KENT COUNTY, Mich. — The Kent District Library (KDL) is asking voters Tuesday, Nov. 7 to help keeps its doors open and write the next chapter of its story.
On the ballot is a 15-year operating millage of 1.1 mills, a rate that’s actually 10.9% less than the current one.
Executive Director Lance Werner explains that they can levy a lower tax rate because taxable values across the county have gone up, adding that new technologies have helped the library become more efficient and cut back on unnecessary labor costs. Instead, they're able to rededicate labor to more "forward-facing endeavors."
According to KDL, if approved, the lower millage will save taxpayers $3.1 million annually or $46.5 million over its life. With the lower rate, the average household will pay $145.75 a year, or $2.80 a week.
Werner adds the average person gets over $1,300 worth of services and emphasizes that the millage reduction won't have any negative impact on those services.
Those services include things like physical and digital books, music and movies, WiFi hot spots, research services and other educational programming.
Plus, the KDL is the regional provider for those who are blind or have other disabilities, and they partner with Feeding America to help tackle food insecurity during the summer.
Werner says the KDL is "the heart and soul of the county."
"We are a part of people's families; we make sure that the people that are lonely have friends and family. We go through extraordinary effort to make sure nobody gets left behind. We want to make sure there's representation in our collection; we want to make sure that people see feel seen, valued and heard. We want to lift people up, and we want to make sure there's opportunities for everybody," says Werner.
KDL's impact and community-first approach is being recognized with two national awards. This year, they were designated as a five-star library, one of only two in the state.
Plus, on Wednesday, it was announced that KDL won the Jerry Kline Community Service Impact Award, which is only given to one library in the country.
The current millage expires at the end of next year, but the library would remain funded through 2025. If it fails on the 7th, Werner says the hope would be to get it back on the ballot.
But if it never passes, all 20 and a half branches would close, and 400 people would lose their jobs.
"It'd be horrendous," says Werner.
"We really do profoundly care about the communities that we serve," he adds. "We feel that libraries are engines for democracy and are here to protect freedoms and civil rights. We really truly care about everybody and really do want to transform lives through kindness, empathy and love and make sure that nobody gets left behind."
The KDL currently serves about 440,000 people across the county.
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 7. Polls are open 7 a.m.–8 p.m.
You can find FOX 17's full Election Guide here.
