A padlock now adorns the front gate of the recently shuttered Sutter Creek branch of the Amador County Library, which was closed Feb. 10 due to budget cuts. Photo by: Jerry Budrick

Another venerable institution, the Sutter Creek branch of the Amador County Library, has fallen victim to the deteriorating economic situation.

On Feb. 10, the county board of supervisors took action to close the branch. This closure is expected to shift more of the demand for library services to the Jackson main branch, already reeling from staff cutbacks and the rising needs of a financially beleaguered populace.

The spreading economic meltdown has more people taking advantage of the availability of free services at public libraries, while the libraries have less money in their budgets and fewer paid employees to provide the services. Job-seekers use library computers and Internet access to search for employment opportunities. People who are cutting back on expenses by not buying books, going to movies or renting DVDs are coming into the library, where they can get them for free.

The collection of library materials presently at the branch library in Sutter Creek will be distributed among the four branches in Pine Grove, Plymouth, Ione and Pioneer. Librarian Brad Barrow, a 10-year veteran who ran the branch, will most likely remain with the Amador County Library in some capacity, said county librarian Laura Einstadter. Barrow is presently on vacation in Chile, according to his friend and former colleague, Irma Brusatori.

Brusatori spent a long time with the Sutter Creek branch, participating in three moves during her tenure.

"It was in City Hall, but we moved it into the building that is now Back Roads Coffee," Brusatori recalled. "Then we moved it to the old grammar school and, finally, into the Pinotti Building."

"That was about 1992," said upstairs neighbor and Sutter Creek Gallery owner Brent Parsons, who remembered the exact date of the flood - Jan. 2, 1997 - when Brusatori and the building's owner, the late Aldo Pinotti, made a valiant effort to save the books. They couldn't save them all. Some were damaged and had to be discarded or replaced.

Sutter Creek has had a library for a very long time. Einstadter found files at the Jackson Main Library that hinted at a library in 1909 and told of one created in 1920 by the Sutter Creek Woman's Club.

There may be some help on the horizon. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, signed into law by President Barack Obama on Tuesday, provides a glimmer of hope.

"The education portion of the stimulus package may provide some new funding," Einstadter said. "There may be some money for the county that could trickle down."

"The act offers aid to many government agencies, and although libraries don't fall under one specific agency, they are mentioned in a few sections of the bill," said Melanie Anderson, an associate director of the American Library Association, in this month's School Library Journal.

Foremost among the possible revenue sources is the State Stabilization Fund, which is intended to bail troubled states out of their economic woes. A significant percentage of the $79 billion penciled in for this fund is earmarked for education, including libraries. Other possibilities lie within other funding sources, such as the federal early childhood development program, the 2007 Improving Head Start Act and the Rural Community Facilities Program.

Public libraries have few sources of revenue. The Amador County Library derives the bulk of its funding from the county, augmented by some aid from the state, and the library still collects fines. There is also some grant funding, which is usually program specific and varies widely from year to year, Einstadter said.

The volunteer group, Friends of Amador County Library, conducts book sales twice annually and operates a merchandising section at the Jackson branch. They have books, book bags, gift baskets, videotapes, cassette tapes and stuffed animals for sale.

"We're always looking for volunteers," Einstadter offered.

The library has a volunteer program in place, seeking help with organizing, repairing, delivering and otherwise dealing with books and other library materials. There is also a need for adults to work with a teen book group and to read to pre-schoolers. For information about volunteering, call Connie Murdock at 223-6305.