The cost for rental of the Schulman Auditorium or Gowland Meeting Room is determined by time of the event, equipment and services needed, and applicant's organizational type and Carlsbad resident status. The following is an outline of the fees which may apply to your reservation so that you may estimate cost. Please contact staff at media-assist.office@carlsbadca.gov or 442-339-2055 for a quote specific to your reservation. Check availability and reserve online.

Basic Hourly Rates:

Minimum booking time is 2 hours. All set-up and tear-down time must be included in your reservation time. No early entrance is permitted and you must be out by the end of your reservation time.

Weekend and After-hours Rates:

No reservations permitted before or after library hours or on Sundays.

Available discounts:

• 10% resident discount available for individuals or organizations based in Carlsbad; see criteria below.
• 15% business/commercial discount if organization does not make a profit from rental, for example, if there are no ticket sales or products/services sold to the public.

Additional Services:

• An A/V Technician is required for Schulman Auditorium use, and is available at no charge between 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday-Friday.
• The Steinway piano is tuned quarterly. Extra tunings can be scheduled in advance for a $150 tuning fee.
• Due to liability, no outside projectors permitted. Use of the library's projector use is a $20 flat fee.
• Additional charges may apply for special services such as video and audio recording, additional audio, etc. Service charges are hourly, will be charged to the entire reservation time. Please contact staff at 442-339-2055 for more information, and we will issue a quote specific to the reservation.

Cancellations and Reservation Changes:

• Cancellations or changes to a reservation must be made in writing to media-assist.office@carlsbadca.gov
• All reservations cancelled less than two weeks prior to the event date will be assessed a $25 cancellation fee.
• There is a $10 rental modification fee for each change to date, time or location after the first change.

Each application will be reviewed by staff and classified into a group depending on the type of organization, intended use, and Carlsbad resident status. 

Staff will attempt to accommodate all applications, however, as demand often exceeds availability, the following priority system has been established:

• Library & Cultural Arts Department and other city department-sponsored activities
• Nonprofit
• Individual
• Business/Commercial

To qualify as a nonprofit, the organization must meet one of the following criteria:

• The organization must be registered as a nonprofit corporation with the state of California, or, if not registered with the state, must be a Carlsbad chapter and have a constitution or by-laws which clearly state that the objectives of the organization are of a nonprofit, noncommercial nature.
• If incorporated, submit incorporation papers; if not incorporated, submit constitution.
• Submit financial verification of organization’s exemption from income tax. (Department of the Treasury Form 990 or 501(c)3 may be used)

In order to qualify as Carlsbad resident nonprofit, the organization must meet one of the following criteria:

• Official nonprofit or chapter address must be in Carlsbad.
• Seventy percent of its membership and participants must be Carlsbad residents. Verification of residency may be required. Official membership list complete with city of residence addresses may be required with applications.

Check availability and reserve online.

Carlsbad Residents

Online booking period opens Sept. 1 to book for the Jan. 1 through June 30 period. Online booking period opens April 1 to book for the July 1 through Dec. 31 period.

Nonresidents

Online booking period opens Sept. 15 to book for the Jan. 1 through June 30 period. Online booking period opens April 15 for the July 1 through Dec. 31 period.

Check availability and reserve online.