From 2023, the municipality will structurally cut EUR 1.5 million on the Amsterdam Public Library (OBA). The management speaks of an unjustified major setback and asks the city council and the council to reverse the cutbacks.
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The cut is included in the budget presented by Alderman Victor Everhardt (Finance) this morning. It stated that less money can be spent because of the corona crisis. From 2023 there will be less money for the OBA as a result of the recovery plan. The OBA is therefore instructed to recalibrate the branch network ‘, it says the budget.
Much needed
According to the OBA, the implementation of the statutory tasks and the assignment that the library received from the municipality is at risk due to the cutbacks. ‘This position will soon be badly needed to recover as a society,’ says Martin Berendse, director of the OBA. ‘The unique possibilities of the OBA with the extensive branch network and the various cooperation partners are essential building blocks for the future city.’
The city council therefore asks the library to reconsider the branches, there are now 27. It is striking that the municipality plans to build the OBA Next on the Zuidas perseverance. The city council’s budget states that this library ‘contributes to digital inclusivity and the development of skills that are appropriate for a rapidly changing labor market and information society’.
Shrinkage and growth
‘This addition of contraction and growth puts the OBA in a confusing position,’ Berendse responds. ‘The municipality must come up with a coherent vision in which our neighborhood branch network and our innovation program do not hinder but reinforce each other. That is what we believe in. ‘
The OBA, which previously had to cut back because of the less subsidy from the congregation and then through by coronacrisis, says it is not yet clear what the impact of the cuts announced today will be. Discussions will be held with various parties in the coming period. Due to the previous setbacks, a reorganization has already been started.
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