Preparation for Blake Verdict

 Good morning

If your commute includes Sheridan Road though the downtown area, you experienced what I did this morning- closed roads. The city administration has informed me that the decision about the possible indictment of the officer who shot Jacob Blake will be announced by the county prosecutor's office sometime during the first 2 weeks of January. I expect that the city is preparing for any possible unrest that may result from the decision. Tonight at 7pm the Council will convene to grant the Mayor the power to call curfews, close city buildings and properties like parks, and designate certain areas as "free speech zones"  in an effort to contain any potential violence. If you are interested in hearing the meeting you may access the meeting online. Here is the agenda. 

KPL will do everything we can to stay open for the people who need library service most, however your safety is our top priority. We will once again close all branches early when the city hall closes to make sure you are off the streets and home safe by curfew. We will take seriously any social media threat that leads us to believe there will be unrest near a library location and close branches if we think there is any chance you will be in harm's way. 

The staff survey we conducted this year asked how we could have done better to respond to the pandemic. The loudest criticism centered around the uncertainty of our schedules- would we be open or closed past 3pm, for instance. That decision seemed to happen day to day, leaving those of you with young children or our part time evening staff hanging day by day as to what your work schedule would be. While those responses expressed an understanding that we couldn't predict a lot of what happened, I heard you loud and clear. I will do everything I can to be more predictable this time around. Once the Mayor makes clear when the curfew begins and what time the curfew will be set for, I will make a decision for a consistent closing time at all locations to help you plan your lives. 

Thanks for all you do to strengthen our community. Every day you show up to work, many, many people benefit. In a world that sometimes seems to be hopelessly grim, you are a ray of sunshine!

Barb