Jacksonville Public Library
Jacksonville Public Library is a multi-jurisdictional public library system based in Jacksonville (Duval County), Florida, serving a legal service area of 1,062,145 residents through 21 library buildings. Among the 62 profiled systems in Florida, it ranks first for print volumes, third for physical checkouts, fifth for population served and sixth for operating spending.
Among profiled systems serving 1 million or more residents, it ranks fourth for library floor space per resident, seventh for print volumes per resident and eighth for public computers per resident and records the seventh-smallest decline in physical checkouts since FY 2019, but ranks tenth-lowest for program attendance per resident. Against the median system of its size class, it records 27% more physical checkouts per resident.
Jacksonville against the 35 systems of its size class
Jacksonville, building by building
The 21 buildings cover 820,732 square feet in total, 0.77 square feet per resident against a median of 0.39 for the size class. The largest building is Jacksonville Public Library-Main Library at 323,110 square feet; the smallest is Westbrook Branch at 3,477. The longest hours, 57.1 a week, are shared by five buildings.
| Building | Type | Town | Hours a week | Floor area, sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville Public Library-Main Library | Central library | Jacksonville | 51.4 | 323,110 |
| Argyle Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 45.7 | 15,033 |
| Beaches Branch | Branch | Neptune Beach | 45.7 | 24,606 |
| Brentwood Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 45.7 | 9,269 |
| Brown Eastside Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 45.7 | 4,142 |
| Charles Webb Wesconnett Regional Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 57.1 | 27,299 |
| Dallas Graham Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 45.2 | 8,147 |
| Highlands Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 57.1 | 35,327 |
| Mandarin Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 45.7 | 26,722 |
| Maxville Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 57.1 | 9,164 |
| Murray Hill Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 45.7 | 7,315 |
| Olga L. Bradham and Etta L. Brooks Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 45.7 | 27,459 |
| Pablo Creek Regional Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 57.1 | 40,619 |
| Regency Square Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 45.7 | 26,976 |
| San Marco Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 45.7 | 13,112 |
| South Mandarin Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 45.7 | 25,132 |
| Southeast Regional Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 57.1 | 54,881 |
| University Park Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 45.7 | 76,401 |
| West Regional | Branch | Jacksonviile | 45.7 | 50,010 |
| Westbrook Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 45.7 | 3,477 |
| Willowbranch Branch | Branch | Jacksonville | 45.1 | 12,531 |
Jacksonville in numbers, FY 2024
- Visits
- 2,218,418
- Physical checkouts
- 3,831,524
- Registered users
- 354,374
- Program sessions
- 11,629
- Program attendance
- 138,958
- Print volumes
- 1,585,412
- Audio items (physical)
- 76,819
- Video items (physical)
- 97,391
- Public computers
- 936
- Public service hours, all outlets
- 53,092
- Paid staff (full-time equivalent)
- 319.0
- Operating spending
- $40.4 million
- …on books and other materials
- $4.8 million
- Overdue fines on print items
- not charged
Where Jacksonville gets its operating money
Operating revenue came to $42.4 million, or $39.94 per resident. The local-government share is close to the combined share for the 62 profiled systems in Florida. No federal operating revenue was reported.
- Local government
- State
- Federal
- Other (fines, fees, gifts, grants)
Jacksonville since FY 2019
Visits were 32% below the FY 2019 count of 3.3 million (size-class median: −34%). Physical checkouts moved 3% down over the same span.
- Visits
- Physical checkouts
Who comes to Jacksonville programs
Programs for children up to age 11 drew 72% of all program attendance, and sessions averaged 12 people each.
Multi-jurisdictional 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 Fairfax County Public Library in Virginia.
| System | Based in | Residents | Visits per resident | Checkouts per resident | Spending per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sacramento Public Library | Sacramento, CA | 1,490,915 | 1.35 | 2.84 | $38.30 |
| Fairfax County Public Library | Fairfax, VA | 1,169,440 | 2.75 | 7.09 | $40.63 |
| Prince William Public Libraries | Prince William, VA | 525,441 | 1.66 | 3.32 | $44.93 |
| Great River Regional Library | St. Cloud, MN | 515,855 | 2.19 | 4.53 | $19.03 |
| West Georgia Regional Library | Carrollton, GA | 510,050 | 1.34 | 2.06 | $16.52 |
| Sonoma County Library | Rohnert Park, CA | 478,152 | 2.98 | 5.72 | $87.04 |
Nearest in size within Florida
- Palm Beach County Library System · West Palm Beach · 1,007,170 residents
- Pinellas Public Library Cooperative · Clearwater · 946,776 residents
- Polk County Library Cooperative · Bartow · 822,769 residents
- Lee County Library System · Fort Myers · 779,221 residents