Tuesday night, library staff members and concerned citizens held signs and posters in mute protest as Orange County Commissioners reviewed a budget that would close the Carrboro Branch Library at MacDougal Middle School.

Library patron Gerry Christmas was one of those protesting the proposed closure

At the budget work session County Manager Laura Blackmon recommended a plan that would close the Carrboro Branch Library on August 10th of this year and the Cedar Grove Branch Library on September 7th. The money saved would go to fund the opening and operation of the new Main Library in downtown Hillsborough. Staff from both branches would be transferred to the new library and the collections would be spread throughout the regional library system.

Vice Chair Mike Nelson, who served as mayor of Carrboro for ten years, called the proposal a good exercise for department heads but said he could not vote for any budget that would close the two libraries. He went on to say that the issue of library branch funding was part of a larger conflict pitting communities against each other in the struggle to protect resources.

David Dusto, who works as an intern at the Carrboro Branch Library, agreed with Nelson’s assessment of the problem.

Though there was no opportunity for public comment at Tuesday’s work session, library advocates vowed to make their voices heard at future meetings. Public hearings on Orange County’s budget will be held in Hillsborough on May 21st and in Chapel Hill on May 26th.