The St. Charles City-County Library is made up of eleven library branches located throughout St. Charles County in east-central Missouri (United States of America). These libraries serve the residents of St. Charles County, and branches host nearly two million visitors per year.[1]
| St. Charles City-County Library | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 38°47′03″N 90°36′00″W / 38.7842°N 90.600°W | |
| Location | 77 Boone Hills Dr, St. Peters, Missouri |
| Type | Public law library |
| Established | August 1, 1973 |
| Branches | 11 |
| Other information | |
| Budget | $21 million (FY 2023) |
| Director | Jason Kuhl |
| Website | www |
The Library was established on August 1, 1973, when the Kathryn Linnemann Library of St. Charles merged with the St. Charles County Library District. It is governed by a board of trustees, and funded primarily through property taxes.[2]
Branches
edit| Branch Name | Branch Type | Branch Location |
|---|---|---|
| Kathryn Linnemann (KL) | regional | 2323 Elm Street, St. Charles 63301 |
| Middendorf-Kredell (MK) | regional | 2750 Highway K, O'Fallon 63368 |
| Spencer Road (SP) | regional | 427 Spencer Road, St. Peters 63376 |
| Corporate Parkway (CP) | general purpose | 1200 Corporate Parkway, Wentzville 63385 |
| Deer Run (DR) | general purpose | 1300 North Main, O’Fallon 63366 |
| Kisker Road (KR) | general purpose | 1000 Kisker Road, St. Charles 63304 |
| McClay Branch (MY) | general purpose | 2760 McClay Road, St. Charles 63303 |
| Cliff View Branch (CV) | general purpose | 10 Cliff View Drive, Wentzville 63385 |
| Library Express at WingHaven (WH) | express | 7435 Village Center Drive, O’Fallon 63368 |
| Augusta Branch (AG) | community | 198 Jackson Street, Augusta 63332 |
| Boone's Trail Branch (BT) | community | 10 Fiddlecreek Plaza, New Melle 63365 |
In 2024, library administration proposed a plan to close three branches to pay for e-book lending and raise staff wages, which are below market rate.[3] Following public outcry, the board voted unanimously against the plan.[4]
Collections
editThe St. Charles City-County Library circulates over 5.5 million items per year. Its branches loan books, music, magazines, movies, audiobooks, video games, and alternative materials. Some of the library's more unusual items for check-out include cake pans, fitness kits, kitchen equipment, talking books for children, book discussion kits, and telescopes. The library also offers electronic books, magazines, music, audiobooks and a wide variety of research resources that can be downloaded or streamed from an internet-connected device in a customer's home.[5]
Services
editIn addition to library materials, the St. Charles City-County Library provides events and classes for the community. Customers can attend book discussion groups, children's story times, teen events, crafting classes, author visits, technology training, themed events, game nights, concerts, and participate in a summer reading program for all ages. The combined eleven branches offer over 6,000 different events each year.[6]
The St. Charles City-County Library also offers outreach services to those in the community that may not be able to access its branches. Library staff provide programming and library materials to nursing homes, retirement communities, schools, day care centers, the homebound, and the incarcerated.
Customers can access gathering places for community groups, business meetings, recreational groups, and informal gatherings. Most branches offer rooms for reserve and all branches have public computers and study spaces.[7]
In 2022, the Library launched a bookmobile to extend services across the county. The original plan included three schools as service points, however they were cancelled due to uncertainties around Jay Ashcroft's newly implemented book ban law.[8][9]
References
edit- ^ "St.Charles City-County Library". mylibrary. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
- ^ "St. Charles City-County Library". youranswerplace. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
- ^ Krall, Annie (2024-05-17). "Branches of the St. Charles City-County Library possibly closing this summer". KSDK. Retrieved 2024-06-27.
- ^ Brennecke, Lauren (2024-06-26). "Despite St. Charles libraries staying open, residents remain worried for the future". STLPR. Retrieved 2024-06-27.
- ^ "Web Catalog". youranswerplace. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
- ^ "2017 Annual Report" (PDF). Retrieved 18 July 2018.
- ^ "Reserve a Meeting Room". youranswerplace. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
- ^ Mechling, Lauren (2022-09-20). "'We've moved backwards': US librarians face unprecedented attacks amid rightwing book bans". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-06-27.
- ^ Cunningham, Meg (2023-04-21). "Missouri libraries dodge GOP funding strike — for now". Beacon: Kansas City. Retrieved 2024-06-27.