Looking at our Libraries: The numbers show it: The library is still popular

You know, from all that I have written, that I love our libraries. But did you know about my secret love? Numbers! I was a math major, way back when. And just a few days ago, I got to peek at the report Marilyn Matthes, the director of the Collier County Libraries, prepares for the Florida Department of State, Division of Library and Information Services.

Are you ready for some numbers about our libraries? I'll lead off with a WOW one. But first, let's set the stage. You've all seen, or at least heard of, the Collier County 2010 population figure (321,520), available at www.census.gov.

Wouldn't you like to know the number of active Collier County library cards in wallets and on key chains? There are 203,997 resident borrowers (as of Sept. 30, 2011, the end of the county's fiscal year). Now, what you need to know about a library card is that it becomes inactive after three years with no use. So that 203,997 number is in constant refresh mode.

Our library system's 10 locations stretch more than 181,082 square feet. The Everglades City branch is the smallest and the Headquarters Regional Library on Orange Blossom Drive is the largest. Headquarters is also the busiest, with the longest hours (open every day, except holidays) and the highest circulations.

It is not the newest; that honor goes to the South Regional Library, which has the largest meeting room space. Also, relatively new is the Golden Gate branch just off of Golden Gate Boulevard; the building it occupied until 2008 is just next-door.

The Naples Regional Library on Central Avenue is the oldest, first opening its doors in 1966, but expanded many times.

The 10 library branches had 601,955 volumes of print material at fiscal year 2011. Although the annual circulation of material reached more than three million for fiscal year 2008, the current 2011 number is 2,760,427 items. Patrons came into the libraries 1,497,821 times to borrow or return material, use an on-site computer, use their own computer to access the Internet via Wi-Fi, attend a class, consult a reference librarian, see a movie, listen to a live concert, read a newspaper or magazine, pay an overdue fine, get a beach pass, pick-up tax forms, or just to visit a welcoming place.

And what about www.collivergov.net/library, the website? The place where you can search for a DVD, reserve or renew a book, download an e-Book, practice a language (U.S.A. Learns for English, Mango for many others), get tutoring, register for a PowerPoint class (sponsored by the Friends of the Library), complete an application for Mail-A-Book service, and so much more. Well, there were 324,089 visits to the website in 2011.

The main Collier County website had more visits, but that's because many users go to www.colliergov.net to get to the library and other county sub-sites. Oh, and one other number. Those public-use computers had 256,738 users during the last fiscal year.

Lots of great numbers that demonstrate what a wonderful resource we have here in Collier County.

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Carla Grieve is the District Two representative on the county's Library Advisory Board and also a member of the Board of the Friends of the Library. She can be reached at cgrieve@collier-friends.org.