Library circulation up; board delays vote after split over library holiday schedule

The Kansas City, Kansas Board of Education heard a quarterly report from Public Library Director Laura Hunt on April 22, and then declined to approve the librarypaid-holiday and scheduled closings calendar after a divided roll-call vote.

Hunt told the board that first-quarter 2025 circulation rose in both physical and digital checkouts compared with 2024, and that the library system is adjusting its e-content budget to increase availability on the Hoopla platform. "Our system that we're using Hoopla, has a limit of how many circs you can have," Hunt said, and staff are working with the e-content librarian to reallocate that budget so community demand can be met.

The presentation also reviewed other metrics and upcoming services. Hunt said website visits were affected by a Google Analytics reporting issue but that corrected data showed a 38% month-over-month increase in March after the fix. In-branch visits are "up…