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Peoria Public Library branches going through modernization, join 21st century

Just when some thought the future of the public library was looking dim because of technology, the Peoria Public Library is proving its services are needed as much as ever.

The library's Lincoln Branch has reopened, the McClure Branch is scheduled to in January and the Lakeview Branch will reopen around the first of April, all after millions of dollars in renovations and expansion to bring the system into the 21st century, said Trisha Noack, head of public relations for the library.

"Our libraries now work like the rest of the world," Noack said shortly after the Lincoln branch at 1312 W. Lincoln Ave. reopened after restoration of the Carnegie Building and construction of a 12,000 square-foot addition were completed.

"Our libraries had become almost like foreign countries because they didn't function like we are used to with everything else in our lives. Now we are technologically equipped to do what everybody wants and expects, including electronic checkout services that free our staff to help patrons in other ways, such as answering questions or helping to find things. At the same time we've given patrons attractive places to sit and read, provided story-time rooms for kids and have free computers to use and Wi-Fi capabilities.

"The basic idea of the library is to share resources. It always has been. What we are sharing and checking out has changed greatly through the years but the basic premise remains. All we've done is adapt to the times," Noack said.

Any concern about whether people still use the library seems to have been answered recently, as well. Noack said that on Dec. 9 the Peoria Public Library reached 1 million transactions in one year for the first time in its history. It did so with only two buildings open — the Main Library at 107 N.E. Monroe and the North Branch at 3001 W. Grand Parkway — through most of the year.

Also, Noack said, there were 1,507 computer sessions logged by 588 patrons during the week of Dec. 6, also with just two buildings open. "A lot of people still don't have the Internet at home or access to Wi-Fi, so we are there for them," she said.

The North Branch is the newest in the system. The 30,000 square-foot branch opened May 14, 2011. The Lakeview Branch then closed in July 2011 for remodeling and retooling. The McClure Branch, which needed a myriad of building repairs as well as remodeling, has been closed since last February.

Remodeling of the Main Library was completed in June 2011, but two floors had opened a year earlier.

All of the work was the result of a $28 million program started about five years ago, when the library's board of trustees recognized nothing had been done to upgrade the Peoria library system in 40 years. That included geographically as it saw that basically half the city had no branch service and the other half had less than ideal service.

An advisory referendum asking for permission to sell bonds and raise its portion of taxes to pay for those bonds so the remodeling work and construction of the North Branch could be done was put on the April 2007 ballot. It was approved by a 72 percent margin. The bonds then were sold for the work.

Even then, however, a long-range planning committee for the trustees said that while the library could not serve the growing north side without a new building, there would not be enough money to add new staff for that building. Noack said technology helped ease that burden, but the library was able to find other ways of doing things so staff for the North Branch could be moved from other branches.

One of the changes was that each building closes one day a week. The Main Library and McClure branches will be closed on Sundays, the North Branch is closed on Tuesdays, the Lincoln Branch on Wednesdays and the Lakeview Branch will be closed on Thursdays.

"What's important is that somewhere in Peoria, a library is open to the public seven days a week," Noack said.

Noack said library branches have come and gone through the years, depending on need, since the Peoria Public Library was founded in 1880. The first librarian was Erastus Willcox, who wrote the Illinois Library Law that later became the model for federal library laws.

"We used to have branches in grocery stores and schools. People didn't have cars back in those days so we had to be where the people were, where they could get to on foot. As the circumstances changed, we adapted. We still are adapting and will continue to, so we can be where our patrons need us and we can provide what they need from us: the resources we can share with them," Noack said.

"We are continually keeping on top of what the community needs in a lot of aspects. For example, we have nicely equipped meeting rooms that groups can use. The experience of checking out books is so different now because it is electronic. People can reserve a book or renew a rental over their cell phone, which is nice if they are going to make the due date and want to avoid a fine," she said.

The fine structure hasn't changes in a while, with fines still ranging from 10 cents to one dollar a day, depending on the item checked out.

"People don't like to pay fines. We know that. We just levy them and collect them to ensure we get our materials back. We are trying to make it all super easy for our patrons," Noack said.

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