Danbury Library To Immediately Expand Patron Services

Press release from Danbury Library:

Oct. 14, 2020

Albert Einstein, arguably one of the most brilliant and influential minds in modern history, is quoted as having said, “The only thing you need to know, is the location of the library.” Over the past few months, with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent closing of our doors to the public, the location of Danbury Library has changed.

While the building itself has remained firmly in place at 170 Main Street, during the months-long period in which our building remained closed to the public, our programs and services have been reaching patrons far beyond the Library's walls. Our staff quickly reinvented events for the new normal, hosting Zoom meetings and Facebook Live events, and bringing Danbury Library directly into the homes of our patrons.

A key strategy to Danbury Library’s success has been to expand our patron base and actively engage community members of all ages. Since March, we have welcomed 1,366 new Library card holders and 1,370 new digital users. Access to digital content, such as eBooks and streaming movies, has been particularly critical, as lending services were put on hold during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout the past seven months, Danbury Library patrons have streamed or downloaded 55,693 items from our vast digital catalog, bringing the power of Danbury Library into their homes, classrooms, and offices.

During this same time period, Library staff has worked diligently to prepare and provide high-quality virtual events and classes to replace the programming normally offered in-house. Programs were up and running on Zoom, Google Meet, and Facebook within a week of the building closure. Since March, patrons have been able to meet bestselling authors and talk with the cast of Broadway’s Hamilton, discuss books and chat about new games, relax through yoga and meditation, learn about how to protect their finances, build their careers and much more together. In total, 6,728 patrons have attended 410 virtual events. Our annual Summer Reading program, which kicked off in June with the launch of our Beanstack app, was fully digital. Throughout the summer months, patrons of all ages logged 345,066 minutes of reading, culminating in the sliming of Mayor Mark Boughton.

In June, we also launched Curbside Pickup services to further meet the needs of our patrons, and increase access to our physical catalog. Since its launch, 22,632 items have been loaned to 5,418 Danbury Library cardholders. Curbside pick-up continues to be a popular option for patrons who wish to maintain social distancing without having to bypass the latest bestsellers.

While our doors remained closed to the public throughout most of the summer months, we were pleased to reopen in a limited capacity in late August. As gratifying as it has been to see the faces of our patrons once again, we are eager to expand services even further.

Danbury Library is excited to announce that beginning on Tuesday, October 13, we will begin expanding our current services in an effort to make access to the Library easier for all of our patrons. Our Main Floor, which houses our collection of Adult Fiction and Nonfiction, will fully reopen for browsing or visits to Information Services with no appointment required. Our newly renovated Junior Floor will reopen for browsing by appointment only, for groups of 5 or fewer. Additionally, Library staff will begin taking appointments for patrons who wish to browse the Music and Movies Center, and will continue to take appointments for individual computer use.

Patrons who wish to schedule an appointment, may do so online by visiting https://danburylibrary.org/app... or by calling (203) 797-4505. Due to staffing restrictions, all appointments must be made 24-hours in advance. For the safety of our community, all staff and visitors to Danbury Library are required to wear a mask that covers the nose and mouth and practice social distancing while inside the building.

It doesn’t take a genius, like our friend Albert Einstein, to see how necessary Danbury Library is to our community, and the impact it has had in our patrons’ lives through the past few months. While families, community organizations, businesses, and schools throughout our region continue to adjust to the realities of the COVID-19 pandemic, Danbury Library remains a resource for all, no matter where and how they use our services.

As an essential city asset, the Danbury Library is committed to being a welcoming destination, responsive to the needs of our city’s diverse community, and a source of inspiration through words and ideas.

This press release was produced by Danbury Library. The views expressed here are the author's own.