"The most flexible part of our budget, of course, is what we buy: How many books and what kind of books," Jones said.
Between 2006 and 2012, the library's digital content has grown from 1,027 items to 24,058, according to data presented by Hunt. That number stands at 47,913 this year and is projected to grow to 64,573 next year.
In the same time period, the physical collection peaked at 397,734 items in 2012, but is expected to fall to 348,538 items next year, close to the same volume maintained by the library 10 years ago.
Since July 2014, library members have accessed digital content more than 35,000 times through the Tennessee Regional eBook and Audiobook Download System (READS), according to library statistical data.
Hunt has credited the proliferation of tablets and other handheld digital devices as a key factor driving the need for libraries to provide digital content, which also includes access to numerous databases in addition to READS.
In other business, trustees discussed the progress of a change in layout to the historic stone wall that wrapped around the northwest corner of the library campus, along the junction of Ocoee Street and Eighth Street.
The low wall, constructed of large stones topped with iron railing, is undergoing a move to create a consistent face along Ocoee Street.
When completed, the reconfigured wall not only will improve aesthetics for the library grounds, but it will improve safety during children's activities, said John Hagler, chairman of the library board.
Preservation of the library's "residential atmosphere" was a priority in the relocation plan, Hunt said.
Hagler said the grounds project has been funded through private sources.
Paul Leach is based in Cleveland. Email him at paul.leach.press@gmail.com.