Biberach decides: the city library remains independent and strong!

Biberach decides: the city library remains independent and strong!

An important chapter in the history of the Biberach city library has now been opened: After Frank Raumel, the long-time director, retired a year ago, a breath of fresh air is coming into the organization. The vacant position is now to be filled Swabian reported. This decision was made as part of considerations for the reorganization of departmental layouts and the targeted budget consolidation in 2023.

A big topic was the possible merger of the city library with the adult education center, but this was deemed too optimistic in the final analysis. Verena Fürgut, head of the education and culture department, presented the results of these considerations to the local council, which resulted from scientific considerations, comparisons with other municipalities and internal expertise.

Conclusions of the analysis

The organizational review showed that a merger under a common management was conceivable, but with two technical management and a strategic management. A comparison with cities like Nuremberg showed that the hoped-for synergy effects can only be implemented to a limited extent in Biberach. This raises the question of whether the city should really maintain the existing structures or whether a grandiose new beginning is necessary.

The personnel costs for the city library and adult education center are currently around 362,000 euros. Although a possible merger could result in savings at management level, this would require additional clerk positions. Here too, the forecasts are rather sobering, as only a small reduction in costs can be expected overall. In addition, the content-related integration of the two institutions was not considered sensible.

The advantages of the city library

Despite these organizational challenges, the city library remains a lively cultural and information center. It has received several awards, including the national library award “Library of the Year” and the “German Reading Award”. Their placement in the top group of the German library rating speaks for itself.

With a media selection of over 115,000 items, including books, magazines, films and digital offerings, the library has something to offer for every age group and every taste. Access to digital media such as e-books and console games is also interesting, and the free Wi-Fi provided attracts many visitors. Events such as readings and story times, especially for children, strengthen the promotion of reading and show that a lot of passion is invested here.

The existing collaborations between the city library and the adult education center are to be continued and further expanded. The local council praised the department's analysis and came to the conclusion that maintaining the existing structures is best for the independence and brand image of both institutions. There is great anticipation about the new library management team.