Leaders representing Fairfax County employee groups have written to the county library board pointing out the overwhelming community support for abandoning a proposed “beta plan” that would cut library jobs, services and programs.

Earlier this year, the Fairfax County Library Board announced a strategic plan that would help the system deal with declining budgets and need for new technology. Among the suggestions: cut staff positions, eliminate need for a Masters of Library Science for head librarians, and shift the duties of children’s library specialists. Reston Regional Library was slated to be a beta test location.

But after much public criticism — and the revelation that the library had been discarding thousands of books rather than recirculating them to branches — the board said in September that the plan was on hold until more information could be gathered.

The library board said it hopes to have a revised plan to present to the Board of Supervisors by Nov. 15.

Meanwhile, Hunter Mill Supervisor Cathy Hudgins will host a community meeting featuring members of the Library Board of Trustees tonight at 7 p.m. at Hunters Woods Elementary, 2401 Colts Neck Dr.

The letter from the employees groups says “there is deep and overwhelming support for strengthening our libraries, not for cutting services or jobs” and that “each library should reflect the needs of the community it serves.”

The entire text of the letter, first posted on the Reston 2020 blog, appears below.