Library usage in Wellington County continues to climb, county councillors learned last month.
Councillor Dennis Lever, reporting for absent committee chairman Mark MacKenzie, called the statistics for the past April “Very significant.”
In almost every category of activity at the libraries there was an increase.
The system-wide circulation of books, CDs, DVDs magazines and audio books went to 77,140 from 77,055 the previous year.
The use of eBooks was particularly high, as they gain in popularity. In April this year there were 1,759 borrowed, compared to 606 in the same period last year.
The only category that decreased was the one where the county had to look outside its boundaries for a book. Inter library loans went from 48 requests to only six.
Internet usage at libraries also climbed. This April there were 4,837 users in county libraries, compared to 4,568 in the same period last year.
Wireless internet users also exploded. There were 12,990 this April, compared to 5,389 in 2011.
Program attendance also climbed, with 3,094 taking part in some library activity in April, compared to 2,769 the previous year.
Data base usage also went to 8,393 users from 6,629.
Harriston progress
The June 28 reopening of the Harriston library is on schedule, chief librarian Murray McCabe reported.
He provided a list of work that had been completed, including work on drywall, painting, flooring installation, shelving installation, completion of the elevator installation and the front stairs, curbs and sidewalks, and site grading for landscaping.
Occupancy for the new building was set for the first week of June.
McCabe said there were nine change orders to the work over the course of the nearly two years of construction, and that came at a cost of $126,267.
Fergus library
The library board was planning to meet with its design committee and architects Paul Sapounzi and Steve Vurrows of VG Architects (formerly Ventin Group) to discuss plans for the new library.
McCabe also informed the committee and county council the Ontario Library Association Awards was accepting submissions for library architectural and design transformation this spring, and the county was submitting its work on the Mount Forest, Harriston and Elora libraries for recognition.
