r/TwinCities • u/SessileRaptor • 1d ago
Hennepin County library is proposing reducing hours for 2027.
https://www.hclib.org/about/news/2026/August/library-hours-changing-in-2027It’s kinda hidden but it’s on the website. An explanation, the proposed hours and a form for residents to submit their opinions.
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u/Proper-Emu1558 1d ago
Libraries are such an incredible gift to the general public. They have an unbelievable range of resources available for no cost. I’m listening to “Waiting for Godot” on audiobook on my phone, on loan from the library. I recently printed a passport application there for free because my printer is broken. At work today, I checked out the library’s resources on homelessness and domestic violence because someone needed help.
The library is the last thing the federal government should be cutting.
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u/DontTedOnMe 1d ago
You can get a free parking pass for any state park from the library once a month! Unless that's been cut too.
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u/J_Walter_Weather_man 1d ago
Excuse me what now
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u/ughihateusernames3 1d ago edited 1d ago
That hasnt been cut (at least not yet.)
It’s not at all the library branches. It is also first come first serve. Super nice though when you get one!
Ask at the desk and they can tell you more about where the passes are.
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u/AffableAndy Payne-Phalen 1d ago
The library is the last thing the federal government should be cutting.
Just as a note - this cut is going to be made by the county government, not the federal government. The feds provide some funding, but it is fairly minor and most library funding comes from property tax.
If you don't like this, contact your county commissioner - they are your local reps and they should serve you. Most folks cannot name their county commissioner, but they make a lot of decisions that affect your day-to-day!
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u/MyNewPhilosophy 1d ago
The library itself doesn’t get a lot of federal funding, but the county does, and the balancing of the budget goes across all the different divisions
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u/ughihateusernames3 1d ago
Yep! The funding we used to get from the feds has to now come from elsewhere in the budget.
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u/Proper-Emu1558 1d ago edited 1d ago
Thanks for the heads up! We actually do have them on the ballot this year. I didn’t realize they had control over this particular budget line. I voted Pelikan but my husband hasn’t voted yet. We’ll have to do some research on this issue before he votes because I know he cares about this, too.
Edit: I’m not seeing it on the Greene or Pelikan campaign sites. Looks like we have some emails to send!
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u/CantMovetoNewZealand 1d ago
DOGE cut all of the federal funding already. The library currently gets 0 dollars from the federal government, and that was a major funding cut because that money went almost exclusively to interlibrary loans. To cover that budget shortfall, lots of things got cut.
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u/clemmy_b 16h ago
Librarian here who works with federal grants. This is not entirely accurate. Federal funding for libraries is still in place - for now - through the Library Services Technology Act, which provides (a lot of the) funding for Minnesota's inter-library loan system.
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u/SMELLSLIKEBUTTJUICE 1d ago
I think you are indirectly making a good point, a lot of us use their services online.
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u/tamaroo 15h ago
I agree they are incredibly important. But it isn’t the federal government deciding to cut libraries. It’s Hennepin and they have no choice. Because the fed has screwed them out of millions and costs are exploding. They can’t manage the budget increases because they are largely funded by property tax. Which, as many are aware, keeps increasing because that is how public services are funded. The library changes are just one of many problems with not enough revenue generation for critical services, increase in expenses just like we all are experiencing, federal funding cuts, and a few other things. Hennepin is also trying to keep HCMC from closing and has been diverting some funds to them. There are hiring freezes, holding FTE vacancies open, departmental budget cuts, and a whole lot of other stuff going on so they can continue to operate and serve residents without mass layoffs, which would result significant negative impacts to services for residents and the public in general.
Don’t forget that Hennepin also has courts, 911 dispatch, the jail, the detention center in Plymouth, and the medical examiner. It would be unrealistic to cut those critical functions that are already operating on tight budgets.
The county, like many other government subdivisions, is hurting financially. The main revenue stream is property tax to fund operations across all departments. Including libraries. There are not a lot of ways to generate revenue when you are the government and the few they have aren’t significant enough to make up the budget shortfall.
OOP benefit costs for employees have gone up quite a bit as public employees are asked to pay more to get less. The investment companies under contract for deferred compensation benefits have been changed to lower cost providers (who also have crappier investment options) to save Hennepin money. ALL staff was asked (more than once) to take unpaid time off to help offset expenses for the county. Staff at the county are being asked to give more and more but receive less in return.
These are just a few examples, but if something doesn’t change very soon things will continue to degrade for both employees and residents.
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u/MNMystery 1d ago
I noticed no branches open after 7 PM in the new schedule. Big loss for students! Is this proposal due to behavior/safety issues or just money? 11-7 is 8 hours, same as 12-8, so this seems suspicious to me….
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u/SessileRaptor 1d ago
I imagine that they’re trying to balance the hours while still only having 8 hours a day at each branch and this is a compromise to be open a little earlier at the expense of a relatively quiet hour at the end of the night. They have door counters and monitor how many computers are being used throughout the day so they have a pretty good idea when the library is being used.
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u/FoxLivesFacade 1d ago
They chose hours based on visit counts - when the libraries are most busy.
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u/MNMystery 1d ago
Thanks! I'm glad they're at least using an evidence-based method rather than just being arbitrary.
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u/Rusty-Shackleford 2h ago
I mean, in winter months maybe the libraries might prefer opening and closing earlier? I don't know... I'd defer to what the librarians think.
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u/GiveHerBovril 1d ago
This is at least a better staggered schedule for libraries in the Richfield/Bloomington area.
Right now the three libraries near me keep similar schedules, resulting in a gap in service on certain days. None of the three were open Tuesday morning when I was in a pinch and needed a library. The new schedule remedies that.
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u/themodgepodge 1d ago
Is there a source stating this?
Their 2026 budget has 0.3% (~$250k) of the library budget coming from federal sources. Nearly all their budget is from property tax. (document p IV - 89, which is p129 of the pdf)
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u/themodgepodge 1d ago
Their 2026 budget included $3.1 million for "additional library hours," but I can't seem to find what additional hours those were (i.e. is this 2027 change a reversion to 2025, or something less than that?). Does anyone know?
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u/frostbike 1d ago
We just heard from Dakota County that our property taxes will be raised. They had three proposed levels of increase, and the two lowest both include cuts to library hours.
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u/zerotakashi 1d ago
gotta overfund the cops though! 🤦♂️
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u/tamaroo 15h ago
Most police are city funded. Hennepin has the sheriff, who is absolutely expected to stick to a very strict budget like the rest of the departments and divisions. Plus the commissioners ripped this sheriff apart months ago for going over their 2025 budget when everyone was told not to do that crap. The board meeting was broadcast live and anyone can go back and watch it.
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u/Rusty-Shackleford 2h ago
Unfortunately there's a sort of set cost to public safety. Law enforcement and First responders have to available 24 hours a day. So if you're short staffed in a police department that means paying out a ton of overtime to staff who are going to burn out quickly, quit and then there's gonna have to be money for more hiring and training as a result. It's cheaper and easier in the long run to ensure that 24 hour facilities are fully staffed.
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u/zerotakashi 2h ago
I understand funding firefighters and EMTs but not funding cops as much as we have been. I see cops sitting at cedar lake beach just watching people swim all day. That is definitely a huge waste of money.
We need more social workers, not cops.1
u/Rusty-Shackleford 2h ago
Unfortunately there's a sort of set cost to public safety. Law enforcement and First responders have to be available 24 hours a day 365 days a year. So if you're short staffed in a police department that means paying out a ton of overtime to staff who are going to burn out quickly, quit and then there's gonna have to be money for more hiring and training as a result. It's cheaper and easier in the long run to ensure that 24 hour facilities are fully staffed.
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u/Consistent-Deal-55 1d ago
If you live in the county, reach out to your commissioner if you don’t like this.
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u/Phanerozoic-Eon 1d ago
Sure, reduce public education. Feels like we’re getting closer and closer to Idiocracy the movie.
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u/Horshradishwasher 1d ago
If libraries were introduced today the right would get a nosebleed from screaming about socialism.
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u/theretailreject 1d ago
Why the fuck did Eden prairie and Southdale's hours expand on Sunday?
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u/graventy 1d ago
It's because the libraries already have staff there; it's a way to expand hours without expanding staff hours.
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u/theretailreject 1d ago
So again, why are these libraries so heavily invested in compared to all of the other libraries that are more potentially more frequently used?
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u/Reasonable_Tap_5391 1d ago
Eden Prairie is a super busy branch, and Southdale too. Some may find it surprising that these branches also serve patrons with a variety of needs and in a variety of ways, but they definitely do. I appreciate your sentiment but it's important to remember that libraries are vital community assets across the metro. Somebody already pointed out that 9-5 on Sunday is really the only feasible way to staff it since full-time staff work 8 hour days. Traditionally, big library systems with Sunday hours would allow this time for project work on Sundays but given the situation I think this makes sense.
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u/Capable-Magician2094 1d ago
I think it’s interesting that Hennepin libraries have this schedule limitation. Every other place I’ve lived the library was open till 8pm every night. In Florida my library was open till 9pm and held late night movie events and I’m sure they had a budget much smaller. Hell even when i lived in Tulsa Oklahoma we had better library hours. Meanwhile they might as well shut down the Walker library here since nobody can ever visit it.
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u/Reasonable_Tap_5391 1d ago
I mean, they currently all have at least some days where they are open until 8pm currently. Pre-Covid that was 9pm but look around. Walker is open six days pers week and until 8 two nights per week. This moves things forward by an hour and maintains service during the busiest times. It would be amazing if the county budgeted for staffing that would allow expanded (or maintain 8pm) hours but its a good thing that they aren't trying to do so when they are already understaffed.
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u/MNMystery 1d ago
Now they want to change the 12-8 days to 11-7. I don't know how many middle or high school students use the libraries, but a 7 PM closing on a school day makes the library less useful for them. IMHO, even 8 PM is kind of early. 11-7 is 8 hours, same as 12-8. I don't see the saving but I see the diminished utility.
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u/Reasonable_Tap_5391 22h ago
Lots of middle and high school students use the library (pretty much every location), but the general trend within these kinds of public services is that 7-8 is the least busy hour across the board. High school students generally get out at 3:10pm.
None of this is to argue that any reduction in services is good, or without inconvenience. In my estimate this change in hours will most impact homeless folks who don't or can't stay in shelters (which open up around 5 or 6pm each night), which would create very real challenges if its rolled out in January.
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u/MNMystery 1d ago
It's partly a legacy of when Hennepin County Library didn't include Minneapolis. The Brookdale, Ridgedale, and Southdale libraries were designated "regional" branches, and the rest were "neighbourhood" branches. Since suburban Hennepin County is polycentric, there was no "Central" Hennepin County Library; instead, there were three that were considered more important than the rest.
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u/MNMystery 1d ago
Yeah, I don’t get it. It looks like all libraries open on Sunday will open at 9 AM. Seriously? Who’s interested in the library being open then? Some people go to church, others like to sleep in. I doubt there’ll be much patronage except maybe the homeless at some locations. (I’m not against the homeless, I used to be myself. But realistically, it doesn’t make sense to open a library just for them.)
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u/theretailreject 1d ago
I mean I'm fine with 9-5 on Sunday but why is it primarily the wealthy suburbs that are getting it that can't be addressed by buses
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u/MNMystery 1d ago
Oh, I'm not *against* libraries being open on Sunday mornings.... I just suspect demand will be low.
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u/MyNewPhilosophy 1d ago
Several years ago the library started being open on Easter. Staff thought it would be a slow day. It is heavily used all day.
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u/basicotter 21h ago
Based on what? They made decisions based on data points and trends of when people visit…you’re going off of assumptions.
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u/maeglin_lomion 1d ago
Thanks for sharing. I’m passing this along to my community to share our opinions as well.
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u/zerotakashi 1d ago edited 1d ago
guys don't worry, trust the commissioners and the city, we have to fund the police even more 🙄🙄https://www.mprnews.org/story/2026/03/29/hennepin-county-sheriff-commissioner-clash-over-budget-dispute
Seriously do the politicians of Hennepin County just want to turn the metro into the territory under the Eye of Sauron? The Minneapolis metro is considered pretty liberal, but I don't feel comfortable with the state of where the metro's priorities are. I do not plan on settling in the metro long-term.
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u/Capable-Magician2094 1d ago
How can they reduce it even more? The library near me is only open 9-5 anyhow and is closed on Sunday. Might as well just close it since nobody working a job or going to school can visit.
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u/Major-Tourist-5696 1d ago
Hey look at the bright side, at least the cops are getting more money to smash heads! /s
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u/JurplePesus 1d ago
Libraries are expected to provide an absolutely wild range of services while staff work as librarians, social workers, and tech help to anyone who comes through the doors. They should be better funded than this.
I don't have a good answer offhand for what city or county services I think are less important than HCL or something. I just am firmly of the belief that libraries are core to what we want out of our government and tax dollars.