Oxnard library manager reports steep attendance gains, new five-member board and upgrades

Kathleen Ashmore, library manager for the Oxnard Public Library, told the Oxnard City Council that the system recorded 213,383 visits in 2025 and has 81,884 registered card holders, and she outlined a range of space, safety and technology upgrades as the city's new five-member library board is seated.

"The residents of Oxnard deserve a public library that fits the needs of their lives," Ashmore said as she presented the library's 2026 annual report, noting that visits in 2025 were roughly 820 per day and represented a 50% increase over 2023 and an 18% increase over 2024.

The report to the council covered operational units, programming growth and the formal reestablishment of library governance. Ashmore said the reestablishment process began in 2024 after the California Attorney General issued a clarification requiring a separate five-member board. Ordinance 3055 took effect in May 2025, she said, and five board appointments were approved in March 2026; staff are scheduling the board's first monthly meetings beginning in April.

Ashmore presented usage figures and program metrics as evidence of expansion: the library circulated about 218,000 items in 2025, ran 932 programs with a combined attendance of roughly 18,086, and logged heavy study-room use (14 study rooms used 6,214 times). She said volunteer hours increased compared with prior years, but the transcript record did not include a clear total for volunteer hours.

Programming highlights included expanded early childhood offerings (including bilingual story times), revamped literacy and ESL tutoring that Ashmore said helped at least one participant pass the naturalization exam and another become a volunteer tutor, and recurring community events such as a garden festival and the summer reading program, which grew by 54% in 2025.

Ashmore listed partnerships with more than 20 organizations, citing Mercy House, First 5, the Ventura County Workforce Development Board and others. She announced that the Ventura County Workforce Development Board's mobile job-assistance unit ("WOW") will provide services at the South Oxnard Library every fourth Thursday.

On space and safety, Ashmore described completed and planned changes: refreshed teen and children's areas, a planned maker space, reconfigured help desks and computer labs converted into flexible program and study spaces, reduced shelving to open sightlines, and accessibility improvements. Safety measures already in place or planned include a security monitor at the South Oxnard branch, bubble mirrors to reduce blind corners, Narcan availability for staff and the public, walkie-talkies and staff codes, increased guard coverage and de-escalation training for staff and guards.

Ashmore also described a technology refresh with Carson Block Consulting and the Oxnard IT department that has already added new firewalls, wireless access points and filtering; next steps she listed included hardware replacement, an upgrade to integrated library software, RFID and security gate upgrades, and seeking external funding (the name of a specific grant or funding source in the record was unclear).

Ashmore closed by introducing the library mascot "Barry the Bear," thanking staff and volunteers and inviting council members to ask questions and to follow the library's social channels. The presentation did not record any council vote or formal action during the remarks.

The reestablished library board will set goals for 2026 and 2027 when it begins meeting monthly in April, according to Ashmore.