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Marion Public Library reports rising visits, new bookmobile service and steady finances
Summary
The Marion Public Library told the City Council it saw roughly 180,000 visits, over 3,700 new library card sign-ups (about 9% of Marion’s population), growth in program attendance and launched a bookmobile; staff said the library finished FY25 within its adopted budget for a fourth straight year.
The Marion Public Library reported to the City Council on Nov. 18 that its strategic plan is driving higher usage and new services. Ross McEntyre, president of the library board, said the library recorded about 180,000 visits in the year, more than 3,700 new library card sign-ups and roughly 377,000 physical items circulated.
"New library cards continue to be a focus," McEntyre said, adding the cards help people access services and connect to the library as a civic center. He attributed the increases to program demand, staff responsiveness and expanded meeting and study spaces.
The library is expanding outreach. McEntyre described a bookmobile launched mid-December of FY25 that produced 150 new card sign-ups between December and June and that staff expect further growth: "based upon those trends, we are going to probably triple what we did," he said. Staff also reported about 73,000 program attendees this year and an increase of 11,808 program attendees over the prior fiscal year.
On finances, library staff said the library finished within its adopted FY25 budget for the fourth consecutive year. Staff cited underspending in part-time salaries and several temporarily vacant full-time positions as the main contributors to the year’s savings. "One of the downsides of having a staff that is 75% part time is some turnover," staff said, which produced underspending in the salary line.
Council members asked for more detail on revenues. Library staff explained that revenue streams include meeting-room rentals and makerspace fees, reimbursements from the state of Iowa for serving nonresident patrons (a per-circulation payment), interlibrary-loan assistance from the state, a small Linn County payment for rural residents, and a formal agreement with the city of Robins that allows Robins residents to use Marion’s services.
Council members also pressed staff on after-school demand from Vernon Middle School. Library staff reported 80–120 additional visitors shortly after school dismisses each day and said the library partners with HACAP to provide food during after-school programming to improve behavior and participation.
The council thanked board members and staff for their work; the presentation closed with library leaders saying they will continue expanding partnerships and services as usage grows.
What’s next: staff told the council they will return with additional program metrics and continue to report bookmobile performance as the initiative expands.
