Worthington Libraries Board Recap - October 20, 2026

Hello Worthington! Here's your recap of what happened at October 20's Worthington Libraries Board of Trustees meeting. Below are brief summaries of the most significant discussions about your library system. For those interested in the full details, we've included links to longer articles where appropriate.

Why the library's property-tax revenue doesn't grow with your tax bill

Trustees accepted the county's 2027 tax rates for the library, about $8.7 million at 4.8 mills, and in the process a trustee explained a quirk of Ohio tax law that the board expects to matter in a future levy campaign: the library gets none of the unvoted "inside" millage that grows with home values, so its voter-approved levy income has stayed roughly the same for years while residents' bills have risen. The county's 2027 estimate for the library came in essentially flat, down 0.6%. Trustees also tightened the library's reserve policy, which now requires two months of operating expenses on hand at the end of each fiscal year, and heard that the architect contract for the facilities plan, just under $1 million, starts being paid this month.

Read the full story here

Your library wants to hear from you: a survey through Nov. 15, and architects in town this week

The library's comprehensive facilities plan is a multi-phase effort to renovate and improve all three branches. The design firm started work in September, and the library is paying for this first phase from reserves. The library has said paying for the full plan will likely take a levy, possibly as soon as 2027.

The community survey went live Monday, October 19. It is on the library's website, in its app, on social media, and the school district sent it to families. The library's site says it takes about 12 minutes and runs through Sunday, November 15. Director Lauren Robinson said the district's help was welcome: "The school sent it out, which was amazing".

The architects are spending this week talking to residents in person. Robinson laid out the schedule:

Wednesday, October 21 at the Literary Libations adult program
Thursday, October 22 at lunch periods at Linworth, Kilbourne and Thomas Worthington high schools, at story times and in the branches, at the grocery store near Worthington Park Library, and at an invited stakeholder meeting that evening
Friday, October 23 at more story times, a second stakeholder meeting, and Halloween on the Green
Saturday, October 24 at the Worthington Farmers Market.

The Board of Education's liaison to the library board suggested adding Worthington Academy, and Robinson said staff would try to fit it in. Because four trustees plan to attend Friday's session, it will be posted as a special board meeting.

Stay connected to what's happening in Worthington, Ohio.

Six candidates for two trustee seats, and a new path to board president

The board's governance committee are set to interview six candidates on Monday, October 26 for the two open trustee seats. Nine people applied; three lived outside Worthington. The committee will choose finalists, the library runs background checks, the board votes on a resolution after its November meeting, and the recommendation then goes to the Worthington Board of Education for final approval. One opening follows the resignation of Dr. Joseph Saverimuttu; he took part in Tuesday's meeting.

Trustees also reviewed a draft procedure for rotating officers now that Ohio has cut library trustee terms from seven years to four. The example in the packet has a trustee serve as secretary, then president, then vice president, so the vice presidency becomes a past-president role that mentors the new president for a year rather than a stepping stone to it. It also keeps each trustee on the same committee through a four-year term so knowledge passes down. Board President Abigail Poklar said the old progression toward president no longer works with shorter terms, and the board may find itself with nobody, or several people, interested in the job, so it needs scenarios for "the pathway to leadership". No action was taken; the governance committee will keep working on it.

In Other Library News

Library use has mostly recovered from the pandemic, in a different shape. Digital circulation is up 92% from 2019 (and 12% from last September), checkouts of physical items remain below pre-pandemic levels, and total door counts are about 4% under 2019, with Worthington Park up 4%, Old Worthington up 1% and Northwest down since the nearby Dublin branch reopened and Delaware's Liberty Branch opened. Study rooms are "pretty hard to get at this point". Asked whether the renovations could add a drive-up window beyond Northwest's, Robinson said it would need Architectural Review Board approval and has been turned down before, but "we would shoot our shot".
The Friends Foundation of Worthington Libraries approved an extra $50,000 to bring back the library's author series. The plan is quarterly visits in which an author speaks, takes questions and signs books sold by a partner bookstore, starting at the McConnell Arts Center. Robinson said that if the series takes off, the "dream" is to use the schools' auditoriums for larger events.
Staff engagement held about steady in the library's annual Gallup survey. 92% of employees responded, and 63% count as engaged, about double the rate Gallup reports for U.S. workers. The score slipped slightly from last year and the share actively disengaged rose from 3% to 7%, though Robinson said none of the changes were statistically significant. Her response is more staff recognition and a department-by-department action plan, with a short follow-up survey in a few months.
The library is retiring its laptop-lending kiosk. Trustees declared it surplus along with 29 air purifiers, 28 rolling bins and 13 cleaning caddies. Robinson said the kiosk was heavily used at first but not lately, and its licensing fee, around $5,000 a year, was "astronomical". Patrons can still check out laptops at the desk.
Worthington Schools has begun the third stage of its master facilities plan. Kelli Davis, the Board of Education's liaison to the library board, said the community-input phase started Sept. 30, uses the same planning firm the City of Worthington used, and is aimed at staying off the ballot until 2028.

Programming Recap

Storybook Ball drew 832 people to Old Worthington Library on Sept. 25 for its second year, with a pond theme and Thomas Worthington theater students in costume as the characters.
145 Pokémon fans came to Northwest Library's trading-card event.
Kitten Yoga brought 166 visitors to the library, 128 of whom visited the cats, some to apply to adopt; the library will ask its nonprofit partner how many found homes.
Let's Go Camping went ahead despite a thunderstorm with 50 campers, most of them indoors.
Little Picassos at Old Worthington Library had 71 young artists, and 46 people partied with the Pigeon at Worthington Park Library.
Ohio Open Doors: On Sept. 13 the director and public-services director gave 12 residents a behind-the-scenes tour of Old Worthington Library, including the staff spaces downstairs and, in Robinson's words, "all of our scars and places where water comes in".

Upcoming at Your Library

Friday, October 23, 6 to 8 p.m. — Halloween on the Green at the Village Green. The library will have a table, and the facilities-plan architects will be there asking what you want from your library.
Saturday, October 24 — The architects and library staff wrap up their engagement week at the Worthington Farmers Market.
Tuesday, November 3 — Election Day. Four proposed Worthington charter amendments are on the ballot. There is no library issue on Worthington's ballot this year; 16 library levies are up elsewhere in Ohio, and the library will report the results in November.
Saturday, November 7, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. — Electronics Recycling at Northwest Library. Computers, printers, cables and cameras are free to drop off; televisions, monitors and printers carry a fee.
Friday, November 13 — Books and Brews at Old Worthington Library, the Friends Foundation's annual fundraiser. Tickets are on sale, and the Friends are collecting silent-auction donations.
Through Sunday, November 15 — Community survey on the future of the library's buildings and services, about 12 minutes.
Tuesday, November 17, 6 p.m. — Next Board of Trustees meeting at Worthington Park Library. On the agenda: the 2027 budget, the trustee finalists, and results of the statewide library levies.
Through Monday, November 30 — Fall into Books checkout challenge. Check out five physical books, write your name and basket choice on the receipt, and drop it in the box for a chance at a Friends-donated prize basket.

Was this recap useful? Forward it to a neighbor who'd want to know what's happening in Worthington — word of mouth is how the Pulse grows.

Thanks for reading this summary of the Worthington Libraries Board of Trustees meeting. You can find board meeting schedules, agendas, and minutes on the Worthington Libraries Board page or watch the meeting recording here.