Community Corner
Woodridge Public Library Announcing "Fine Free" Policy
Residents invited to Borrow Items "Worry-Free"
Woodridge Public Library Announcing Fine Free Policy; Invites Residents to Borrow Items “Worry-Free”
With “the goal to encourage even more people to use the library,” Director Pam Dubé announces that the Woodridge Public Library will no longer charge fines for returning items late, and all existing overdue fines have been cleared from library users’ accounts. Effective August 1, 2021, the library has stopped charging daily late fees for any borrowed items, including current movies, video games, and best sellers.
Read complete Fine Free details, including the most frequently asked questions, here.
Eliminating late fines at the library should allow for worry-free borrowing and improved customer service for all library users. Woodridge has a high rate of library usage, with 76 % of residents having a Woodridge library card.
During initial COVID-19 pandemic safety measures, Woodridge Public Library suspended its practice of collecting late fines, as did many other libraries across the country, and return rates remained high. “We started seeing on a large scale what some libraries have been saying for years, that return rates were the same whether there were overdue fines or not. In practice, charging fines for returning items late causes people to stop using the library.” Fines generate less than 1% of the library’s budget; removing fines will not affect the library’s ability to provide great service, which includes a library collection of current and popular movies, fiction, and children’s books as well as easy-to-stream and download audiobooks and magazines.
The library wants the "Fine Free" message to reach every resident. “It is a great opportunity for us to both serve our regular library users better and reach community members who have not yet taken advantage of all the library has to offer,” says Julie Lombardo, manager of the library’s Circulation Services.
Now is also the time to come back to the library to return any long overdue items without penalty. “As long as we have the items back, you will owe us nothing,” according to Director Dubé.
Residents of incorporated Woodridge are eligible for a free library card. To receive a library card, residents should bring a valid, current photo ID and proof of address in Woodridge (driver’s license, utility bill, recently delivered mail, a lease, etc.) to the Circulation Desk. For details, see the library webpage at woodridgelibrary.org, call the library at 630-964-7899 or visit in person. Woodridge Public Library is located at 3 Plaza Drive, Woodridge, near the Post Office and Village Hall.
