Library News
Dollar For Dollar, An Investment That Pays
TURNERS FALLS – As headlines from across the world offer new despairs daily, it can feel audacious to work on a project as hopeful as building a new library.
In a year of economic turbulence and political chaos, making investments in the community may seem risky. But libraries are uniquely positioned to support their communities in times of flux, and a new building would allow the Montague Public Libraries to better meet community needs and simultaneously drive economic activity in Montague.
In the last 30 years, as technology revolutionized the field and several periods of economic uncertainty rocked American stability, libraries have embraced change to support their communities. From adding free computer labs and technology classes and leaving behind the card catalog in the ’90s, to offering job-seeker workshops and resumé counseling during the Great Recession, to providing curbside pickup and virtual storytime, book clubs, and fitness classes during the bleakest moments of the COVID pandemic, libraries have proven over and over their ability to pivot and transform to help people.
Now, more than ever, the Montague Public Libraries are meeting community members where they are and providing them with what they need. Yes, we still provide curated collections of books and movies, but we also lend out a power washer, a digital film scanner, and a metal detector. The libraries are helping residents cut their costs by purchasing expensive but useful items for our Library of Things Collection.
Just as our collections have gotten more varied, so have the programs and services that the libraries provide.
At the Millers Falls Branch Library, patrons stop in for fresh produce, frozen meat, and canned goods from the Branch’s food pantry to supplement their SNAP benefits, and enjoy pizza with their neighbors at the monthly movie night.
At the Montague Center Branch Library, the community comes together to listen to local authors read their books, to view their neighbors’ artwork at gallery receptions, and to preserve history by recording the stories of Montague Center elders.
And at the Carnegie Library – despite its many limitations – families squeeze into the children’s room to play with Legos and engage with other kids their age, patrons who don’t have computers at home read their email, teens participate in epic D&D campaigns, and folks looking to escape extreme temperatures relax into armchairs and read the paper without having to buy anything.
We also offer social services counseling, technology assistance, bilingual early literacy programs, craft programs, and sensory-friendly hours.
These materials, services, and programs cost money, but they are an investment that repays richly. The Maine State Library developed a “Library Use Value Calculator” that allows public libraries to input their circulation, visitation, and program attendance statistics to calculate their return on investment to the public. Using this tool, we’ve found that for every $1.00 taxpayers spend supporting the Montague Public Libraries, the libraries provide $9.90 in value to the community.
Montague now has the opportunity to add even more value to their community. If residents invest in a 21st-century space, the libraries will repay that investment more than tenfold – by providing value in the form of materials, programs, and services and by bolstering the local economy.
For example: the new library would feature three quiet study rooms where folks who usually work from home can host meetings, or work on project proposals. It’s likely that they might stop by the Shady Glen or Upper Bend for a coffee before they get to the library, or pop by the Discovery Center when they need a break.
The new library would have a community room that seats 100 people, where residents can attend free concerts, history lectures, or community meetings in the evenings. It’s likely that some of those attendees will stop by the Rendezvous, Harvey’s, or Cocina Lupita for a bite afterward.
And on a hot day, if the new library holds Bilingual Music and Movement outdoors, on the roof terrace, there’s a good chance that families will head over to the Country Creemee for ice cream afterwards, or stop by Unity Park to play.
A 2024 study by the Urban Libraries Council found that 31% of patrons who visited a central library went on to do another activity in the area after leaving the library. “Central libraries,” the Council concluded, “are therefore better seen as anchor tenants for downtowns, supporting adjacent businesses and reinforcing the library as an attraction unto itself, a destination rather than a pass-through.”
I don’t know what the future will hold for the economy or for this country, but I do know that an investment in a new main library is a long-term investment in supporting local families, local seniors, local teens, local working adults, local organizations, and local businesses.
By Caitlin Kelley, Director of the Montague Public Libraries.