At the Nov. 20 City Council Meeting, the council was given an annual review of the Airway Heights Library.
Two representatives from the library informed the board what has been going on at the library and what will happen in the future.
First, the council was told that the library has about 5,000 cardholders as of October 2017, which is an 8 percent increase from last year. It was also said that there has been 400,000 digital items checked out so far this year, an 11 percent increase compared to 2016. Along with those items, 55,000 physical items have also been checked out from the members.
A new family health database was also added this year that helps people come to the library to research different health related items. One representative said that members would use this feature when somebody has new dietary needs or is diagnosed with something after an annual checkup.
The library is trying to live up to their motto, “A place to come and stay awhile,” with a programs for all ages. They have a new activity called “Family Storytime” that used to be a “Baby and Play Storytime” for ages 3-5. It is now open to any ages, making the attendance a little more full with a variety of families.
There are also programs being held for adults, with arts and crafts along with concerts being the most popular. Most recently, there was a glass stain event that brought in a lot of people, even some from outside of Airway Heights. They said that the next time the event is hosted the size will be about doubled to accommodate everyone.
The library has been partnering with the community as well with hosting events for kids going back to school that included the firefighters and cops interacting with the youth.
After the presentation, the council held the final public hearing on the 2018 final budget. With no citizens comments and no further questions from the council, the public hearing was short and will be finalized.
The city is in good shape financially as its current expense fund is in the positive of $77,934. There is also a positive amount in the street funding ($31,329) and water-sewer fund ($59,938).
J.C. Kennedy asked the council to approve to enter into a professional service agreement with Ballard King and Associates to complete an operations study on the Recreation Center. It will cost $15,5000 and it will be paid for by the admissions tax. The council passed it unanimously.
The consultant will give a market review and operations analysis on the center. This includes things like demographic characteristics, community profile, competitive market analysis, attendance estimates, fee structure, sources of income, operating cost projections, revenue generation projections revenue/expenditure comparisons and project recommendations.
Clerk-Treasuer Amy Gravelle also read the first reading of Ordinance C-898 that will sets the positions, salaries and compensation for employees of the city for 2018. The ordinance states that Airway heights will had five new positions, including one court clear, an associate planner, code technician and two patrol officers.
The meeting ended with a first reading of ordinance C-899 that adopts the 2018 budget and ordinance C-900 amending the budgets of various funds for 2017.
Grace Pohl can be reached at [email protected].
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