Surely the Wake County library officials who have proposed shutting the Southeast Regional Library in Garner would rather keep it open. The system's interim director, Ann Burlingame, can be taken at her word when she says, "We don't want to close any library."
Yet to meet a directive that the system's upcoming budget reflect a 7 percent cut, it's the Garner library that's been targeted. Now the understandable protests are being heard.
Frankly, the idea of cutting back on libraries in a county with Wake's educational and cultural aspirations - and its wealth - is beyond disappointing. It makes you want to spit nails in angry frustration.
But even in a dire budgetary climate, there should be ways to trim library operations without shutting any of them down. When someone has to lose weight, he goes on a diet. He doesn't chop off a leg.
The library on Seventh Avenue in Garner is popular, recording about 600,000 visits per year. The place is heavily used by schoolchildren, many of whom take advantage of its computer access. It's no secret that the county's southeastern part, while solidly middle class, is by no means its most affluent section.
Of Wake's 19 libraries, six are larger, regional facilities, including the one in Garner. Closing any of them would be a real inconvenience for many families. And especially given the link between libraries and education, closing any of them should simply be out of the question.
