Pottawatomie Wabaunsee Regional Library
Pottawatomie Wabaunsee Regional Library is a multi-jurisdictional public library system based in St. Marys (Pottawatomie County), Kansas, serving a legal service area of 28,587 residents through eight library buildings. Among profiled systems serving 25,000 to 49,999 residents, it ranks first for public computers per resident and records the second-largest gain in physical checkouts since FY 2019.
Among the 294 profiled systems in Kansas, it ranks second for number of library buildings and second for public computers. Against the median system of its size class, it records only 39% of the visits per resident and 72% more program attendance per resident.
Pottawatomie Wabaunsee Regional against the 964 systems of its size class
Pottawatomie Wabaunsee Regional, building by building
The eight buildings cover 15,273 square feet in total, 0.53 square feet per resident against a median of 0.74 for the size class. The largest building is Pottawatomie Wabaunsee Regional Library at 6,000 square feet; the smallest is Alta Vista Mini Library at 405. The longest hours are at Pottawatomie Wabaunsee Regional Library, 49.5 a week.
| Building | Type | Town | Hours a week | Floor area, sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pottawatomie Wabaunsee Regional Library | Central library | St. Marys | 49.5 | 6,000 |
| Alma Branch Library | Branch | Alma | 36 | 3,330 |
| Alta Vista Mini Library | Branch | Alta Vista | 8 | 405 |
| Eskridge Branch Library | Branch | Eskridge | 32.5 | 2,300 |
| Harveyville Mini Library | Branch | Harveyville | 7.5 | 450 |
| Olsburg Mini Library | Branch | Olsburg | 7 | 448 |
| Onaga Branch Library | Branch | Onaga | 33.5 | 1,870 |
| Westmoreland Mini Library | Branch | Westmoreland | 15.5 | 470 |
Pottawatomie Wabaunsee Regional in numbers, FY 2024
- Visits
- 31,030
- Physical checkouts
- 97,578
- …of children's materials
- 52,029
- Electronic checkouts
- 12,912
- …of e-books
- 5,647
- …of e-audio
- 6,454
- Registered users
- 8,207
- Program sessions
- 518
- Program attendance
- 17,624
- Print volumes
- 75,123
- Audio items (physical)
- 815
- Video items (physical)
- 5,966
- Public computers
- 231
- Public service hours, all outlets
- 9,854
- Paid staff (full-time equivalent)
- 12.2
- Operating spending
- $806,293
- …on books and other materials
- $65,844
- Overdue fines on print items
- not charged
Where Pottawatomie Wabaunsee Regional gets its operating money
Operating revenue came to $741,017, or $25.92 per resident. The local-government share sits 9 percentage points above the combined share for the 288 profiled systems in Kansas.
- Local government
- State
- Federal
- Other (fines, fees, gifts, grants)
Pottawatomie Wabaunsee Regional since FY 2019
Visits were 26% below the FY 2019 count of 42,016 (size-class median: −28%). Physical checkouts moved 83% up over the same span.
- Visits
- Physical checkouts
Who comes to Pottawatomie Wabaunsee Regional programs
Programs for children up to age 11 drew 66% of all program attendance, and sessions averaged 34 people each.
Multi-jurisdictional 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 Frank L. Weyenberg Library in Wisconsin.
| System | Based in | Residents | Visits per resident | Checkouts per resident | Spending per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Everett Roehl Marshfield Public Library | Marshfield, WI | 29,035 | 3.45 | 7.78 | $59.37 |
| Matawan-Aberdeen Public Library | Matawan, NJ | 28,894 | 2.23 | 2.50 | $50.72 |
| Frank L. Weyenberg Library | Mequon, WI | 28,769 | 5.03 | 9.33 | $41.43 |
| Judge Armstrong Library | Natchez, MS | 28,746 | 1.84 | 0.97 | $14.40 |
| Pewaukee Public Library | Pewaukee, WI | 28,385 | 1.89 | 9.23 | $49.08 |
| Bitterroot Public Library | Hamilton, MT | 27,928 | 1.62 | 3.78 | $27.82 |
Nearest in size within Kansas
- Emporia Public Library · Emporia · 28,532 residents
- Dodge City Public Library · Dodge City · 27,514 residents
- Derby Public Library · Derby · 26,233 residents
- Dorothy Bramlage Public Library · Junction City · 35,047 residents