Laredo Public Library
Laredo Public Library is a municipal public library system based in Laredo (Webb County), Texas, serving a legal service area of 257,602 residents through five library buildings and one bookmobile. Among the 122 profiled systems serving 250,000 to 499,999 residents, it ranks fourth for local government's share of operating revenue, but ranks ninth-lowest for physical checkouts per resident and tenth-lowest for public computers per resident.
By population served it is the 15th-largest of the 503 profiled systems in Texas. Against the median system of its size class, it records 48% less operating spending per resident and 47% fewer visits per resident.
Laredo against the 122 systems of its size class
Laredo in numbers, FY 2024
- Visits
- 302,477
- Physical checkouts
- 210,136
- …of children's materials
- 170,746
- Electronic checkouts
- 71,077
- …of e-books
- 28,661
- …of e-audio
- 34,140
- Registered users
- 120,311
- Program sessions
- 1,401
- Program attendance
- 53,462
- Print volumes
- 208,938
- Audio items (physical)
- 1,365
- Video items (physical)
- 24,019
- Public computers
- 77
- Public service hours, all outlets
- 12,914
- Paid staff (full-time equivalent)
- 48.4
- Operating spending
- $4.8 million
- …on books and other materials
- $561,504
- Overdue fines on print items
- charged
Where Laredo gets its operating money
Operating revenue came to $4.8 million, or $18.75 per resident. The local-government share sits 4 percentage points above the combined share for the 503 profiled systems in Texas.
- Local government
- State
- Federal
- Other (fines, fees, gifts, grants)
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 Salem Public Library in Oregon.
| System | Based in | Residents | Visits per resident | Checkouts per resident | Spending per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tempe Public Library | Tempe, AZ | 193,336 | 2.04 | 2.75 | $19.14 |
| Huntington Beach Public Library | Huntington Beach, CA | 192,503 | 3.41 | 4.56 | $30.19 |
| Glendale Library, Arts & Culture | Glendale, CA | 191,586 | 3.15 | 3.64 | $70.44 |
| Chattanooga Public Library | Chattanooga, TN | 187,030 | 1.81 | 3.93 | $42.86 |
| Newport News Public Library System | Newport News, VA | 185,082 | 1.71 | 2.03 | $33.07 |
| Salem Public Library | Salem, OR | 182,726 | 1.98 | 7.11 | $25.08 |
Laredo since FY 2019
Visits were 22% below the FY 2019 count of 387,946 (size-class median: −30%). Physical checkouts moved 3% down over the same span.
- Visits
- Physical checkouts
Who comes to Laredo programs
Programs for children up to age 11 drew 43% of all program attendance, and sessions averaged 38 people each.
Laredo, building by building
The five buildings cover 108,236 square feet in total, 0.42 square feet per resident against a median of 0.46 for the size class. The largest building is Laredo Public Library at 60,000 square feet; the smallest is Bruni Plaza Branch Library at 5,051. The longest hours are at Laredo Public Library, 59.9 a week.
| Building | Type | Town | Hours a week | Floor area, sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laredo Public Library | Central library | Laredo | 59.9 | 60,000 |
| Barbara Fasken Branch Library | Branch | Laredo | 45.9 | 8,034 |
| Bruni Plaza Branch Library | Branch | Laredo | 41.7 | 5,051 |
| Lamar Bruni Vergara Inner City Library | Branch | Laredo | 42.5 | 15,151 |
| Mos Branch Library | Branch | Laredo | 54.6 | 20,000 |
| Cyber Mobile | Bookmobile | Laredo | 8.5 |
Nearest in size within Texas
- Brownsville Public Library · Brownsville · 259,714 residents
- Irving Public Library · Irving · 254,373 residents
- Nicholson Memorial Library System · Garland · 243,470 residents
- Plano Public Library System · Plano · 290,190 residents