Fundraising will be tough despite support
The Rappahannock County Public Library’s $6.5 million plan to expand and renovate its building is ambitious but achievable, according to a recent feasibility study that found strong public support.
However, it warned competition for donations from other nonprofits and local organizations may be a challenge.
The study, paid for by a technical assistance grant from the PATH Foundation this summer, included interviews and questionnaires from 49 county residents. It determined competition from other campaigns for gifts and donations is the library’s biggest challenge, but the project has a strong public image and those interviewed saw the library’s services as very important.
According to the study’s findings, about 60% of respondents said they would consider giving a personal or business donation to the library, and 72% said the image of the library in the community is “very favorable.” No respondents said the project was unnecessary. However, 58% said they saw the $6.5 million goal as not being “realistic.”
Unbeknownst to the interviewees, the library has already raised almost half of the money it needs for the project, said Victoria Fortuna, president of the library’s Board of Trustees. Fortuna said two anonymous donors have come forward, pledging a combined $1.5 million, and the library has an additional $1.5 million earmarked for the project from its reserve and endowment funds.
Fortuna said the consultant “did not attempt to clear up any misunderstandings” about where the money for the library would come from, and that the campaign is not an ask for taxpayer dollars. She said other projects like the courthouse or school funding are coming from tax dollars, but the library expansion would be funded by private donations.
The consulting firm that conducted the study, WPO Development, a national planning and campaign management company, recommended scaling back the fundraising goal, implementing it in phases, strengthening the case for support and community awareness and seeking alternative funding sources such as grants. Fortuna said the board is focusing on better communication about the goal and needs of the library.
“There seems to be some misconceptions out there about where the money’s coming from,” she said. “We already have a kitty going. People think that it’s $6.5 million when in fact it’s $3.5 million.”
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The library is still in the planning stages, and general donations are not yet being collected.
At a library Board of Trustees meeting last Thursday, Librarian Amanda Weakley said large-scale fundraising projects typically don’t “go public,” or launch the fundraising campaign, until at least 70-80% has been secured through major donations and pledges.
“We need to get more of that total revenue,” Weakley told the board. “We are readying ourselves for the capital campaign, and part of that is trying to secure these larger donations so we know what to ask the more general public for.”
Right now, the library has about $3 million of the $6.5 million either in hand or pledged by large donors.
Fortuna said the board is still “optimistic” the goal can be met. “But we know it’s an uphill battle … it’s more money than any group [in Rappahannock] has ever raised.”
