2023 Budget Vote and Trustee Election Results:
The 2023 Proposed Woodstock Library Budget has passed by 204 YES votes to 67 NO votes out of 272 ballots cast.
Barry Miller and Caroline Jerome have each been elected to a five-year term as Trustee.
Thank you for voting, Woodstock!
Trustee Election
Barry Miller and Caroline Jerome were elected to new five-year terms on the Board of Trustees, commencing January 1, 2023.
Statements from the candidates:
“I have been serving on the Woodstock Library Board of Trustees for 20 years. My life as a public servant goes back to elementary school where in the first grade I picked up and delivered milk and cookies. Cub Scouts, then Boy Scouts. Then student government in JHS, then Associate Justice and President of my High School. I’ve always enjoyed working with others, giving back and doing things that are not about me. I like getting outside myself where I can involve myself in helping a cause. In this case, it’s the Woodstock Library.
As a Trustee I have worked in many capacities. I am currently Vice President and the chair of the Policy committee. I have been Policy chair for several years and work closely with the director and write the policies that are developed and implemented within the legal framework that applies to the library. That includes the By-Laws and current Plan of Service. I can’t think of a better way for me to spend my retirement years than helping the Woodstock Library grow into a 21st-century library.” — Barry Miller
“Why do I serve? It is intensely gratifying to play an active role in my community by volunteering for our library, a place where some of the most important cornerstones of our democratic society are upheld. As a partner and Chief Design Officer at a branding and marketing agency, l am intent on designing experiences for a hybrid future. The library is a space where the digital and the physical cross paths. To me, that’s incredibly exciting. I believe exploring the digital universe while making space for in-person connection is our best hope for a strong future.” — Caroline Jerome
Adopted 2023 Budget
At its August 24, 2022 meeting, the Woodstock Public Library District Board of Trustees approved a proposed budget of $689,830.89 for 2023, representing a 0.73% increase from the 2022 budget. The tax levy would increase by $11,836.95, or 1.98%, which is below the state-mandated tax cap. The total tax levy would be $608,730.89. A few key points regarding the 2023 budget:
- Staff raises at 5% in an effort to keep track with cost-of-living increases. The Consumer Price Index shows a 7.3% increase in costs overall in this region since July 2021.
- Added a part-time clerk position in anticipation of staffing up for the move to 10 Dixon Avenue.
- Materials budget is flat for most categories. The “Other – Nonbook” category shows an 80% decrease — this is because we spent $14,000 on digitizing the Woodstock Times in 2022, an expense that won’t need to be repeated in 2023.
View the proposed 2023 budget as a pdf file
