A sum of $2 million is being sought for expansion of the Edith Belle Libby Memorial Library in Old Orchard Beach, and we would urge voters to support this project.

The Old Orchard Beach Town Council has already given its unofficial nod to the library’s request to send a proposed bond before voters in November. At that time, it will be up to the residents whether or not they believe the library needs investment.

We would argue that it most certainly does.

Unlike other area libraries, which were founded around 100 years ago, the Edith Belle Libby Memorial Library does not have a trust fund and instead relies on the town for 99 percent of its operating  budget. As well, it is an exceedingly small and simple space, in stark contrast to the facilities in neighboring Biddeford and Saco.

It was the generosity of Frank Libby, a former town selectman, that allowed the Old Orchard Beach library to become a reality back in 1956. The seed money he left in his will was earmarked for this purpose, with the library to be named in honor of his late wife.

It’s hard to believe that Old Orchard Beach has only had a library since the 1950s, and previous to that depended upon two small reading rooms in the town hall.

It also seems counterintuitive that libraries are growing in importance in this age of high technology, but it’s true. With more and more services being done online, from educational and government resources to job searches, the library has become a popular hub for free Internet access. Not only do libraries need to house books, historic documents and photos, maps, videos, and the like ”“ they must now also provide computer access.

A federal study conducted by the Providence Journal showed that, nationally, every year over the past two decades, use of public libraries has increased by more than two billion visits annually.

The study also showed that more than 70 percent of visits to public libraries are for non-recreational purposes such as job searches, financial information and education.

With the current economic recession, libraries have become even more important to the general public. The proportion of visits that are job-related increased from 3 percent in 2009 to 11 percent in 2010, the study showed, as people depended on public libraries for access to jobs databases, civil-service-exam materials, resume help and online job applications.

In Old Orchard Beach, the library is now serving about 100 patrons a day, according to employees, and in the summer that number doubles, not including those who use the library’s wireless Internet from outside its doors.

As it stands, however, the Libby Memorial Library does not have sufficient space to provide Old Orchard Beach residents with the services they would expect at their community library. Book clubs can’t be hosted there, children’s activities have been cut back drastically due to the space being taken over by computers, and those computer users themselves are packed in like sardines.

The town does not have an alternative space for these activities, since it has no community center, so it makes sense to invest in the library building. As well, the library is not compliant with Americans with Disabilities Act, making it inaccessible to those who are disabled.

All of these issues can be addressed with this expansion project, which will bring the library up to standards for the demands placed upon it in this day and age. Already, there is significant support for the library in town, as $250,000 has already been raised toward the $2.2 million project, through the library’s own efforts.

Libby took the first step, by leaving a sum to build a free-standing public library. Now it’s time for the rest of Old Orchard Beach’s residents to step up and support this bond to expand on Libby’s vision and allow the library to provide a higher level of service.