This week, Salt Lake County Library Director Jim Cooper made a presentation to Utah County mayors to answer questions about his system and to propose possible solutions to challenges Utah County will face.

"The Salt Lake system is one that has been built over years, and [it is] something that we may or may not be able to duplicate here," County Commissioner Larry Ellertson said. "Our intent is to learn from it."

Key information passed on by Cooper focused on how Salt Lake County builds and shares its collections, and its principle of providing access to the citizens wherever they live.

Salt Lake County's library system now has 18 libraries with shared borrowing privileges. It is ranked 14th in the nation in circulation.

Cooper said the challenge Utah County faces is getting well-funded and established libraries such as Orem's and Provo's to buy into the system.

"The best advice is 'go to the people,' " Cooper said. "Do the people want this? Is that a value that they hold? Unless you have . . . the will of the people behind you, it's a tough sell."

Advocates of a Utah County system, led by Ellertson and Saratoga Springs Mayor Tim Parker, have put together a timeline for moving forward with the proposal in hopes of keeping the issue afloat.

Between now and January, Parker will meet one on one with each Utah County mayor and several library professionals to shape a resolution of goals and principles for county library services.

The plan is to draft the resolution in January, get input from city councils shortly thereafter and seek resolution approval in February.

"I'm taking the lead in following through on this, even if I'm not re-elected," said Parker, whose term in Saratoga Springs is up for election today.

The majority of county mayors are keen on the proposal, but some are more cautious than others - especially those with well-established city libraries.

Orem Mayor Jerry Washburn said he is not interested in turning over ownership of the Orem library to a countywide system, but he is supportive of making Orem's services available to residents in outlying areas that do not have libraries.

Already, Orem makes library cards available to Vineyard families for $75 a year.

"Can we cooperate and provide services to other areas? Certainly we can," Washburn said.

"The challenge is what the actual impact is in terms of cost."

Like other mayors, Washburn believes a shared borrowing plan could work in the county. Ultimately, it comes down to figuring out a way to do it and a way to pay for it, he said.

thollingshead@sltrib.com