Almost exactly a year after all 72 branches of the Los Angeles Public Library system were closed on Mondays following budget cuts, LAPL branches reopened their doors to the public Monday.
At the , some 40 patrons, including children, were busy with a variety of activities at 4 p.m. today—thanks to Measure L, a March 8 voter-approved initiative that increased funding for the LAPL to a projected $130 million annually by amending the City’s charter. (The measure had the personal support of LAPD Chief Charlie Beck and all the 15 City Council members.)
A librarian at the check-out counter in Eagle Rock said that no additional staff had been assigned to deal with Monday’s crush. “I liked having two days off,” he said, adding that before today’s reopening, Tuesday was usually the library’s busiest day because the LAPL was closed on both Sunday and Monday. (The library system, which used to be open seven days a week before the budget cuts, is still closed on Sundays.)
Although Monday may be the new Tuesday for many library users, several students said they didn’t even realize the library used to be closed on Mondays. “I had no idea,” admitted Gabrielle De Alba, a third-year student at Pasadena City College, who spent about half an hour at the Eagle Rock branch, researching and checking out a book. “It’s good that the library is open on Mondays.”
As of late Monday, however, the LAPL’s highly popular Central Library branch had yet to make online revisions to the days and hours on which it’s open. On the LAPL’s official website, the Central branch is still closed on Monday.
