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Township of Washington Public Library reports rising program use, notes renovations and ADA upgrades
Summary
Library director reported modest increases in cardholders and program attendance for 2024, reviewed circulation and service impacts from a multi-month renovation, and thanked county and township grant funders for ADA access and other improvements.
Laura Rifkin, director of the Township of Washington Public Library, told the township council Monday that library cardholders, program attendance and digital use held steady in 2024 despite a months-long renovation.
Rifkin said library cardholders rose by about 2 percent and 91 new residents registered for library cards in 2024, bringing the total to 5,006. She said in-person program attendance was 7,306 (up 4 percent) and virtual program attendance was 7,458, for a combined 14,764 program attendees.
Rifkin said circulation fell after the library closed for renovation from June through part of October; total circulation for the year was 119,994 items. She told the council, “During the closure for renovation, we did still have our locker system available for part of it. Homebound delivery was still in use, and whenever we were in the building, permitted in the building safely, we did do curbside pickup for residents as well.”
The director gave a month-by-month breakdown: adult and young-adult material circulation totaled 24,715 items; children’s circulation was 25,531; and electronic circulation (Hoopla, OverDrive/Libby and similar services) was 69,748. Rifkin said door counts fell about 15 percent because of the closure and that reference questions rose roughly 3 percent.
Rifkin reviewed building improvements completed in 2024: replacement windows in the story-time room; new shelving for the young-adult and adult collections; a new projector screen in the program room; added ornamental grasses to buffer a parking area; a newly paved parking lot with an additional designated handicap space; and a new ADA entrance and ramp funded by a mix of township and grant money.
“We extend our great thanks to the Bergen County development grant as well as the Township of Washington for their funding assistance in 2024,” Rifkin said, noting the grant and local funds paid for the ADA entrance, parking improvements and other work. She also said the locker pickup system was moved under an awning to reduce weather exposure.
Rifkin told the council the library upgraded its Wi‑Fi system at the end of 2023 and added additional hotspots inside the building; she said Wi‑Fi sessions rose 135 percent, computer sessions rose about 3 percent and database sessions rose about 25 percent. She described strong demand for hands-on “takeaway” programs and noted that virtual-program attendance is stabilizing after higher use earlier in the pandemic.
Council members thanked Rifkin and library staff; one council member said the program attendance numbers showed the library was providing services that draw residents back into the building.
The director asked the council to continue publicizing library programs and said the library is restarting its Friends of the Library fundraising group. She also noted corporate and individual donations toward a planned saltwater fish tank and said the library’s partners helped underwrite senior trips and other events.
The presentation closed with a request for questions and a council expression of appreciation for the staff’s work during the renovation.
Ending: The council did not take formal action during the presentation; subsequent agenda items included a separate administration recommendation to bid for a replacement shingle roof for the library, which administration recommended over a metal roof because of lower cost. Administration said the library’s shingle roof is 23 years old and that prior leaks had cost $12,685.04 in repairs.
