Skip to main content

Branch Community Rooms - Staff Procedure

Reference Links

Staff Procedure

  1. Staff will receive an iMail alert with the subject, "Library Booking: Attention Required".
  2. Click "View Approve/Deny Booking Page" in the Email; the LibCal dashboard will open.
  3. Review request, confirm hours of request, confirm eligibility for cost.
  4. Change the cost of the booking, if necessary.
  5. Add customized "Email Note" to patron (see "Email Templates" below).
  6. Add any internal notes for staff about the approval decision.
  7. Click "Approve" or "Deny" request.
    • Customer will receive email confirmation.
  8. Payment Acceptance process:
    • Customer may send a check via snail mail or pay in person.
    • Payments currently accepted: Cash or Check payable to San Jose Public Library.
    • Once payment is processed and rung up into the cash register, find the booking in LibCal using the Booking Explorer tab, click "Mediated Approved (Payment Pending)" and "Accept Payment".
    • If the fee was waived as part of the $5000 City Council Directive, record it on the Tracking Sheet.

Reservation Requirements

  • All events held in the Community Room must be free and open to the public.
  • All applicants and attendees must abide by the Library’s Behavior Policy and Branch Community Room policy.

There are three specific organization categories that may reserve a community room:

  • Affiliated: Individuals or organizations directly associated with the City of San José or other government institutions.
    • Example: City Departments, City Council Offices, City Commissions, neighborhood associations affiliated with the City, County Agencies, State and Federal
  • Sponsored: Organizations that the library has chosen to partner with to run an event.
    • Example: Cultural Dancing, Theater Group Performances, Speaker Series, Friends of the Library, San José Public Library Foundation, STEAM Clubs
  • Unaffiliated: Established nonprofit organizations, any 501(c).
    • Example: Clubs, Scouting Troops, political organizations, faith-based organizations, HOAs, educational institutions

Some nonprofits do not qualify for community room rentals based on the type of program they plan on hosting. Here are some examples:

  • Educational institutions which charge for services (schools, tutoring, testing)
  • Fee for service (tax, financial, citizenship)
  • For profit businesses (multi-level marketing, business meetings)
  • Political campaigning (one party campaign)

Priority of Use

  • First priority shall be granted to Library-sponsored events. In prioritized order these include:
    1. Library staff-generated meetings.
    2. Events jointly sponsored by the Library and its affiliate groups.
    3. Events jointly sponsored by the library and other community groups.
  • Second priority will be given to:
    1. Public meetings sponsored by other city departments, agencies and commissions.
    2. Meetings and events sponsored by neighborhoods and community-based groups and organizations from the area served by the particular library facility.
  • Third priority will be given to children, youth groups and organizations involved in literacy or educational programs.
  • Fourth priority will be given to other non-profit public and /or social service organizations.

SJPL Community Room Internal Guidelines

  1. Applicants shall make requests for meeting rooms online.
  2. First time applicants must provide written information about their organization, such as a statement of purpose and sample publications (newsletter, brochure etc.), and verification of their nonprofit ID if applicable.
  3. Groups requesting use of meeting rooms must submit verified evidence of residency in the City of San Jose and County of Santa Clara.
  4. An application must be filed at least 48 hours prior to the event, (Event dates will not be held or confirmed before an application is filed.
  5. Reservations may be made no more than two (2) months in advance of the event date.
  6. Reservations are not confirmed until the application has been reviewed for approval by the appropriate Library staff (usually BLT staff member) and returned to the organization representative within three (3) business days.
  7. A short, on-site orientation on building use and care is required of the representatives of groups using the building and must be scheduled during library hours at least one hour before closing. Reservation kit may be picked up at this time and as well as payment reconciled.
  8. The group representative (‘primary contact person’ on application) is required to be present throughout the event.
  9. Announcements of events taking place in the library shall not promote a service or product for commercial gain.
  10. Community room reservations are non-transferable. Do not make more than 2 reservations per month per branch location for any organization.
  11. Organizations may not solicit for fee-based services at their event or require collection of personally identifiable information. You may request removal of sign-up sheets or promotional materials.

Failure to comply with Library room rules and agreements set forth herein will result in the revocation of an organization’s meeting room privileges.

If an organization does not meet the criteria established in the policy then their application should be denied.

Email Templates

Approval email template

[STAFF INSTRUCTIONS: Select actual cost]

We are happy to inform you that your reservation has been confirmed at [$0/ $40/ $80] cost. As a reminder, your event must be open to the public and may not solicit any transactional fees. Please review Community Room policy for additional information.

Please visit the library during library hours at least one hour before closing to attend a short orientation and pick up your reservation kit. Fees must be paid in full prior to your event day.

Denial email template

[STAFF INSTRUCTIONS: Delete either MET or NOT MET for each MET / NOT MET item after pasting this template.]

Thank you for your interest in hosting your event at the San José Public Library. While your event is valuable, we regret to inform you that we are unable to approve your request. It did not meet one or more of the SJPL Community Room’s Terms and Conditions:

MET / NOT MET: Your organization have not been verified as nonprofit or City affiliated agency;

MET / NOT MET: Your event is not in alignment with the library’s mission and purpose;

MET / NOT MET: The room is unavailable at the time that you requested it;

MET / NOT MET: All events must be open to the public and may not charge a fee to attendees.

Other rooms are available through the City of San Jose Parks and Recreation Department and at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library.

Sponsorship

Branches may choose to sponsor a community organization (they do not have to meet the nonprofit criteria) and waive the community room rental fee. An organization’s program must meet the following criteria:

  • Worthwhile and of interest to the library community
  • In alignment with SJPL’s values, mission and goals.
  • A program we intend to promote to customers as a SJPL partnership program (in the branch, on our events page and monthly calendar, local media, outreach events, etc.)
  • Open to the public

If a BLT member feels an organization meets the above criteria they can propose sponsorship to their Branch Manager who has final approval. Sponsorship of groups should always be an in-kind sponsorship of space and/or marketing. Sponsorship should never be interpreted to mean that there be a financial contribution from SJPL to an outside organization.

Fees

Unaffiliated organizations are charged a fee to rent a community room, $40 for 4 hours and $80 for up to 8 hours.

Additional fees may be charged to an organization for cancellations, no-shows, property damage, or lost keys.

  • Cancellation/no-show: $40
  • Lost key: Contact Facilities for estimate
  • Property damage: Contact Facilities Manager for estimate.

For a limited time, beginning December 1st, 2022, non-profit organizations serving underrepresented area or low-resourced community may be eligible to receive a fee waiver for their community room reservation. Criteria include the following:

  • ZIP Code
  • Equity: any non-profit public and/ or social service organizations serving underrepresented area or low-resourced community
  • HOA and neighborhood association unaffiliated with council but serving underrepresented community or zip code

Cancellations

A 72-hour cancellation notice is required so that others may be able to use the space. Cancellations made more than 72 hours in advanced may have their deposit moved to another date. Late cancellations and no-shows are subject to the original charged amount.

Security

Any incident should be reported to the Branch Manager immediately who will discuss options with their Division Manager.

Event Questions

Customers may inquire about an event being held in the community room. You should not answer specific questions, but may give out the name of the organization that made the reservation.

Technology

Some community rooms are equipped with various electronic media options. Inform customers of the technology available to them as part of their rental. If any of the technology is experiencing failures and will not be available, make sure to let the customers know before they pay the rental fee. Customers should have basic knowledge to operate equipment. Staff may show customer how to operate A/V equipment during orientation.

Reservation Kits

A short, on-site orientation on building use and care is required of the representatives of groups using the building and must be scheduled during library hours at least one hour before closing. You must check out a reservation kit (key, alarm code, instructions for securing the building, rules, and emergency number) to any customer using the community room when the branch will be closed. This creates a standard operating procedure for all reservations and reduces staff time in answering questions.

Inform customers when they reserve the room that they must pick up the reservation kit during regular branch library hours and at least one hour before closing to allow time for orientation. This applies to all organizations, including recurring reservations. If a customer fails to check out the reservation kit you may cancel the reservation.

Clean-up

Check to make sure trash has been removed by customer. If trash has been left behind, make a note in the branch behavior log.

If there is a pattern of non-compliance with the community room rules or policies, the Branch Manager should discuss with their Division Manager the problems that have occurred. They will then make a determination as how to proceed with future community room rental requests from the customer.

Revised December 2022