The Dana Point Library could cut all of its Sunday hours with residents being able to access services Tuesday through Saturday.
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The Dana Point City Council is set to vote Tuesday on whether to terminate an agreement with the County of Orange for Sunday operations at the library, which, according to a city staff report, would save the city $45,000 annually.
In February 2008, Dana Point entered an agreement with the county to authorize the extension of operating hours to include Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. with the intent to “accommodate the needs of the community,” the staff report said.
The annual cost to provide the services on Sundays is budgeted at $45,000. Dana Point is the only city in the county currently paying for supplemental library hours. The library currently operates from Tuesday to Thursday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and from Friday to Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Since no other cities are paying for supplemental hours, the staff is recommending an end to the agreement for Sunday services.
Pre-pandemic figures for 2018 and 2019 show Sundays have the lowest attendance, according to the staff report. In the wake of decreased staff as a result of the pandemic, the county librarian noted that closing the library on Sunday would allow the county to effectively staff the library and offer services to the community on other days of the week, the report said.
Orange County libraries have continued to expand their services to offer eBook checkout, Zoom book clubs and virtual programs amid the pandemic, according to the report.
The City Council is scheduled to meet at 5 p.m. on Tuesday and the meeting can be viewed on Youtube.