the library's "place"
DESCRIPTION
This PowerPoint was made for Dr. Bergquist's Public Libraries Seminar (INLS 843) at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the spring of 2010.TRANSCRIPT
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