Fletcher Free
Fletcher Free is a municipal public library system based in Burlington (Chittenden County), Vermont, serving a legal service area of 44,649 residents through two library buildings. Among the 134 profiled systems in Vermont, it leads on population served, total visits, physical checkouts and operating spending.
Against the median system of its size class, it records 32% fewer public computers per resident and 42% more operating spending per resident.
Fletcher against the 964 systems of its size class
Fletcher, building by building
The longest hours are at Fletcher Free, 58 a week.
| Building | Type | Town | Hours a week | Floor area, sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fletcher Free | Central library | Burlington | 58 | 48,348 |
| Fletcher Free-New North End Branch | Branch | Burlington | 20 | – |
A dash marks a value not reported for FY 2024.
Fletcher in numbers, FY 2024
- Visits
- 168,610
- Physical checkouts
- 232,553
- …of children's materials
- 101,451
- Registered users
- 13,329
- Program sessions
- 1,005
- Program attendance
- 16,741
- Print volumes
- 116,944
- Audio items (physical)
- 4,208
- Video items (physical)
- 7,062
- Public computers
- 20
- Public service hours, all outlets
- 4,056
- Paid staff (full-time equivalent)
- 23.5
- Operating spending
- $2.7 million
- …on books and other materials
- $240,139
- Overdue fines on print items
- not charged
Where Fletcher gets its operating money
Operating revenue came to $2.9 million, or $64.77 per resident. The local-government share sits 20 percentage points above the combined share for the 134 profiled systems in Vermont.
- Local government
- State
- Federal
- Other (fines, fees, gifts, grants)
Fletcher since FY 2019
Visits were 33% below the FY 2019 count of 250,380 (size-class median: −28%). Physical checkouts moved 35% down over the same span.
- Visits
- Physical checkouts
Who comes to Fletcher programs
Programs for children up to age 11 drew 78% of all program attendance, and sessions averaged 17 people each.
Municipal libraries of similar size in other states
Of these six systems, three record more visits per resident than this one. The highest checkout rate in the group belongs to Lake Oswego Public Library in Oregon.
| System | Based in | Residents | Visits per resident | Checkouts per resident | Spending per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Oswego Public Library | Lake Oswego, OR | 44,758 | 4.06 | 14.46 | $118.78 |
| Salem Public Library | Salem, MA | 44,722 | 2.43 | 5.87 | $42.97 |
| Canyon Area Library | Canyon, TX | 44,639 | 0.71 | 1.15 | $10.43 |
| Mount Laurel Library | Mount Laurel, NJ | 44,633 | 4.05 | 6.72 | $58.80 |
| Littleton/Bemis Public Library | Littleton, CO | 44,451 | 4.60 | 9.55 | $78.99 |
| Superior Public Library | Superior, WI | 44,435 | 2.42 | 3.96 | $35.93 |
Nearest in size within Vermont
- South Burlington · S. Burlington · 20,488 residents
- Kellogg-Hubbard · Montpelier · 18,225 residents
- Burnham Memorial · Colchester · 17,570 residents
- Aldrich Public · Barre · 16,435 residents