The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County should serve as a great reminder of what this region can accomplish if it works together. They have everything you want–Books, CDs, DVDs, Children’s Programming, et.al. Some people might complain there is no Blockbuster Downtown, but if there were it would be outgunned by a free public service.
The Library ranked as the 8th best system in the United States in 2006. It is also the ninth largest, in the country, in terms of total volumes.
Without a regional library, the citizens of Cincinnati would have a library with perhaps half the volumes, and the citizens of smaller outlying communities, like Addyston, might not even have a library at all. But through regional cooperation we have one of the best library systems in the country. Everyone benefits from the better services and lower operating costs of having a single library system for the county rather than 49 separate smaller libraries. The whole is much greater than the sum of its parts.
Imagine how we could improve services and lower taxes, throughout the county, with greater consolidation. Instead of having the 56th largest city surrounded by minor municipalities, we would be the 13th largest city in the United States and the largest in Ohio; improving our national clout and the quality of life for all of Cincinnati-Hamilton County’s residents.