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Mayor Antonio Villariagosa wants to reopen L.A.’s libraries on Mondays

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When Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa gave his State of the City speech Wednesday night, the focus was on education. But in one of the few moments that he didn’t talk about education reform -- when he wasn’t getting his biggest applause of the night by talking about fixing potholes -- he touched on public libraries.

KPCC’s Frank Stoltz reported that the mayor promised further cuts in city spending, and that ‘Villaraigosa offered few details, but did offer some good news -- he wants to provide money to reopen libraries on Mondays and add park space.

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To absorb budget cuts in July 2010, the Los Angeles Public Library implemented a new schedule, closing all 72 local branches on Sundays and Mondays.

In March, voters supported Measure L, which designates a small share of the city’s overall budget to fund the Los Angeles Public Library. It’s been a while since I read the small print, so I’m not certain when that kicks in.

Maybe Villaraigosa had Measure L in mind when he mentioned the public library system in his speech. Maybe he was making a strong pro-library statement. Either way, the prospect of our libraries reopening on Mondays sounds like a good idea.

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Don’t go to the library on Sunday. Or Monday.

-- Carolyn Kellogg

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