HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution No. 2010-073CITY OF THE COLONY, TEXAS
RESOLUTION NO. 2010- :0-7 3
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF THE COLONY, TEXAS,
ADOPTING A LONG RANGE PLAN FOR THE COLONY PUBLIC
LIBRARY; THAT ADOPTION OF THIS PLAN IS IN
COMPLIANCE WITH THE MINIMUM STANDARDS OF
ACCREDITATION OF PUBLIC LIBRARIES IN THE TEXAS
STATE LIBRARY SYSTEM; ATTACHING THE APPROVED
LONG RANGE PLAN AS EXHIBIT A; AND PROVIDING AN
EFFECTIVE DATE
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF THE COLONY, TEXAS:
Section 1. That the City Council of the City of The Colony, Texas, hereby approves
the Long Range Plan for The Colony Public Library.
Section 2. That adoption of this plan is in compliance with the Minimum Standards of
Accreditation of the Public Libraries in the Texas State Library System.
Section 3. That a true and correct copy of the Long Range Plan is attached hereto and
incorporated herein.
Section 4. That this resolution shall take effect immediately from and after its passage.
PASSED AND APPROVED by the City Council of the City of The Colony,
Texas, this 17th day of August, 2010.
e l
ATTEST:
Christie Wilson, TRMC, City Secretary
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
VW,
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Jeff Moore,iCity Attorney
Joe I
City
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, Texas 1
The Colony Public Library
Long Range Plan
2010-2015
Approved for recommendation to the City Council by the Library Board on July 29, 2010
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Approved by The Colony City Council on lljto; 1-7 ,-9 i
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The Colony Public Library
Long Range Plan
2010-2015
Summary:
To meet the needs of the residents of The Colony and to keep pace with advances in information
and technology, The Colony Public Library has developed five strategic priorities:
(1) Provide highly skilled staff to meet changing needs of the community;
(2) Provide high quality reference services and be a reliable source for background materials and
in-depth information;
(3) ProN ide a variety of reading, viewing, and listening materials for personal enrichment and
enjoyment;
(4) Provide a high level of electronic information access to people of all ages and abilities;
(5) Increase Library support and resources.
About The Colony:
The Colony is located on the southeast shore of Lake Lewisville, in the fastest-growing area of
the Dallas Fort Worth metroplex, just 35 minutes north of downtown Dallas. Occupying 15.7
square miles in southeastern Denton County, The Colony includes lakeside parks, two golf
courses, and an 80-acre sports complex.
The Colony has a reputation of being a young, progressive, family-oriented community, growing
in residents and quality development. North Central Texas Council of Governments estimated
the January 2010 population at 40,100. The Colony's population is projected to reach 64,210 in
2030 and to top out at approximately 75,000.
Although The Colony is a relatively new city, its land is full of history. The historic Bridges
Cemetery in the eastern part of the city dates back to Bridges Settlement, the first settlement in
Denton County. Other former communities on this land included Stewartsville, formed in the
1840's, which was named after Willis T. Stewart, the principal investor in the Peters' Colony.
An historical marker at the intersection of Blair Oaks and South Colony Boulevard describes
what became known as the Hedgecoxe War of 1852. Colonists, angered by reports that the
Texas Emigration & Land Co. was defrauding the Peters' Colony settlers, raided the land office
of unpopular land agent Henry O. Hedgcoxe, seizing most of his files and burning the office. An
act passed by the legislature in 1853 allowed the colonists to file their claims directly with the
General Land Office in Austin rather than through a land agent. The community of Stewarts
Creek formed after the Hedgecoxe War (1850s/1860s) and was named after the nearby creek,
which had been named after one of the first settlers in Bridges Settlement, Isaac F. Stewart. The
community of Carney Spur, named for Capt. William McKamy, was established about 1896; for
a time it served as a spur on the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway. A post office operated in
Carney Spur from 1913 through 1925; in 1914 the community had a cotton gin, two general
stores, and a population of thirty. It had two businesses (the general stores) and a population of
forty-seven during the 1930s and 1940s, after which no population statistics were available.
Long Range Plan
Page 1 of 7
In 1969, Fox & Jacobs purchased the land. Dave Fox envisioned a "dream city" patterned after
Dallas specifications. The streets were named for original landowners and members of the crew
working on infrastructure at the time. The company started building homes in 1972. By
January, 1977, the area had over 5,000 residents and was incorporated. The name Colony was
decided upon but had already been taken. Therefore, the name became The Colony.
The Colony is heavily populated by families. According to the July 20, 2009 Community
Demographics report prepared by The Retail Coach for The Colony Economic Development
Corporation, the estimated average age is 31.86 with individuals under the age of 21 making up
34.8% of the population, those between the ages of 21-44 at 37.2%, ages 45-64 at 23.9% and age
65 or older at 4.1%. For 9.47% of the population age 5+, Spanish is the language spoken at
home.
According to the Demographics report, the 2009 estimated average household income in The
Colony is over $95,000; only 1.87% of families were estimated below the poverty level in 2009.
The majority of employed residents commute; the estimate average travel time is 34.75 minutes.
The population by ethnicity according to the 2000 Census is 78.8% White, 12.9% Hispanic,
5.1% African American, 0.6% Asian, 0.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.9% two or
more races, and 0.2% other.
The 2000 Census also reported approximately 42% of The Colony's population has some college
education, 24% have a bachelor or graduate degree. Of the employed civilian population, 37.2%
are in management, professional, and related occupations, 34.4% are in sales and office
occupations, 19.1 % are in construction, maintenance, production and transportation occupations,
and 9.3% are in service occupations. Of the families with own children under 6 years of age in
the household, 60.4% have all parents in the labor force.
The Colony is served by the Lewisville Independent School District. Eight elementary schools,
six of which are located in The Colony, feed into The Colony's two middle schools, which feed
into The Colony High School.
With a large number of area opportunities for higher education, The Colony has a large number
of college students; the Library has continued to a see an increasing number of students involved
in distance learning.
About The Colony Public Library:
The Colony Public Library, born of the efforts of a loyal group of volunteers, first opened its
doors in February 1982 in a small, 1,985 square foot storefront facility that it shared with the
Parks and Recreation Department. In December 1984, the citizens of The Colony passed a bond
issue to build the 9,025 square foot facility at 5151 N. Colony Blvd., which became the Library's
home ir_ August 1987. Having outgrown that facility, in 2000, the Library relocated to 6800
Main Street, where it shares the building, a renovated former grocery store, with City Hall. The
Library gained an additional 6,200 square feet, the ability to provide a large space for quiet
study, a beautiful story time area, and room for the collection and services to grow. The
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Community Development Corporation funded the additional shelving, furnishings, and
equipment for this new facility, as well as the relocation costs. A grant received from the
Telecommunications Infrastructure Fund Board established the Library's public access computer
network, providing T1 access to the internet, as well as access to MS Office 2000 programs, via
22 public access computers.
Since then, the Library has outgrown the approximately 15,000 sq. ft. allotted to it in the current
facility. Land was designated in The Colony Five Star Complex for a future library facility
several years ago; however, there is still no funding for its planning and construction.
Despite tight financial times, local support for the Library's services has increased in recent
years. In FY 2009-2010, staffing was added to enable the expansion of operating hours to
include Sunday afternoon service, increasing the hours from 44 hours per week to 48 hours. In
addition, the Library's materials budget has increased from $73,000 in FY 2005-2006 to
$105,000 in FY 2009-2010.
The Library's collection consists of over 80,000 volumes plus 7,200 microform items. The
collection includes popular materials in various formats (books, large-print books, books-on-tape
and books-on-CD, videos and DVD's, CD-ROM's, music CD's), reference materials, and
research tools. The reference collection includes city codes and documents, business directories,
investment information, job search information, college and financial assistance guides,
biographical data, special encyclopedias (science, religion, history, law, and music), and
consumer report information. The majority of the electronic resource collection is available
24/7; resources include Mango Languages, Legal Forms (Texas-specific), downloadable
audiobooks and ebooks, Biography Resource Center, Chilton Library, Britannica Online, PriceIt!
Antiques & Collectibles, Testing & Education Reference Center, The Million Dollar Database,
Science Online, Patron Books In Print, LitFinder, TumbleBooksTM, Tutor.com Learning Suite,
and Novelist, as well as over 50 databases provided via the Texas State Library and Archives
Commission.
For the fiscal year ending September 2009, the Library's door count showed a total of 131,552
visits and 149,149 items were checked out to users. During this same fiscal year, 264 programs
were offered to children and adults, with total attendance of 6,728 persons. Library programs
included toddler- and preschool storytimes, summer reading club programs, continuing education
programs for daycare providers, and a variety of educational and cultural programs.
Services available at the reference desk include electronic reference services, inter-library loan,
exam proctoring, and a reader's advisory service. Twenty-three of the Library's twenty-nine
public-access workstations also provide the use of Office 2007 programs (Word, Excel,
PowerPoint and Access); one workstation offers additional genealogy and local history
resources. Three early literacy workstations, one of which is bilingual (English/Spanish), serve
the library's younger patrons and their parents; these workstations were acquired via a grant from
the Praxair Foundation. A wide variety of income tax forms and publications for both current
and previous years are available; and the Library hosts the AARP Tax Help program from
February through mid-April. Exam-proctoring is provided on a fee basis.
Long Range Plan
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The Colony Public Library participates in Denton County Library Funding and is a member of
the Denton County Library Advisory Board (DCLAB). As a funding participant, the Library
serves all Denton County residents. All residents of The Colony have borrowing privileges at all
thirteen libraries participating in the funding program. Through DCLAB, the Library cooperates
with the other sixteen public library members to increase library awareness in the County,
promote the development of library services throughout the County, and share resource, ideas,
information, and talents.
The Library is accredited by the Texas State Library and Archives Commission and is a member
of the Texas Library System and the North Texas Regional Library System.
The Library is a recipient of the Loan Star Libraries Grant and has used the grant funds in a
variety of ways to improve services to the community.
The Library receives additional support from the Friends of The Colony Public Library, a non-
profit organization of volunteers working to promote and assist in developing the services of The
Colony Public Library.
Mission Statement:
The Colony Public Library is dedicated to improving its patrons' quality of life by facilitating
their search for informational, educational, and recreational resources and materials. The Library
strives to select, organize and provide access to a wide variety of the best materials, to be
responsive to the needs of the public, and to cultivate the maximum use of the Library's
resources and services.
Vision Statement:
The Colony Public Library shares a vision of the nation's founders that liberty and learning are
inseparable and that a democratic people must have free, open, and equal access to information.
The people of The Colony will:
• have access to the information they need to enhance their employment outlook, lifelong
learning, and personal growth opportunities;
• have access to reading, viewing and listening materials and programs that stimulate their
thinking, enhance their knowledge of the world, and improve the quality of their leisure
time;
• be encouraged to discover the joy of reading and to develop a love of learning;
• enjoy a high level of access to electronic information resources and be encouraged to
develop the technological, information seeking, and information evaluation skills needed
in an increasingly complex world;
• experience excellent customer service, encouraging them to use The Colony Public
Library's resources and services and to encourage others to do so as well.
Long Range Plan
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Strategic Priorities:
Strategic Priority #1: Provide highly skilled staff to meet changing needs of the community.
➢ Enhance staff technology, electronic resource, and other library-related skills through regular
online training provided by the North Texas Regional Library System (dba as North Texas
Library Partners), the Texas State Library, and other agencies or vendors as training
opportunities become available.
➢ Enhance staff customer service skills through in-house training as provided through the
Library's In-Service training program and by the City of The Colony.
➢ Enhance staff knowledge of area resources and staff ability to network with other information
providers via support of attendance at regional and area meetings.
➢ Provide staff training in Spanish phrases needed for communicating with patrons regarding
library services and resources.
Strategic Priority #2: Provide high quality reference services and be a reliable source for
background materials and in-depth information.
➢ Decrease reliance on temporary and support staff for staffing the reference desk.
➢ Provide regular training regarding new reference resources to staff assigned to reference desk
duty.
➢ Survey selected areas of the print Reference collection for currency each year.
➢ Survey selected areas of the non-fiction collection for currency each year.
➢ Give Library users optional means to receive References services (e.g. text message
reference)
Strategic Priority #3: Provide a variety of reading, viewing, and listening materials for
personal enrichment and enjoyment.
➢ Increase the ratio of items purchased pre-processed.
➢ Survey selected areas of the fiction collections annually for items to be withdrawn or replaced
to maintain current, attractive collections to encourage usage.
➢ Increase number and usage of downloadable audio books and ebooks
➢ Investigate downloadable music and videos.
Strategic Priority #4: Provide a high level of electronic information access to people of all ages
and abilities.
➢ Increase quantity of public access workstations.
➢ Promote availability of wireless access point.
➢ Evaluate the feasibility of replacing selected print resources with electronic resources.
➢ Maintain participation in the TexShare database program.
➢ Take advantage of TexSelect pricing for electronic resources.
➢ Investigate alternate means of delivering electronic resources to users, e.g. mobile devices
➢ Investigate means of ensuring that users with disabilities are given equal opportunity to use
the electronic resources provided by the Library.
➢ Ensure that electronic information provided by the Library is easy to discover and efficient to
use by Library cardholders.
➢ Promote availability of electronic resources through Library catalog records.
Long Range Plan
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Strategic Priority #5: Increase Library support and resources.
➢ Revitalize Adopt-A-Book program.
➢ Assist Friends of the Library in fund-raising and membership drive efforts.
➢ Seek additional grant funding opportunities.
➢ Maintain requirements for accreditation by the Texas State Library System thus retaining
eligibility for State funded services and grant programs.
➢ Maintain requirements for membership in the North Texas Regional Library System dba
North Texas Library Partners thus retaining eligibility for System funded services and grant
programs.
➢ Maintain requirements for membership in the Library Foundation of North Texas thus
retaining eligibility for LFNT grants and cooperative purchasing discounts with library
vendors.
Long Range Plan
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Resources
Census 2000 Profile of Selected Economic Characteristics for The Colony, Texas
/10 );lice;nsos.nctco.cj.orcl/sf3/rIi~3,_astj?Geo _C_ity,odc=_ 1242 (accessed July 29, 2010)
Census 2000 Profile of General Demographic Characteristics for The Colony, Texas
Iii ip~ ncte o or g til3i< p I .asp'Gco C n~ i '42 (accessed July 29, 2010)
Census 2000 Profile of Selected Social Characteristics for The Colony, Texas
Iittp ''census.nctco4;.oi si3id1 2.asl~`?Gco C1 ty<~~Code=4242 (accessed July 29, 2010)
Handbook of Texas Online, s.v. "CAMEY SPUR, TX,"
_~~~~~ashaonlineor~~!handbook'onlincarticles/CC/htcl.html (accessed July 29,2010)
Handbook of Texas Online, s.v. "THE COLONY, TX,"
III 11): w~N~~.tsbaonlineon handbook/on IIneirliclc~,`TT/het3.ht.mI (accessed July 29,2010)
The City of The Colony Official Website, http: w_ci the-colon~.t~ ns'TC Ilistor-~.hu~~l
(accessed July 29, 2010)
Community Demographics, The Colony, Texas July 20, 2009, prepared by C. Kelly Cofer, CCIM,
TheRetalCoach®
;r~ti,. ~,°n ri.~hccnlor~t^c~lc_.n_rg'Y_/)_f C'omintmill, Dcrrtos"0_?07-20-U9%5B3"r~?D.p(l/'
(accessed July 29, 2010)
The Historical Markers of Denton County, Texas, Denton, TX : Terrill Wheeler, 1980.
Bridges to the future: the pre-incorporation history of The Colony, Texas, I" ed_ written by Don
i,ccl 'L (Wilealo"ic, l is search by Alyce Ru[l; Published by the. friends o("The Colony Public
I_.ibrar~, copyr]"In 2009.
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