By DAVID DUPONT
BG Independent News
The Wood County District Public Library is more than doubling the number of hours it is open starting Nov. 2.
Curbside pickup hours will also increase.
Also, responding to comments from the public, the library’s hours will be more uniform over the week.
The new hours will be Monday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The library will remain closed on Sunday.
The library is also allowing patrons to spend an hour in the library. That change is already in place having been made last week. Patrons had been limited to 30 minutes.
That also applies to the time that can be spent on the public computers.
Curbside pickup will be Monday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Tuesday through Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The changes apply to both the Bowling Green and Walbridge libraries.
At Monday’s trustees meeting, Library Director Michael Penrod said that “this will be first step toward bringing us back to normal hours.”
He said that hours may have to be cut back if there’s a serious resurgence of the coronavirus.
The library has only been averaging 10-12 people per hour in the library with it being open 15 hours a week. The highest headcount was 20 people. The limit for visitors and staff is 50.
“Patrons are not coming back in droves,” Penrod said. While they appreciate the library being open, “they’re not beating down the doors to get in.”
They also tend to scoot in, browse the shelves a bit, and check out, and not stay around the library. That’s the 1970s model Penrod said.
He added that “a vast majority are totally compliant and respectful,” of the library’s mask and social distancing rules. “A few people need to be reminded” and told they have options as to how they can access library services.
Curbside service pickup, where people can call in and reserve books to pick up, is still more popular.
The library also offers a book bundle service, where staff select books for patrons, youth and adult, based on their expressed preferences.
The packages include a mix of fiction, non-fiction, and maybe even a movie.
Michelle Raine, the deputy director, has reported that interlibrary loan is back up to normal volume.
Overall, circulation is down 39 percent.
Raine said that the library also continues to expand access to digital collections. Patrons can now get eBooks through the WCDPL Overdrive Collection, Hoopla, and the Ohio Digital Library through the Libby app.
“We have so much digital content available. That’s where we see a growth in circulation,” she said.
The increased hours actually come in the slowest time for circulation, Penrod said. That will only be exacerbated this year because the library will not have events to drive foot traffic.
Story time with Mrs. Claus, the holiday cookie bake off, and the tree lighting are among the events will not happen.
Raine said that the library, though, has started a new Afternoon Interludes on Tuesdays at 4 p.m.
The virtual program is a collaboration with the BGSU College of Musical Arts. The concerts originate from the atrium, but have no audience. They are posted on the library’s Facebook page, and can be watched live, or at a later time.
In the past, Raine noted, the library hosted piano recitals featuring musicians from BGSU.
