The Omaha Library Board approved a plan Monday afternoon to close one branch and cut hours at nine others in an effort to help the city out of its budget crunch.

The Florence Library will close on September 6th.

In addition, all part-time employees will be laid off. At the Florence branch, two full-time employees will be transferred to other libraries where they are needed more, according to the library board.

The Omaha Public Libraries had to cut $275,000, which means nine branches will be scaling down hours.

Those branches include Abrahams, Benson, Bess Johnson Elkhorn, Millard, Saddlebrook, A.V. Sorensen, South Omaha Library, Swanson, C.B. Washington, Willa Cather and W. Dale Clark.

The board based the decision to close the Florence branch partially on the number of visitors it has seen from January until June of this year.

They say 46,748 people came through the doors during that time, and although visits are up 19% since 2008, nearby branches still maintained a higher visitor rate.

The board states that the closing of the Florence branch will defer renovations and give them a chance to further assess the needs of the library.

As is the case with many city departments, Mayor Suttle is cutting funding as the city works through a $12 million budget shortfall. Suttle announced last week that in addition to reduced budgets, he will lay off 45 full-time and 85 part-time city employees.

The mayor announced an initiative encouraging commuters to utilize a new way to get to work. "I'm glad to see there's going to be some cycling lanes, that was definitely needed," said David Kennedy.

Bikers like Kennedy are ecstatic, but it didn't take long before one news conference gave way to another.

"The 2010 (budget) is on the table," said Mayor Suttle. "The good, the bad and the ugly. If there are things you like, fine. If there are things you don't, fine, propose changes."

For citizens like Zach Schroeder, it's the "ugly" that has his attention. "Cutting another 150 workers is going to have a huge impact on how this city will function from an administrative and creative side to make this city a better place."

Whatever people's opinions are on the mayor or his budget, it is sure to be a heated debate inside the City Council chambers for Tuesday's public hearing. It's the last opportunity for public input on the mayor's budget and then the council will decide with a vote on the proposal in several weeks.

Councilwoman Jean Stothert said over the weekend that politics must take a back seat to solving the budget crisis. The comment drew a strong reaction from Mayor Suttle.

"That's what I've been trying to get to is a foundation where we could have constructive compromise and we cant' have that if people are standing on the sidelines saying this is politics and it's not politics."

The question of whether politics came into play is a reference to Suttle's endorsement from the Omaha Fire Union. Some question why the Omaha Fire Department was not included in recent cuts.

Channel 6 News asked Suttle about that. He said he's made no promises to any union, fire or otherwise.