Two paths for Burke, Caldwell libraries

Walking between the shelves of a library in Burke County is much like moving among the books in Caldwell — plenty to read, people working steadily at computers and activity tables, and librarians smiling behind book carts and help desks.

The counties have similar populations and three library branches each.

Despite their similarities, the financial support for those systems has taken markedly different paths over the past six years.

Burke County’s library budget has grown nearly 41% since fiscal year 2021-22, from $1.53 million to nearly $2.3 million. Caldwell County’s allocation grew about 5%, from $1.48 million to $1.56 million over the same period

Burke’s library budget grew at an average of about $154,000 per year, or 8.44%, while Caldwell has only increased by $15,119.80 on average, or 1.16%.

According to Burke officials, much of the budget was geared toward salaries, inflation, and the cost of operations. Burke libraries have 22 full-time and eight part-time employees shuffling books and leading programs, not much different than Caldwell’s 19 full-timers and 12 part-timers.

That’s also before municipal support.

Morganton and Valdese branches are both co-owned by their respective municipalities, which contribute annually to their library’s budgets — an average of $253,000 from Morganton between FY 2021-22 and FY 2026-27 and, starting this year, $10,000 from Valdese.

Valdese recently cut yearly funding from $40,000 to $10,000 amid broader financial challenges. The C.B. Hildebrand branch is solely owned by Burke County, and Caldwell receives no municipal support from Lenoir, Hudson, or Granite Falls for its respective branches.

Both counties receive support from Friends of the Library, while Burke also has a Library Foundation. The Foundation and private donors provided nearly two-thirds of $1 million in Morganton renovations in 1999 and 2000.

“Today, the Library Foundation and Friends provide around $100,000 each year for programs, services, and collections,” said Burke officials. “That support is extremely valuable, but it is not currently being used to fund the library system’s major capital needs.”

It’s pretty much the same in Caldwell, where Friends of the Library doesn’t support operations as much as the summer reading programs, prizes for events, and “Opportunity for All,” a program geared toward adults with learning, cognitive, and developmental or physical disabilities.

LIBRARY CHECKOUTS

According to Caldwell County Library Director Janet Fore, community engagement with the library has steadily increased over the last few years, especially during the summer.

Youth and teen circulations grew across both counties this past year — 22,521 to 25,466 among Caldwell teens alone — while adult print books saw a decline in Burke.

Burke officials said last year’s circulation was heavily impacted by the closing of the library’s book vendor, Baker & Taylor. The switch to vendor Ingram Content Group delayed new title purchases over the summer, the main driver of Adult Print circulation.

“During that time, we were receiving almost no books,” said Burke Library Director Jim Wilson. “Had that not been the case, it is likely we would have seen a modest increase in adult print circulation.”

RENOVATIONS AND NEW BUILDINGS

Despite lower annual budgets, Caldwell County has rerouted funds from other budgets to allow several renovations, from $106,765 toward a boiler replacement at the Lenoir branch in 2023 to the recent redirection of $330,000 in State Capital and Infrastructure Funds in August to re-carpet the Lenoir facility, re-paint the interior, and restore stability to cracking pavers and crumbling retaining walls out front.

In the summer of 2020, Caldwell County purchased a new building in Granite Falls for $250,000, eventually relocating the Granite Falls library branch there in the summer of 2021.

Hudson has largely been left in the dust, remaining in the same building since 1973, despite continuing growth throughout the year — a 6.5% increase in circulation overall and a 14.9% growth in children’s check-outs.

However, Fore said she hopes that once the shopping center across the street from the current location is finished, the county can work something out with the developer to move the library into one of the storefronts to accommodate the growing library users.

Burke has not seen any major renovations during the six fiscal years examined in this story, but an expansion to the Morganton branch has been on the long-term project list since March 2023.

“Morganton has the greatest need for additional space and facility improvements,” county officials said. “It is our oldest and most heavily used branch, and both previous facility studies (in 2008 and 2019) recommended a significant expansion.”

A review from RBSA Architects in 2019 recommended nearly doubling the current building’s 18,000-square-foot layout, adding anywhere from 14,000 to more than 18,000 square feet.

The county said no funding sources or construction timelines are in place, keeping the project on the back burner.

As for the other two branches in Burke, Valdese underwent extensive renovations between 2018 and 2019, with pretty much everything in the building getting a fresh makeover.

The C.B. Hildebrand Public Library opened in late 2017, sharing a building with the East Burke Senior Center and moving the local library from a small adjacent building across from the Truist Bank branch.

Despite less than 10 years since opening, Burke officials said, “Hildebran is also starting to get cramped, especially as the collection continues to grow. Valdese is generally meeting its current needs, but the area used for resource sharing is becoming too small as more libraries join NC Cardinal.”

NC Cardinal is a program of the Library of North Carolina that creates a statewide collaboration between libraries, allowing for resource sharing, cost savings, and a statewide catalog and library card.

“Our employees do a good job of using the space they have,” Burke officials said, “but each branch has needs that will have to be considered as collections, programs, and public use continue to grow.”