The Seattle Public Library board of trustees has recommended legislation to the City Council allowing the Libraries for All program to incorporate the generous $15 million gift from Bill and Melinda Gates without affecting overall project budgets.
The Gates' publicly announced their gift to the Library in November 1998 following the successful passage of a bond measure to improve the Library system. The Gates' donation was designated for capital construction of neighborhood libraries as outlined in the Libraries for All program.
Without the ordinance, the branch program, which is already full funded from public sources, would be over-funded by $15 million, while the central library would still need an additional $15 million in gifts and donations beyond what was in the original Libraries for All capital plan.
The ordinance would not change project budgets, or the budget for the overall program, but would substitute gift money for bond funds between the branch and library programs. The original intent of the legislation backing the Libraries for All program was to allow fund transfers to balance the effect of gifts and contributions that may be dedicated to capital projects other than the central library. This would allow the Library Foundation to conduct a broad-based fund-raising campaign.
The City Council Budget Committee took public testimony on the proposed ordinance on Oct. 11 and will take additional testimony at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 9, in the City Council Chambers on the 11th floor of the Municipal Building, 600 Fourth Ave.
(For more information, call Andra Addison, public information officer, at 206-386-4103, or andra.addison@spl.org.)
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Content modified: 15 November 1999
12/30/2005
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