Medford library officials say problems at the downtown branch have improved since it reinstated daytime security in April, though Medford police say calls for service have not decreased.

Just over a month since security was reinstated at the downtown Medford library branch during operating hours, Jackson County Library District officials say safety concerns are slowly improving.

The county library district came under fire this spring when calls for police service reached an all-time high at the downtown Medford branch after a social services program was launched for homeless patrons last January.

The effort included services such as food and camping supplies, weekly health checks and foot soaks for homeless people.

Library officials said only a small percentage of the homeless patrons they served caused the more than 400 calls for police service last year. Under city ordinances, a property can be deemed a nuisance after generating more than 12 calls for service in one year.

Library district board members reinstated security during operating hours in late April and said this week they were optimistic about ongoing improvements and planned changes.

Alternate locations are being sought to host some of the services being provided to homeless library users by community partners. Until then, a weekly “Morning Hours” program, offering health checks and foot soaks with nursing students from OHSU, has been reduced to every other week.

Board members approved a four-week, $20,000 contract with Ashland-based Northwest Defense Contracting at the end of April. 

Ryan Bradley, library district marketing manager, said Friday the district would accept requests for proposals from regional security firms through Monday before deciding on any long-term contracts.

Northwest Defense Contracting owner Todd Kirkendol declined to comment to the Rogue Valley Times during the bidding process.

Library district board President Eric Dziura said the library has been happy with service provided by Kirkendol’s firm.

Dziura said entryways to the library have been quieter, and cleanliness had drastically improved in and around the library over the past month.

“The library itself and the sidewalks around it and other spaces are much, much better. It’s cleaner. It’s quiet. The company we hired temporarily has done a very good job, and we’re very happy with the outcome,” Dziura said.

“I think the company we hired could do the job, but we decided it’s an expensive enough item in our budget that we wanted to see what all of our options were.”

Dziura said the board is also working on revisions to the library code of conduct for patrons.

“The old one we had, it really needed to be more explicit so that both patrons and staff understood how it was to be applied and what kind of behavior is expected,” he added. “The biggest thing is making sure everybody understands our policies are clear, and we mean business, and we will have ongoing security to help us enforce that.”

Medford police Chief Justin Ivens said calls for service had not decreased at the Medford library branch but that city officials are hopeful.

“As of right now, we haven’t seen a change in the high volume of calls for service at the library. We are aware they are contracting with a security company and hope that will have a positive impact,” said Ivens.

Kevin Keating, elected May 16 to replace Dziura, said he has noticed improvement at library entryways and has heard positive feedback about recent changes.

“People feel safer. I’m hearing — and feeling — that it’s slowly getting better. I think something else that we’ll need to address is how to bring people back into the library again. I was there Memorial Day weekend and nobody was in the library, other than people sleeping on chairs upstairs,” Keating said.

“Fixing the entryway was number one, and secondly bringing people back. We need a kind of reopening, maybe. We’ve just increased the hours, so making a bigger deal of that and just re-inviting the community to come back to the library.”

Keating said he was impressed with Northwest Defense Contracting and hoped the company could remain involved with library security.

“I think we need more than social workers with a badge. I’m very impressed with the current security outfit, so I’m really rooting for those guys,” he said. 

Dziura said the library district hoped to continue to work with community partners and help identify alternate locations to provide services for the homeless.

“We still care about the situation, and we care very much about the people involved,” he added.

“We’re working very hard to strike an appropriate balance. I think things got skewed a little bit the wrong way and created problems, so we’re trying to rebalance everything, and we’re very much paying attention to the results of the things we’re doing and the changes we’re making.”