On Wednesday the Fort Myers Beach Library Board voted to roll back the millage rate from .2355 to .1612 per $1,000 of assessed property valuation. From here, the board cannot go higher, they can only go lower.
If the Board voted to keep the millage rate at .2355 the library would have seen an additional $300,000 in tax revenue due to the higher property valuations. The roll back rate means they will receive exactly what they did last year with the higher rate. At .1612, the library will receive $748,448.00, which is a decrease of $57.05 from last year.
The Library has not been open going on two years now due to damage from Hurricane Ian. The main holdup has been parts for the elevator. They library cannot open without an elevator due to ADA requirements. Those parts are not expected to arrive until the end of September at the earliest.
Two budget public hearings will be held to finalize the 2024-2025 fiscal year budget which begins on October 1st: September 10th and September 24th at 5:05PM.
I am so excited to see the library continue its progress to open. As an retired librarian, I know of the continued progress you have been making in technology, acquisitions, inventory and planning programs for all future patrons!
this is BS. it does not take 2 years to get elevator parts. All employees continue to get full pay, doing nothing.
A reduced staff IS working. I worked at the library for 4 years and know that it does take a great deal of work to get a library of that size ready for the public. Once the elevator folks get their “stuff” together, the doors will be ready to open and many of us will be happy to welcome that day.