Pinellas Public Library Cooperative
Pinellas Public Library Cooperative is a multi-jurisdictional public library system based in Clearwater (Pinellas County), Florida, serving a legal service area of 946,776 residents through 26 library buildings and one bookmobile. Among the 55 profiled systems serving 500,000 to 999,999 residents, it records the second-steepest decline in physical checkouts since FY 2019.
Among the 62 profiled systems in Florida, it ranks third for print volumes, fourth for number of library buildings, fifth for total visits and fifth for physical checkouts. Against the median system of its size class, it records 64% more program attendance per resident and 28% more print volumes per resident.
Pinellas against the 61 systems of its size class
Pinellas since FY 2019
Visits were 42% below the FY 2019 count of 4.1 million (size-class median: −30%). Physical checkouts moved 63% down over the same span.
- Visits
- Physical checkouts
Who comes to Pinellas programs
Programs for children up to age 11 drew 44% of all program attendance, and sessions averaged 21 people each.
Pinellas in numbers, FY 2024
- Visits
- 2,371,595
- Physical checkouts
- 3,362,249
- Registered users
- 474,589
- Program sessions
- 13,806
- Program attendance
- 285,145
- Print volumes
- 1,497,477
- Audio items (physical)
- 94,028
- Video items (physical)
- 209,139
- Public computers
- 721
- Paid staff (full-time equivalent)
- 399.3
- Operating spending
- $39.5 million
- …on books and other materials
- $3.4 million
- Overdue fines on print items
- not charged
Where Pinellas gets its operating money
Operating revenue came to $42.6 million, or $45.03 per resident. The local-government share is close to the combined share for the 62 profiled systems in Florida.
- Local government
- State
- Federal
- Other (fines, fees, gifts, grants)
Pinellas, building by building
The largest building is Largo Public Library at 90,300 square feet; the smallest is Friends Branch Dunedin Public Library at 561. The longest hours are at East Branch Library, 57.7 a week.
| Building | Type | Town | Hours a week | Floor area, sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beach Branch Library | Branch | Clearwater | 28.6 | 1,670 |
| Childs Park Branch Library | Branch | St. Petersburg | 33 | 1,200 |
| Clearwater Public Library System | Branch | Clearwater | 44.2 | 90,000 |
| Countryside Branch Library | Branch | Clearwater | 49.3 | 22,470 |
| Dunedin Public Library | Branch | Dunedin | 52.7 | 38,000 |
| East Branch Library | Branch | Clearwater | 57.7 | 25,000 |
| East Lake Community Library | Branch | Palm Harbor | 49.2 | 8,900 |
| Friends Branch Dunedin Public Library | Branch | Dunedin | 19.1 | 561 |
| Gulf Beaches Public Library | Branch | Madeira Beach | 50.1 | 10,000 |
| Gulfport Public Library | Branch | Gulfport | 49.4 | 12,000 |
| Johnson Branch Library | Branch | St. Petersburg | 49.3 | 14,200 |
| Largo Public Library | Branch | Largo | 56 | 90,300 |
| Mirror Lake Branch | Branch | St. Petersburg | 49.3 | 13,722 |
| North Branch Library | Branch | St. Petersburg | 49.1 | 10,900 |
| North Greenwood Branch Library | Branch | Clearwater | 46.2 | 7,352 |
| Oldsmar Public Library | Branch | Oldsmar | – | 19,800 |
| Palm Harbor Library | Branch | Palm Harbor | 50.8 | 26,190 |
| Pinellas Park Public Library | Branch | Pinellas Park | 54.3 | 31,283 |
| Pinellas Talking Book Library | Branch | Clearwater | – | – |
| Safety Harbor Library | Branch | Safety Harbor | 55.1 | 24,400 |
| Seminole Community Library | Branch | Seminole | – | 52,000 |
| South Branch Library | Branch | St. Petersburg | 49.7 | 13,500 |
| St. Pete Beach Public Library | Branch | St. Pete Beach | 48 | 8,200 |
| Tarpon Springs Library | Branch | Tarpon Springs | 50.9 | 20,000 |
| West St. Petersburg Community Library | Branch | St. Petersburg | 52.7 | 50,000 |
| Largo Library Bookmobile | Bookmobile | Largo | 40 |
A dash marks a value not reported for FY 2024.
Multi-jurisdictional libraries of similar size in other states
Of these six systems, two record more visits per resident than this one. The highest checkout rate in the group belongs to Santa Clara County Library in California.
| System | Based in | Residents | Visits per resident | Checkouts per resident | Spending per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Clara County Library | Campbell, CA | 456,355 | 5.40 | 17.73 | $147.69 |
| Live Oak Public Libraries | Savannah, GA | 450,821 | 1.41 | 1.72 | $25.90 |
| Pioneer Library System | Norman, OK | 422,056 | 2.37 | 3.77 | $54.96 |
| Solano County Library | Fairfield, CA | 420,393 | 1.83 | 3.56 | $60.66 |
| Huntsville-Madison County Public Library | Huntsville, AL | 403,565 | 3.25 | 6.29 | $20.26 |
| Mobile Public Library | Mobile, AL | 371,984 | 2.09 | 3.12 | $30.22 |
Nearest in size within Florida
- Palm Beach County Library System · West Palm Beach · 1,007,170 residents
- Jacksonville Public Library · Jacksonville · 1,062,145 residents
- Polk County Library Cooperative · Bartow · 822,769 residents
- Lee County Library System · Fort Myers · 779,221 residents