Library Services In Cincinnati Coming Back This Month

Press release from the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County:

May 6, 2020

Written by Kathy Taylor, Regional Manager, Downtown Main Library

We have missed you! But while our doors have been closed to the public, we have been working hard to serve you online and to create a plan for bringing back in-person services and re-opening our buildings in a way that keeps the safety of community members and staff a top priority.

Now that Governor DeWine has shared a plan for reopening Ohio and we have had time to review it, we wanted to let you know how we will serve you over the next few weeks. Details are provided below, and Paula Brehm-Heeger, the Library’s Eva Jane Romaine Coombe Director, has additional information explaining the rationale for these decisions is in a blog post.

Emergency Drop-off for Borrowed Materials, May 13 - 17

• While our preference is for you to hold on to your Library materials at this time, we do understand that some of you have a need to return them.

• We will open our book drops for a short time period beginning at 9 a.m. May 13 through May 17, so that those of you who need to can return items.

• Please know that due dates for materials have automatically been extended and no one is incurring late fees.

• We are not accepting donated items right now, nor is the Friends or ATLA.

Drive-Thru Service Beginning May 26

Beginning May 26, we are opening the drive-thrus at our facilities who have them. Here are the details:

• Drive-thrus are at these locations: Covedale, Groesbeck, Harrison, Reading, and the Downtown Main Library. Symmes does not have a drive-thru, but will be offering curbside service beginning May 26.

• Customers can pick up holds and other materials.

• We are not accepting books or other materials you have already checked out at the drive-thrus. We have automatically extended due dates so you will not incur late fees.

• The drive-thru hours of operation are 10 a.m. - 9 p.m. Monday-Tuesday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday. Drive-thru is closed on Sundays.

Stay Tuned for More

For now, all our buildings will continue to remain closed to the public. We will continue to bring back in-person services over the next weeks and months as it is safe to do so, and as we build our capacity to provide service in a new way that meets the Governor’s Responsible ReStart Ohio Plan. Right now we are working on reconfiguring our facilities so that physical distancing is possible and putting measures in place to ensure safe handling of the over 19 million items customers borrow from the Library each year. There is much we do not know, but we look forward to the results of a recently announced study to identify best practices in handling library and museum materials.

We’re Here for You Online and on the Phone

• Our eBranch is always open, and we are continuing to provide events like storytimes online on a regular basis. Check our calendar for more information.

• Call, email or chat with us seven days a week for help with job searching, finding trusted health information, getting assistance with a library resource, and more.

What You Can Do

• If you are not in a vehicle, we request that you wear a mask for your own safety and that of others.

• We ask that customers not in a vehicle practice physical distancing from others and maintain 6 feet or more space between you and another individual.

For the latest Library service updates and resources, please visit our COVID-19 resource page.

This press release was produced by the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County. The views expressed here are the author’s own.