Washoe County Library System
Washoe County Library System is a county public library system based in Reno (Washoe County), Nevada, serving a legal service area of 508,759 residents through 12 library buildings and one bookmobile. Among profiled systems serving 500,000 to 999,999 residents, it ranks third for local government's share of operating revenue and records the ninth-smallest decline in physical checkouts since FY 2019, but ranks fifth-lowest for weekly open hours per outlet.
Among the 21 profiled systems in Nevada, it ranks second for population served, second for total visits, second for physical checkouts and second for operating spending, but ranks third-lowest for print volumes per resident. Against the median system of its size class, it records 43% fewer paid staff per resident and 42% fewer public computers per resident.
Washoe County against the 61 systems of its size class
Washoe County in numbers, FY 2024
- Visits
- 755,203
- Physical checkouts
- 1,342,960
- …of children's materials
- 678,440
- Electronic checkouts
- 1,005,285
- …of e-books
- 433,430
- …of e-audio
- 447,968
- Registered users
- 219,859
- Program sessions
- 4,466
- Program attendance
- 68,729
- Print volumes
- 321,469
- Audio items (physical)
- 11,006
- Video items (physical)
- 31,554
- Public computers
- 187
- Public service hours, all outlets
- 21,408
- Paid staff (full-time equivalent)
- 118.9
- Operating spending
- $15.6 million
- …on books and other materials
- $1.2 million
- Overdue fines on print items
- not charged
Where Washoe County gets its operating money
Operating revenue came to $16.2 million, or $31.76 per resident. The local-government share sits 23 percentage points above the combined share for the 21 profiled systems in Nevada.
- Local government
- State
- Federal
- Other (fines, fees, gifts, grants)
County 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 Johnson County Library in Kansas.
| System | Based in | Residents | Visits per resident | Checkouts per resident | Spending per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greenville County Library System | Greenville, SC | 525,534 | 2.47 | 5.56 | $41.58 |
| Morris County Library | Whippany, NJ | 509,285 | 0.24 | 0.51 | $15.21 |
| Knox County Public Library System | Knoxville, TN | 500,669 | 2.07 | 4.34 | $30.08 |
| Pinal County Library District | Florence, AZ | 483,944 | 0.11 | 0.44 | $5.69 |
| Onondaga County Public Library | Syracuse, NY | 476,516 | 1.04 | 0.68 | $27.95 |
| Johnson County Library | Overland Park, KS | 474,776 | 3.94 | 10.93 | $114.39 |
Washoe County since FY 2019
Visits were 36% below the FY 2019 count of 1.2 million (size-class median: −30%). Physical checkouts moved 11% down over the same span.
- Visits
- Physical checkouts
Who comes to Washoe County programs
Programs for children up to age 11 drew 78% of all program attendance, and sessions averaged 15 people each.
Washoe County, building by building
The 12 buildings cover 214,916 square feet in total, 0.42 square feet per resident against a median of 0.45 for the size class. The largest building is Downtown Reno Library at 58,825 square feet; the smallest is Senior Center Library at 800. The longest hours are at South Valleys Library, 52.8 a week.
| Building | Type | Town | Hours a week | Floor area, sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Downtown Reno Library | Central library | Reno | 40.3 | 58,825 |
| Duncan-Traner Community Library | Branch | Reno | 11.9 | 3,200 |
| Gerlach Community Library | Branch | Gerlach | 2 | 2,053 |
| Incline Village Library | Branch | Incline Village | 45.1 | 10,700 |
| North Valleys Library | Branch | Reno | 42.8 | 9,178 |
| Northwest Reno Library | Branch | Reno | 50.8 | 28,364 |
| Senior Center Library | Branch | Reno | 18.9 | 800 |
| Sierra View Library | Branch | Reno | 44.8 | 28,280 |
| South Valleys Library | Branch | Reno | 52.8 | 17,500 |
| Spanish Springs Library | Branch | Sparks | 45.9 | 30,000 |
| Sparks Library | Branch | Sparks | 50.8 | 22,832 |
| Verdi Community Library | Branch | Verdi | 9.2 | 3,184 |
| Washoe County Bookmobile | Bookmobile | Reno | 12 |
Nearest in size within Nevada
- Henderson District Public Libraries · Henderson · 341,980 residents
- North Las Vegas Library District · North Las Vegas · 282,496 residents
- Las Vegas-Clark County Library District · Las Vegas · 1,721,851 residents
- Lyon County Library System · Yerington · 63,179 residents