Summer 2020 Newsletter

Nonprofit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Burton OH 44021 Permit No. 11 E C R W S S BOXHOLDER OR OCCUPANT Join us via Facebook Live or Zoom for programs! Visit burtonlibrary.org or call (440) 834-4466 for more details. Volume 44 Issue 2 burtonlibrary.org Summer 2020 Katie Ringenbach Dear Community Members, We at the Burton Public Library put forth a great deal of effort to make our facility a welcoming gathering place for our community. We are proud of this and consciously strive toward this as part of our core identity. We are public servants. We assist people whether locating books, using computers or researching information, and this often entails lengthy interactions. People sit comfortably in the library for hours reading newspapers and browsing the internet. We are a place for people to congregate formally in our meeting rooms or casually throughout the building. The Coronavirus pandemic has been devastating in myriad ways for the world, the country, the state and the county. For us, your local library, it is forcing us to shift our fundamental understanding of who we are, what we do and how we do it. In today’s world, taking your time to browse our collection and then leisurely sitting in a chair to read is a high-risk activity. It facilitates touching a large quantity of items and breathing shared air for a prolonged period of time while others do the same. This makes the library inherently risky, and we have been grappling with how we reopen safely while continuing to provide high caliber service. The week after we closed our doors, we began by providing virtual storytimes. Our goal was to provide continuity and a bit of joy while everyone was staying at home. We sincerely appreciate the collaboration with The Chardon Polka Band to create “Music Mondays” to further this goal. While closed, hundreds of people connected to our wireless internet outside of our building; wireless extends into our garden and parking lot. We continued to purchase electronic materials, and in April we saw some of our highest ever e-media circulation. When the Stay-at-Home order was lifted, we returned to the building and began curbside service on May 14. Staff cheered for our first curbside pickup because it felt wonderful to be back at work and doing what we love. At the same time circulation of materials is only a part of the library experience. We, like libraries everywhere, are working to define what library services look like during a pandemic. How do we meaningfully help people on the computers while maintaining safe distancing? How do we foster a welcoming environment while encouraging people not to linger? We have begun tackling these issues in preparation for reopening. We have installed a plexiglass barrier at the Circulation Desk and will continue to install additional physical barriers. We will only open half of our computers for simultaneous use to comply with distancing. We are ramping up our virtual programming to offer a robust selection reflecting our former compliment of in-person programming. We have staggered our maintenance staff to provide all-day coverage for regular sanitation of high-touch surfaces. Staff will be wearing masks and the number of people allowed in the building at the same time will be limited. Also please be prepared as we are considering requiring all library visitors wear masks. We will have less seating available; as soft seating cannot be wiped down, it will be removed from the public space and stored. We want to ensure the library is as safe as possible for you. Last year we circulated 257,745 physical items. Sanitizing this volume of materials is almost impossible, therefore we quarantine all items for several days once they have been returned prior to checking them in. The COVID-19 virus is unable to live on materials for this duration of time. If you see items still on your account days after you returned them, please understand that this is the reason. We back date items to the day they were returned when we do check them in. We also realize that for many of you the risk of visiting the library will be too great regardless of the precautions we take. Therefore, even after the doors to our building are reopened, we will continue to provide our curbside service. We are also considering safe ways for expanding home service delivery. In-person programming will be the last service we reinstate as bringing a large number of people together in a confined space is both prohibited and unsafe. At the Burton Public Library, we are moving with deliberate care because we understand both the value and risk associated with our services. We are in the building, so please feel free to call us as we would love to hear from you. We look forward to seeing you once we reopen our doors. Thank you for your continued patience and support. Remember we are here for you, and please be safe. Sincerely, burtonlibrary.org 14588 W. Park Street P.O. Box 427 Burton OH 44021 Library: (440) 834-4466 Dial-a-Story: (440) 834-0707 Temporary Library Service & Curbside Pickup Hours: Service Hours: 9 a.m. ˗ 5 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Friday 9 a.m. ˗ 8 p.m. Tuesday, Thursday 10 a.m. ˗ 2 p.m. Saturday Closed Sunday Pickup Hours: See below Library Holiday Closings: Independence Day July 3 & 4 Labor Day September 5 & 7 Columbus Day October 12 Thanksgiving Day November 26 A Message from the Director . . .