Download - The Library's "Place"
The Library’s “Place”
Lucy Hart Peaden | Dr. Ron Bergquist | INLS 843: Public Libraries Seminar | 26 February 2010
Image from http://librisdesign.org/docs/SiteSelectionLibraries.pdf
A university is just a group of
buildings gathered around a
library.--Shelby Foote Is a community
just a group of buildings
gathered around a library?
Does location matter?
Agenda
• A Brief History• Themes throughout
History and Summary Points
• What’s your opinion?• Library Spatial
Research• Geographic Information
Systems (GIS)• Closing Thoughts• Reading Suggestions
A Brief History of Public Library Locations1800s
Early 1900s
1920s
1930s & 1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s and beyond…?
– emergence; prestigious structure in elite neighborhood
– Carnegie; library building expiration date; libraries a mile apart from each other
– Joseph Wheeler; downtown; location first (then the rest), no old buildings, rent
– Great Depression; “superbranches”; post-WWII; suburbia; automobiles
– Library Services Act (1956); more ALA involvement
– War on Poverty, Civil Rights Movement, counterculture; Library Services and Construction Act (1964)
– more diversified; focus on ethnic service centers; Public Library Mission Statement and Its Imperatives for Service
– less social reform; more research about location; libraries without walls
– less construction because of economy; focus on location
– Internet; creative spaces; PLGDB
Themes throughout History and Summary Points
1800s
Early 1900s
1920s
1930s & 1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s and beyond…?
• discussion influenced by social norms of the day
• no clear consensus; ebb and flow
1) location is a major determinant of use2) optimal location = accessible to
greatest number of users3) retail site selection methods are
considered valuable by librarians
What’s your opinion?
• downtown vs. near school, park, etc?
• stand-alone building vs. part of larger structure (such as mall)
• parking lots vs. side street parking
• old vs. new structures
Library Spatial Research
• Past research has found that distance is the most important determinant in library use.– distance users live from the library: most usually
live within two miles• Shaughnessy (1970): “a distance of ten to fifteen
miles or 20 to 30 minutes of travel time marks the practical limit of a central library’s range.”
—distance between facilities—market area distance range—distance and elasticity of demand—distance and quality or attractiveness of service—distance and library effectiveness
Library Spatial Research
• Demographic and consumer behavior patterns– non-demographic factors
• accessibility (user proximity to the library)
• accessibility (mode of travel)• shopping patterns• communication
– non-demographic user characteristics• lifestyle• social roles
Library Spatial Research• Demographic user and potential user characteristics
– univariate studies• degree of urbanization and population density• income• age• political activity
– multivariate studies• education, life cycle, urban residence• education, sex, age• education, age• education, income, occupation• education, income, family life cycle• education, occupation
• Race• Re-siting, closing, and opening
Geographic Information System Use
• simplifies the process of analyzing market area data
• GIS: – produces geographic references such as address and
voting district– maintains and is capable of calculating the
relationship among geographic features– indentifies and analyzes library market profiles
– capable of providing descriptions, explanations, predictions and judgements• community analysis, market area profile, land selection
http://www.geolib.org/PLGDB.cfm
Closing Thoughts
• Does location matter?– Is the idea that the location makes or
breaks the effectiveness of the library too doom and gloom?
• How can librarians be active players?
• What are some approaches you think are correct? Which ones are incorrect?
Additional Reading• The County of Fresno. (2003). The Heart of a Community: Its Public Library. Meeting Library Needs for Fresno
County Residents: 2002-2020. Fresno County, CA: Fresno County Board of Supervisors.• Koontz, C.M. (2007). A History of Location of U.S. Public Libraries Within Community Place and Space: Evolving
Implications for the Library’s Mission of Equitable Service. Public Library Quarterly, 26 (1/2). doi: 10.1300/J118v26n01_05
• ---. (1997). Library Facility Siting and Location Handbook. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.• ---. (2001). The Location of Your Library Building: Why It Is Important, and How to Do it, Using GIS (Geographic
Information System Software). In M.-F. Bisbrouk (ed.), Library Buildings in a Changing Environment (pp. 141-153). München: K.G. Saur.
• ---. (1992). Public Library Site Evaluation and Location: Past and Present Market-Based Modeling Tools for the Future. Library & Information Science Research, 14 (4), 379-409.
• ---. (1994). Retail Location Theory: Can It Help Solve the Public Library Location Dilemma? In J. M. Greiner (ed.), Research Issues in Public Librarianship (pp. 171-181). Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
• ---. (2002). Where do Our Library Customers Live (and Why Should We Care?). Retrieved from http://www.geolib.org/pdf/MLSGeoMarketSize.pdf
• Marcum, Deanna B. (1996). Redefining Community through the Public Library. Daedalus, 125 (4, Books, Bricks, and
Bytes), 191-205. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/20027393.• WBDG Staff. (2009). Public Library. Retrieved from http://www.wbdg.org/design/public_library.php