Omaha Public Library
Omaha Public Library is a municipal public library system based in Omaha (Douglas County), Nebraska, serving a legal service area of 571,013 residents through 14 library buildings. Among the 221 profiled systems in Nebraska, it leads on population served, total visits, physical checkouts and operating spending, but ranks last for print volumes per resident and second-lowest for paid staff per resident.
Against the median system of its size class, it records 33% fewer public computers per resident and 24% less operating spending per resident.
Omaha against the 61 systems of its size class
Omaha, building by building
The 14 buildings cover 316,290 square feet in total, 0.55 square feet per resident against a median of 0.45 for the size class. The largest building is Library Administrative Building (Lab) at 100,000 square feet; the smallest is Genealogy Room at 3,528. The longest hours, 64 a week, are shared by four buildings.
| Building | Type | Town | Hours a week | Floor area, sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Library Administrative Building (Lab) | Central library | Omaha | – | 100,000 |
| A V Sorensen Branch Library | Branch | Omaha | 60 | 6,495 |
| Benson Branch Library | Branch | Omaha | 60 | 20,300 |
| Bess Johnson Elkhorn Branch Library | Branch | Omaha | 60 | 7,893 |
| Charles B Washington Branch Library | Branch | Omaha | 60 | 16,675 |
| Downtown Branch | Branch | Omaha | 64 | 30,000 |
| Florence Branch Library | Branch | Omaha | 60 | 7,412 |
| Genealogy Room | Branch | Omaha | 64 | 3,528 |
| Millard Branch Library | Branch | Omaha | 64 | 31,360 |
| Milton R Abrahams Branch Library | Branch | Omaha | 64 | 20,450 |
| Saddlebrook Branch Library | Branch | Omaha | 60 | 14,155 |
| South Omaha Library | Branch | Omaha | 56 | 21,050 |
| W Clarke Swanson Branch Library | Branch | Omaha | 60 | 25,495 |
| Willa Cather Branch Library | Branch | Omaha | 60 | 11,477 |
A dash marks a value not reported for FY 2024.
Omaha in numbers, FY 2024
- Visits
- 1,321,468
- Physical checkouts
- 2,838,076
- …of children's materials
- 1,600,746
- Electronic checkouts
- 1,233,710
- …of e-books
- 495,520
- …of e-audio
- 556,036
- Registered users
- 245,012
- Program sessions
- 2,771
- Program attendance
- 82,165
- Print volumes
- 586,501
- Audio items (physical)
- 31,055
- Video items (physical)
- 53,462
- Public computers
- 241
- Public service hours, all outlets
- 41,184
- Paid staff (full-time equivalent)
- 171.9
- Operating spending
- $20.7 million
- …on books and other materials
- $2.1 million
- Overdue fines on print items
- not charged
Where Omaha gets its operating money
Operating revenue came to $21.9 million, or $38.37 per resident. The local-government share is close to the combined share for the 221 profiled systems in Nebraska. No federal operating revenue was reported.
- Local government
- State
- Federal
- Other (fines, fees, gifts, grants)
Omaha since FY 2019
Visits were 22% below the FY 2019 count of 1.7 million (size-class median: −30%). Physical checkouts moved 17% down over the same span.
- Visits
- Physical checkouts
Who comes to Omaha programs
Programs for children up to age 11 drew 91% of all program attendance, and sessions averaged 30 people each.
Municipal libraries of similar size in other states
Of these six systems, one records more visits per resident than this one. The highest checkout rate in the group belongs to District of Columbia Public Library in the District of Columbia.
| System | Based in | Residents | Visits per resident | Checkouts per resident | Spending per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia Public Library | Washington, DC | 702,250 | 4.81 | 5.46 | $121.10 |
| El Paso Public Library | El Paso, TX | 678,958 | 1.05 | 1.50 | $15.67 |
| Detroit Public Library | Detroit, MI | 639,111 | 0.54 | 0.27 | $48.30 |
| Milwaukee Public Library | Milwaukee, WI | 577,895 | 2.00 | 1.86 | $59.20 |
| Enoch Pratt Free Library | Baltimore, MD | 576,498 | 2.07 | 2.18 | $92.89 |
| Mesa Public Library | Mesa, AZ | 524,892 | 1.24 | 3.04 | $16.78 |
Nearest in size within Nebraska
- Lincoln City Libraries · Lincoln · 326,716 residents
- Bellevue Public Library · Bellevue · 63,922 residents
- Grand Island Public Library · Grand Island · 52,622 residents
- Kearney Public Library · Kearney · 34,362 residents