Aurora Public Library
Aurora Public Library is a municipal public library system based in Aurora (Arapahoe County), Colorado, serving a legal service area of 394,380 residents through seven library buildings and one bookmobile. Among the 101 profiled systems in Colorado, it ranks fifth for population served, but ranks second-lowest for print volumes per resident and second-lowest for paid staff per resident.
Among the 108 profiled systems serving 250,000 to 499,999 residents, it records the seventh-steepest decline in visits since FY 2019. Against the median system of its size class, it records only 41% of the public computers per resident and only 49% of the operating spending per resident.
Aurora against the 122 systems of its size class
Aurora, building by building
The seven buildings cover 115,297 square feet in total, 0.29 square feet per resident against a median of 0.46 for the size class. The largest building is Aurora Public Library Central Library at 53,800 square feet; the smallest is Hoffman Heights Library at 3,196. The longest hours, 48 a week, are shared by seven buildings.
| Building | Type | Town | Hours a week | Floor area, sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aurora Public Library Central Library | Central library | Aurora | 48 | 53,800 |
| Chambers Plaza Library | Branch | Aurora | 48 | 3,844 |
| Hoffman Heights Library | Branch | Aurora | 48 | 3,196 |
| Iliff Square Library | Branch | Aurora | 48 | 3,196 |
| Martin Luther King Jr. Library | Branch | Aurora | 48 | 10,325 |
| Mission Viejo Library | Branch | Aurora | 48 | 17,502 |
| Tallyns Reach Library | Branch | Aurora | 48 | 23,434 |
| Aurora Public Library Bookmobile | Bookmobile | Aurora | 88 |
Aurora in numbers, FY 2024
- Visits
- 561,286
- Physical checkouts
- 745,142
- …of children's materials
- 447,389
- Electronic checkouts
- 372,411
- …of e-books
- 153,757
- …of e-audio
- 170,861
- Registered users
- 300,721
- Program sessions
- 3,287
- Program attendance
- 64,922
- Print volumes
- 218,234
- Audio items (physical)
- 9,037
- Video items (physical)
- 16,186
- Public computers
- 99
- Public service hours, all outlets
- 18,528
- Paid staff (full-time equivalent)
- 89.0
- Operating spending
- $7 million
- …on books and other materials
- $746,064
- Overdue fines on print items
- not charged
Where Aurora gets its operating money
Operating revenue came to $7.2 million, or $18.33 per resident. The local-government share sits 7 percentage points above the combined share for the 101 profiled systems in Colorado.
- Local government
- State
- Federal
- Other (fines, fees, gifts, grants)
Aurora since FY 2019
Visits were 53% below the FY 2019 count of 1.2 million (size-class median: −30%). Physical checkouts moved 4% down over the same span.
- Visits
- Physical checkouts
Who comes to Aurora programs
Programs for children up to age 11 drew 48% of all program attendance, and sessions averaged 20 people each.
Municipal libraries of similar size in other states
All six of these systems record more visits per resident than this one. The highest checkout rate in the group belongs to Oakland Public Library in California.
| System | Based in | Residents | Visits per resident | Checkouts per resident | Spending per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virginia Beach Public Library | Virginia Beach, VA | 458,028 | 1.99 | 3.20 | $46.01 |
| Oakland Public Library | Oakland, CA | 449,189 | 3.02 | 4.75 | $105.99 |
| Greensboro Public Library | Greensboro, NC | 435,509 | 2.50 | 2.53 | $25.49 |
| Arlington Public Library System | Arlington, TX | 398,431 | 1.87 | 3.01 | $25.83 |
| Wichita Public Library | Wichita, KS | 396,119 | 1.63 | 2.61 | $31.14 |
| Anaheim Public Library | Anaheim, CA | 340,160 | 1.78 | 2.40 | $46.94 |
Nearest in size within Colorado
- Douglas County Libraries · Castle Rock · 383,911 residents
- Rangeview Library District · Thornton · 406,718 residents
- High Plains Library District · Greeley · 315,735 residents
- Arapahoe Library District · Englewood · 277,382 residents