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Timberland Regional Library reports rising digital use, opens new Mountain View branch
Summary
Timberland Regional Library trustees told the Thurston County Board of County Commissioners that physical checkouts rose slightly in 2024 while digital checkouts climbed sharply; the system opened a new Mountain View branch, expanded self-serve and extended-access sites, and completed a strategic plan for 2025–2029.
Marybeth Harrington, a trustee of the Timberland Regional Library board who represents Thurston County, briefed the Thurston County Board of County Commissioners on the library district’s 2024 annual report and several initiatives for 2025.
Harrington said the Timberland system, which serves residents of Thurston, Grays Harbor, Pacific, Lewis and Mason counties, reported 1,631,075 physical checkouts in 2024 (about a 1% increase from 2023) and 1,343,962 OverDrive/digital checkouts (a 15.5% year-over-year increase). The system recorded about 143,739 active patrons; Harrington said that figure represents patrons who have used a card, not merely hold an unused card. She said patrons borrowed more than 2,000,000 digital titles systemwide in 2024.
The report highlighted service expansions including 12 “expanded access” self-entry libraries in the district, new “Anywhere” mobile library services that visited schools, Head Start sites and senior living centers, and a full-service self-serve branch at the NASAL location. Harrington noted the new Mountain View Timberland Library opened Jan. 11 and described other facility refreshes or upcoming closures for upgrades, including the Olympia location’s two-week closure this spring for I.T. and facility work and a scheduled reopening of the Tumwater site on June 28.
Harrington told commissioners the district received a clean financial and accountability audit from the Washington State Auditor’s Office for the fifth year running. She also summarized the library’s recently completed strategic planning process for 2025–2029, which she said focuses on digital access, “sharing our story” so residents better understand available services, and support for school-age youth.
Commissioners asked for clarification about interlibrary partnerships and whether a historic arrangement that allowed in-person registration to connect to larger catalogs was still in effect; Harrington described interlibrary loan and partnerships with other systems and said she would follow up with a written update. Commissioners also asked whether the board’s internal working relationships were functioning; Harrington said the board is “incredibly passionate,” noted two trustee vacancies (a Thurston County and a Mason County representative) and said the board is using additional retreats to work through differing expectations.
Harrington closed by reading a passage she attributed to writer Caitlin Moran about the civic role of libraries. No formal county action was taken on the report.
Looking ahead, Harrington encouraged residents to consult TRL.org for program schedules and said the library has launched a podcast and an online merchandise store. She also said the district will provide more details on branch refresh timelines and new online library card registration.
