City workers and library supporters were loud and strong Thursday night at the Oakland City Council budget hearing meeting - the final in a series of three.

At times, the chants, clapping and loud noisemaker rattlers being shaken by union workers from SEIU 1021 resembled a festive occasion. Using her pink point and click digital camera, Mayor Jean Quan even took a few photos of the crowd.

But many say the incoming fiscal budget for 2011-2013 is anything worth celebrating.

Oakland is in a serious financial quandary. This coming fiscal year, the city is facing a $58 million budget shortfall that it has to plug. A $76 million deficit is expected for the following fiscal year.

According to the mayor's office, once police, fire, debt and restricted funds are taken out of the budget pie, Oakland only has $26 million available to cover $72 million in programs.

As a result of the budget squeeze, popular city services like libraries, senior centers (run by the human services department) and parks and recreation will likely see significant reductions. All three city departments presented their fiscal budget proposals at the Thursday evening meeting.

If the worst scenario budget proposal from the mayor passes - Budget A - the library system will see the vast majority of its branches, 12 total, shuttered because of low funds.

Under the slightly less draconian Budget B, only $400,000 from the city's general fund will be cut from the library system's budget, but  several positions would be transferred to the Measure Q fund, which funds the vast majority of library services.

Under Budget C, if there are employee concessions, plus passage of a proposed parcel tax, the library service will see no reductions in its department for the two year fiscal cycle.

The city's parks and recreation department also will be greatly impacted by under the mayor's budget proposal.

For example, under Budget A, 25 positions will be cut. Under Budget B and C, the department will merge or transfer a number of recreation centers and eliminate programing at Live Oak Pool.

Oakland's Human Services Department, which operates the city's senior centers, will see hours for its centers and programs reduced if Budget A options are selected.

Many Oakland residents attending the meeting said that the city must consider how many of its programs impact everyday people.

Helen Bloch, a children's librarian and homeowner in Oakland said she helped gather more than 5,500 signatures of library services supporters.

"We are outraged because we know that libraries are valuable to the communities of Oakland," she said. "They're valuable to us educationally, they're valuable to us socially, they cause community to happen. But one thing that hasn't been discussed so far is the fact that libraries bring economic value to communities ... (according to national studies) for every dollar that is spent on libraries services, between four and five dollars of returns come into the city economically."

Oakland Senior High School student Jayson Nuhammed, 16, said the city's library services have been invaluable to him.

"The Oakland public library for me has personally been a place where I can go to study and enhance my reading skills. As a sophomore with the SATs and AP [classes] just around the corner, I know for the fact that the library will be my best friend in the days to come."

One area of potential revenue that Quan is pushing is a potential $80 parcel tax, which is expected to bring in $11 million annual. City Council will consider whether to put the ballot item in front of voters at its June 21 meeting.

The tax is a key linchpin in keeping the city from applying total draconian cuts in services. Without the tax (and concessions from union workers), Quan said Oakland will face the dreaded Budget A.

City Council now has to decide on a final budget, which is due June 30.