Special to the Town Crier
Los Altos residents and businesses will be paying less parcel property tax and receiving more library services than in years past, thanks to Measure A funding overwhelmingly approved by voters this past November.
Measure A is a "benefit assessment for unincorporated areas and cities that we serve, to raise money for these library services," said Janice Yee, deputy county librarian. Measure A calls for approximately $33 per household for 10 years, depending on the benefit of the library service, she said.
The parcel property tax that will be reduced is the North County Library Authority tax. The $5 reduction will drop the annual tax from $52 to $47. The tax was intended to supplement the budget of the Los Altos Main library and the Woodland library, said Carol Tefft, head librarian at the Los Altos Main Library.
"With the North County Library Authority tax, we were having to use the full amount because of a deficit," Tefft said. "Measure A will now cover the deficit," Tefft said, thus lowering the parcel property tax to Los Altos residents and businesses and allowing for an increase the services at the libraries.
"We're really excited," Yee said. "This is the first time we ever had this many library hours." Measure A provides for 69 additional hours at the main library and 39 more hours at the Woodland library, Yee said.
In addition to the added hours, the libraries are expanding Internet resources, lengthening the children story hours, and offering full telephone references every day except for Friday nights and Sundays. The book budget will also increase by $107,000.
The increased services will begin on July 1. The new hours in the Los Altos main library are: Monday through Thursday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday noon to 6 p.m. Woodland's hours are: 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. Monday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
"This is going to strengthen Los Altos," Yee said. "Everyone will benefit."