First, a bit of my background. I was personnel director at the King County Library System for five years, the same position at Seattle Public for four-plus years, a Renton Public Library Board member for 12 years and a Renton resident for 30 years. I am strongly opposed to the Renton Public Library joining KCLS for the following reasons:

1. A study we performed while I was on the board conclusively determined that the cost to Renton citizens would increase by 22 percent to 28 percent. KCLS contracts with incorporated cities for library services. We would be contrbuting to their administrative overhead for poorer service.

2. KCLS has a central book-selection committee which would have little or no knowledge of the needs of Renton Public Library patrons.

3. Renton Public Library currently gets new books, from purchase decision to shelves, in one to two weeks;

4. Reserves: Waiting time for reserves would increase exponentially.

5. Renton Public Library cardholders are eligible for KCLS library cards. We are also able to get books from all over the U.S. via inter-library loan.

Ken Ragland

Renton