Jersey City Library Director Priscilla Gardner is feverishly working on a plan to keep the library system alive.

With a 17.5 percent cut in state aid and $1.7 million less from Jersey City this year, things are looking grim.

The library laid off 36 part-time staff and security guards, and closed two branches during the last budget cycle in an effort to curb costs. The main branch on Jersey Avenue reduced its extended night hours from five days to two. But more cuts lay ahead.

"Now we're going to have to close branches, we're going to have to reduce more hours and we're going to have furlough days at the library just like the city is having furloughs," she said.

Gardner said city officials told her last week she will have $6 million to run the library's 10 branches. That's down from $7.7 million last year and far below the $8 million she requested.

"We cannot make it on this budget," she said.

The library employs 115 full-time staff and some could lose their jobs under a plan Gardner is devising.

Gardner declined to give details on the furloughs, layoffs or service reductions saying she first wants to give her proposal to the City Council. Any staffing reductions would have to be approved by the state Civil Service Commission.

Gardner, who has been with the library for 41 years, said she has seen demand for the library grow from 40,000 registered users to 189,357 as of Friday.

She said that demand is even higher during the tough economy when people rely on the library to provide free access to best selling novels and movies. The library also serves as a place for students to research and job hunters to seek help.

"They don't have computers, they can't afford computers," she said of many library users. "They come in, they use the computers, they use the Internet. They're searching for jobs."