Peters Library releases report
Peters Township Public Library said in its annual report, released Feb. 3, that it plans four renovation projects, all aimed toward making the library experience easier and more convenient for patrons.
The library said it plans on replacing its circulation desk, and adding new flooring in its lobby, multi-purpose room and stairwell. And lastly, the library plans on transforming its existing Technical Services Department into a public reading area and café, and modernizing the existing computer lab. In 2014 the library said 20,451 people used its computers.
In cooperation with Peters Township Community Television, the library plans on developing a virtual tour, the annual report said. It will be created and aired on the Peters Township cable channel and posted on the library’s website and its social media sites. No dates have been released for this.
In 2014, the library held nearly 1,300 programs for children, young adults and adults that were attended by 29,000 people. Notable events held by the library included the 13th Annual Taste of the Township, the library fundraiser; Origins of the Great War, 1914; Civil War 150! Women in the Civil War; Take Your Child to the Library Day, the Fall Animal Fair, and the release party for The Flame, the Peters Township High School literary magazine. The library’s author events included appearances by Kathleen George, who wrote “The Johnstown Girls”; Bob Cramner, a former Allegheny County commissioner who wrote “Demon of Brownsville Road”; and David R. Shumway, who wrote “Rock Star: the Making of Musical Icons from Elvis to Springsteen.”
Other statistics and highpoints from the report include:
• 349,550 in total circulation
• 192,826 visitors
• 23,960 cardholders
• Replacing Zinio with Flipster, which provides patrons easy access to popular magazines through the library website.
• Offering the Finch Robot, a small robot designed for computer science for students as young as 8, for checkout. The library is the first location in Pennsylvania to have a program lending Finch, which was designed by students at Carnegie Mellon University.
“Ongoing research by the Library Board Technology Committee will help to define how the library needs to develop existing technology and adapt new technology to meet the needs of the community,” the report said.