Dallas City Council restores $3.1 million in funding for public libraries

The late-night vote preserves library jobs and six-day service at neighborhood branches.

Supporters of the Dallas Public Library system are breathing a sigh of relief after the Dallas City Council restored $3.1 million in funding, preserving library jobs and six-day service at neighborhood branches.

The council approved the funding in a late-night vote last week before approving the city's record $5.7 billion overall budget.

Dallas City Council Member Cara Mendelsohn pushed for the funding, saying residents rely on the city's libraries and the resources they provide.

"The votes are there to hold this up. We would like for the libraries to be open six days a week," Mendelsohn said. "Let’s do the right things for our residents and approve it."

Before the vote, the Dallas Public Library system faced a roughly $3.3 million loss in funding.

"We have the opportunity to minimize the impact of what this budget would do to our library systems," Dallas City Council Member Adam Bazaldua said.

Denise McGovern, executive director of Friends of the Dallas Public Library, said the potential cuts would have eliminated library positions and reduced service at branch libraries to five days a week.

"Positions at the library would have been and the branch libraries would have gone down to five days a week of service," McGovern said. "So it was really losing that connection by losing those positions."

With the majority vote to restore funding, McGovern said seven flagship branches will operate, while the neighborhood branches complementing them will remain open six days a week.

"There’s going to be seven flagship branches, which is more than they originally had thought. The neighborhood branches that are completing those are going to be open six days a week," McGovern said.

"A lot of people are going to have to be brought in and hired back and staffed up," McGovern said.

The funding preserves resources that patrons use regularly at Dallas libraries. At the central library in downtown Dallas, one patron described coming every day for services ranging from job applications to guidance and other resources.

"Right now I’m coming here every day," the Dallas library patron said. "You can apply for jobs; you can get whatever resources you need. If you need directions for something, you need guidance, they got everything here."

The patron also pointed to resources that go beyond books and computers.

"They have gardening where you can start your own gardening because of the recalls on different foods you have access to free seeds," the patron said.

While McGovern celebrated the restored funding, she cautioned that the issue is not settled for the long term.

"It’s a one-year win. Because next year’s budget will still need to find more money to continue the library budget at this level," McGovern said.

For now, McGovern said she is looking forward to seeing the impact at Dallas libraries.

"I’m very excited to see people at the library working, greeting people; it’s going to be great," McGovern said.

This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC DFW. AI tools helped convert the story into a digital article, and an NBC DFW journalist edited it again before publication.