More books for Tauranga libraries, despite freeze

Greerton Library supervisor Shelley Wu amid the hurly-burly of the shift into temporary premises that opened this week. The library will be among city facilities to receive more books. Photo/file

Tauranga City's libraries will be getting an extra 5400 books next year.

In the draft Long Term Plan, Tauranga City Council had decided to freeze the annual library stock budget at the current $798,000 per year.

Read more: Books dust off jackets and settle into new home

With population growth, the effect of this decision would have been to reduce library stock levels by 36 per cent, or about 20,000 books per year.

At today's Long Term Plan deliberations, Mayor Stuart Crosby moved a recommendation to increase the library stock capital to $1 million for 2015/16.

"Driving book stock into the ground like in this recommendation will not work. We'll find ourselves in 2016/17/18 making substantial investment into book stock."

The Mayor's amendment was passed with a seven to four vote.