Residents in East Franklin Square and North Valley Stream will have an opportunity this month to decide which library will receive their local library tax dollars in a special election.
The election is scheduled for Aug. 18 from noon to 9 p.m. and will allow residents in the two unserved areas to choose a home library. East Franklin Square residents will vote at Polk Street Elementary School, while North Valley Stream residents will vote at Dever Elementary School.
The special election is part of a process that occurs every five years for communities that are not currently part of a library district. Under New York state law, residents must vote to tax themselves in order to join a library district and receive the benefits associated with having a home library.
Aviva Kane, director of the Franklin Square Public Library, said the election is particularly significant for residents in East Franklin Square and North Valley Stream because neither area is currently served by the incorporated Village of Valley Stream’s Henry Waldinger Memorial Library.
Kane said the library system on Long Island differs from systems in areas such as Brooklyn, where library branches are supported by a boroughwide tax base. In Nassau County, individual libraries generally have their own tax bases and operate independently while working together through the Nassau Library System.
Residents who select a home library can still use other libraries throughout the county. However, having a home library can provide preferential access to certain services, including museum passes, databases, electronic materials and popular programs, Kane said.
Franklin Square Public Library board member Julie Soffientini said special library elections give residents in areas that fall within multiple library districts the opportunity to decide which library they want their local tax dollars to support.
Soffientini said choosing Franklin Square as a home library would allow residents of Franklin Square, as well as residents of nearby portions of Valley Stream who are not part of Valley Stream Union Free School District 17, to benefit from the library’s services.
By bringing additional tax revenue to the Franklin Square Public Library, Soffientini said, the library would have more resources to expand its programs and enrich its offerings for both residents within the district and those in nearby communities who choose Franklin Square as their home library.
“A library, like Franklin Square, welcomes nearby residents to join through their vote,” she said.
The election also gives residents an opportunity to choose a library based on the services and convenience that best fit their needs.
“It’s not just traditionally these libraries have been funded by a particular community,” Kane said, explaining that residents have the opportunity to determine where their library tax dollars go.
According to information provided by the Franklin Square Public Library, the net local public support per capita varies among Nassau County libraries. Franklin Square’s figure is approximately $106 per person annually, compared with $205 for West Hempstead and $46 for Elmont.
Kane said the differences are largely tied to the number of residents served by each library and the tax base supporting its operations.
The election is not limited to residents who currently use a particular library. Residents in the affected areas are welcome to visit and use libraries throughout Nassau County, but choosing a home library establishes which library receives their local tax support and provides them with certain additional benefits.
Kane encouraged residents to learn about the election before casting their ballots, noting that some voters may be unfamiliar with special library elections because they occur separately from regularly scheduled elections.
“It’s fascinating,” Kane said of the process, noting that the system gives residents a rare opportunity to have a direct say in which library serves as their home library.
More information about the Franklin Square Public Library and its services is available at fslibrary.org.
