City Librarian Community Message
June 18, 2020
Dear Friends,
Our first day of being open was a big success!
We had about 350 patrons in through the course of the day. As I write this, we are preparing to open again—and there is a line of people outside.
Next week, Decatur Public Library will be open on Tuesday June 23, from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. and on Thursday June 25 from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. The following week the Library will be open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Next week I hope to be able to fill you in on the schedule after that.
Again, patrons will be able to:
- Browse the shelves
- Checkout materials
- Return materials (outside drops only)
- Pick up holds
- Get a reference question answered, and
- There will be limited computer access.
There will not be:
- Any seating for reading
- Local History Room access (but the archivist can be contacted via email)
- On-site programs or meetings.
Please feel free to also return items at any time to our outside drop, just to the right of the automated book return. We are quarantining all materials returned for a minimum of three days, which means that no one will touch these items for 72 hours and often times longer. You will not see the items come off of your account during that time, but if you are a Decatur Public Library cardholder, we will never charge you a late fine.
Curbside service continues to go strong and will continue to be offered on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 10 a.m . to 2 p.m. This means you can place holds/requests for physical items held at our library and we will arrange a time for you to pick the items up in our parking lot without ever leaving your car.
Please see more details here: Curbside Pickup
The Library will again begin receiving donations of used books on behalf of the Friends of the Library. Donated books can be put on the old loading dock to the north of the main entrance. If you have a large quantity of books and need help unloading them, please call the library at 421-9712 to schedule a time when someone can meet you at the door with a cart and help move the books from your vehicle into the library.
The fact that these services are limited is temporary. We will work to expand services and hours a little at a time until things are back to normal. Our number one concern is the health and safety of our library users and our staff. We miss our patrons, we miss serving our community—and we are looking forward to seeing you all and serving you again in a way that maximizes your safety.
Don’t forget that the 2020 Summer Reading Challenge is underway. This is our first ever all online Summer Reading. The response thus far has been terrific. So far, we have 629 readers who have logged over 100,000 reading minutes. Decatur Public Library has reading challenges for young adults and grown-ups as well.
You can find all the details here: Summer Reading Challenge
Thank you for remaining loyal DPL users—
Sincerely
Rick Meyer
City Librarian
Decatur Public Library