If residents of Logan continue to use their library at the current rate, it is likely that they’ll get a new one in the future.
On Thursday the Logan City Library had one if its busiest days in history. According to library records, 5,737 items were circulated — an average of 522 items per hour. That made Feb. 23 the ninth busiest day of all time, library officials reported.
The increase in library use is likely to be a key issue as the library’s board of directors seeking to place a bond measure on the ballot this year to raise funds for a new facility. According to the library’s website, a new building is necessary “to help ensure our community's continued vitality” and to give citizens easier access to library resources.
The idea for the new building was first introduced in 2008. Since then, information has been gathered from the public in the form of surveys and interviews to assess the community need for enhanced facilities. The process will continue until the bonds are approved by the public, library officials said.
Angela Hess, a librarian for the Logan City library, said that days like Thursday have huge potential to increase voter support for a bond.
“A lot of the plans for the new building were made right before the economy went down, and they had to go on hold,” Hess said. “Now that it’s picking back up again, we’re hoping that we can generate more interest and start focusing more on that.”
Although no concrete data about design or projected cost has been released, project facilitators said they have received positive feedback about the project from library patrons.
Still, some have expressed doubt that a new library has value in the electronic information era.
Hess dismisses those concerns as illegitimate.
“It’s a complete misconception that libraries are all about paper books,” she said. “We still have a lot of them, but we also have e-books, audio books, and other things. A lot of people got Kindles for Christmas, and that has led to more people using our services.”
Hess said the technology boom has been a boon to libraries rather than a hindrance, and that library attendance is up more than ever.
“We’re definitely moving with the technology to help provide services to our patrons,” she said.
The Internet has been instrumental in helping the library adapt to the technological revolution. Hess said that the library computers are being used almost constantly, and that more people are accessing their website than ever before.
“People can have access to our resources from everywhere. It has really helped the community,” said Hess.
A new building would also give the library more opportunities to reach out to the community through events such as book clubs, storytelling and cultural programs.
Patron Bryson Bellacomo attended a birthday party for Charles Dickens at the library earlier this month, and said that he immensely enjoyed it.
“It was really interesting,” Bellacomo said. “If a new building means more things like that, I think that it’s a good idea. This is something that I’d actually support my tax dollars being spent on.”
For more information visit library.loganutah.org.
Kyndall Peterson, Jill Dean, Lauren Handy, Cambria VandeMerwe, Heather Foster, Aaron Griffiths and Paige Sjoblom contributed to this report.
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