HomeMy WebLinkAbout2006 Resolution No. 081•
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RESOLlTTION NO. f:/
SERIES OF 2006
A RESOLUTION AUTHORll!NG THE ENGLEWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY TO
IMPLEMENT THE ANNUAL "WINTER FOOD FOR FINES" PROGRAM FROM MONDAY,
NOVEMBER 27, 2006 THROUGH SUNDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2006.
WHEREAS, the Englewood Public Library has sponsored a "Food for Fines" program since
1990; and
WHEREft,S, the "Food for Fines" program allows patrons with overdue fines to "pay" them
off through the donation of non-perishable food items; and
WHEREAS, th< food items are then forwarded to the Interfaith Community Services for their
"food bank" distribution to financially disadvantaged families in the Englewood area; and
WHEREAS, the program is a benefit to the community in that the disadvantaged are assisted;
the air cleared with respect to fines; and the City receives its library materials back and the
program presents a positive image of the Library and the City .
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE Cl rY OF
ENGLEWOOD, COLORADO, THAT:
Section I. The Englewood City Council hereby authorizes tile Englewood Public Library's
implementation of the annual "Winter Food For Fines" program from November 27, 2006
through December I 0, 2006 . The collected food will then be forwarded to the Interfaith
Community Services for distribution to financi,lly disadvantaged r,milios in the Englewood area.
ADOPTED AND APPROVED this 6tl, of November, 2006.
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LoucshiaAEllis,rk
I, Loucrishia A. Ellis, City Clerk for tl)c.pty of Englewood, Co ra o, hereby certify the ~
above is a true copy of Resolution No . ..J[L_, Series -~
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COUNCIL COMMUNICATION
Date: Agenda Item: Subject:
November 6, 2006 9 cl Englewood Public Library 's 2006
"Winter Food for Fines • Program ·-
Initiated By: I Suff Source:
Library Department Hank Long, Director of Library Serv,ces
COUNCIL GOAL AND PREVIOUS COUNCIL ACTION
The Library has sponsored this popular program since 1990, and each year the City Council has
voiced its support. In 2003 , the ann1.•I Food for Fines program was expanded to twice a year at
the request of the Library Board, an c' •;ubsequently approved by City Council, for two weeks during
the summer as well as two week, a1 kh e end of the calendar year as a way to mitigate the incre•se
in O·,~rdue Library Fines and as 3 ,, ,., to encourage the timely return of EPL materials ;.:, :~at they
can be llSed by more people. The ~..;0 weeks of the Summer Food for Fines program covers the
last we~k of the public school year and the first week of vacat io ns, a time during which students
and teachers are cleaning out their desks an d lockers in prnparation for the summ er break and
numerous overdue Library materials are located , whereas the two weeks of the Winter Food for
Fine s program trad iti on all y cove rs the perio d in between the Thanksgiving and Chri stm as holidays .
Hist ori ca ll y, each of these two biannual even ts averages $1,000 to $1,500 in donated :uod items
for the Interfaith Community Serv ices food bank .
RECOMMENDED ACTION
The Library Department recommends City C :.ui.c;j appro ve a Resolution authorizing the Library
Departmen! to implement its 200 6 Winter Food for Fines program from Monday, November 27
th ro ugh Sunday, December ·10.
BACKGROUND, ANALYSIS, AND ALTERNATIVES IDENTIFIED
For the past 16 ye ars, the Engle wo od Public Library has provi ded its "Food for Fin ei" program as a
way for those patrons with fines on their overdue EPL materials to "pay '' them off through the
donation of non-perishable food items that are, in turn, forwarded to l11terfaith Community
Services for the ir "food bank" dis tributi on to financiallv disadvantaged families in the Englewood
area . Following 2003's incre as e in maxim um Overdue Fines fro m $2 to $5, the Library Bo ard
requested that the number oi foo d items required to pay off a single Overdue charge also be
increased beginning wi th th ~ 2004 Winter Food for Fines program, e.g. it now takes two food jtems
to cancel out the late charges (not lost or damaged charges) on one overdue item. These food
Items must be presented to the Library Staff at the Circulation Desk In order tor the fin e to be
de •. ed from the patron 's computer record. This program has been warmly recei ved an d supported
by the public since Its Inception, and Library patrons now look fo;wa1d to It as a way of helping