Your Library’s Value: $601,770 in Materials Town-Wide in Two Months
How much would we all pay out of pocket for books and other materials if we couldn’t use Mendon Public Library?
In the first two months it was open in the new building (July and August 2011), Mendon Public Library circulated 23,145 items. According to the School Library Journal, the average cost of a book today is $26. So if all those materials were books (some were videos, audio books etc.), they would have cost us $601,770 to purchase.
The library’s entire 2011 budget is $286,000–so that’s a very good return. Plus, it’s a real opportunity for anyone who’s feeling the pinch of this down economy. If you don’t already use the library, stop on by!
If you like this way of looking at the value of your library, you may wish to try out Maine State Library’s library use calculator, which will figure more specifically your personal savings, based on how many of which kinds of materials you typically borrow–plus programs you attend, magazines and newspapers you read, computers you use and reference questions you ask.
I tried it and the library services my family of three uses in a year easily totals $4,000. What do you get? Please post your results and thoughts in the comments.
