A version of this essay recently appeared in the Santa Cruz Area Chamber news.
By Sarah Beck, Executive Director of Friends of the Santa Cruz Public Libraries
I’ve always found nautical terminology appealing. I was delighted to learn that the phrase “A rising tide lifts all the boats” was popularized when John F Kennedy’s speechwriter got it from a New England chamber of commerce publication. I wondered, how does this idea hold up in our coastal city six decades later?
New research describes downtown public libraries as entrepreneurial hubs that promote economic vitality. This is directly good for the businesses that already exist. When people spend time at the library, they spend money at nearby businesses. The “halo” effect brings 23% more spending to restaurants, retail, and services that are near the library branches. A recent study showed that younger adults are even basing book purchases on their library reading, with 60% buying books they had borrowed.
Claiming a spot on the donor wall in the lobby of our new library is an opportunity for the public to see and associate your business name with a beloved civic space for decades to come. This could tip certain customers to favor you over the competition. But there are even more business cases for supporting this library and its role as a downtown destination beyond the proven increase in foot traffic.
Here is the part with all the rising boats. Our Downtown Library will contribute to an inclusive and sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystem as a key player in developing small business capacity and individuals in our community.
Business leaders instinctively know that support for entrepreneurs helps to start and sustain new businesses. Access to reference librarians and databases on business, market research, and demographics are a huge help for anyone researching a business idea. With a Santa Cruz Public Library card, you can access thousands of LinkedIn Learning business and tech courses for free. The Downtown Library already provides digital skills workshops, AI meetups, and tech help sessions.
The economic vitality of our city also increases when the library supports jobseekers, or individuals wanting to grow their skills for a better job. Our libraries provide access to resume help and job finding assistance.
All of these resources increase in value when we place them in an architectural showpiece. The new downtown branch will be a place the business community can meet and thrive and rising job seekers and entrepreneurs can appear professional and polished. The library study rooms will be beautiful, quiet spaces for interviews and meet ups, and they can be reserved completely for free.
One library patron, Monica Parikh, PhD, described library support this way when she was seeking a new job. “I feel strongly that this provides me a level playing field. This works towards equity. And isn’t that a core principle of democracy?”
When businesses and individuals are succeeding in our city, their success improves the economic health of all and that’s not an abstract political or macro-economic theory. There is one more key ingredient here, because money isn’t everything.
The new role of downtown libraries as cultural centers and social hubs allows all of us to participate in a rich city life. Whether you are a business leader, a student, a retired community member, you’ll be welcome at the new Downtown Library for a quiet moment at the roofdeck garden, at talks and presentations, live music performances, at workshops and networking events. I hope you’ll enjoy the benefits of this gorgeous civic space in just a couple of years!
The Downtown Library is designed to grow with the needs of our community, whatever the future brings. Together, we will support and share this equitable, vibrant, civic achievement. Construction of the new Downtown Library is a once in a generation investment and the hub of the entire Library system
Construction of the new Downtown Library is already underway. Thanks to the incredible generosity of individual donors, business leaders, and a match grant from the Monterey Peninsula Foundation, the Friends have raised more than $2.7 million towards our $3 million goal.
The campaign is still on. You can highlight your business (or your family name) on the Donor Wall with a gift of $1,000 or more. Everyone can be a Friend to the new Downtown Library. Together, we will support and share this equitable, vibrant, civic achievement. Learn More