Established 1942 Phone +1 425-369-3200 Circulation 21,800,000 items | Size 4.1 million items Budget 108.4 million USD | |
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Location King County, Washington Branches 48 + 1 Traveling Library Access requirements Residence in King County except the city of Seattle and the towns of Hunts Point and Yarrow Point Population served 1,969,722 (Metropolitan King County) Address Headquarters, 960 Newport Way Northwest, Issaquah, WA 98027, United States Hours Closed now Monday9AM–5PMTuesday9AM–5PMWednesday9AM–5PMThursday9AM–5PMFriday9AM–5PMSaturdayClosedSundayClosed Profiles | ||
The King County Library System (KCLS) is a library system serving the residents of King County, Washington, United States. Headquartered in Issaquah, Washington, KCLS is currently the busiest library in the United States, circulating 22.4 million items in 2010. It consists of 48 libraries, a Traveling Library Center, a mobile TechLab, and the ABC Express children’s library van. KCLS offers a collection of more than 4.1 million items, including books, periodicals, newspapers, audio and videotapes, films, CDs, DVDs and extensive online resources. All KCLS libraries offer free Wi-Fi connections.
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History
The library system began in 1942 when voters in King County established the King County Rural Library District in order to provide library services to people in “rural” areas with no easy access to city libraries. Funding for the library system was provided from the property tax base of unincorporated areas, and from contracts with cities and towns for the provision of library services. Funding measures for the system passed in 1966, 1977, 1980, 1988, 2002, 2004, and 2010. Property taxes account for 94% of revenue today. The KCLS budget for 2012 is $84.8 million.
KCLS extends access privileges to residents of its service area, which includes all unincorporated areas of King County as well as residents of every city in the county except Hunts Point, and Yarrow Point. Residents of Seattle – which maintains its own library system – are allowed access to KCLS collections under reciprocal borrowing agreements between KCLS and Seattle's libraries. KCLS also extends reciprocal borrowing privileges to residents of many other library systems in Western and North Central Washington. The cities of Hunts Point and Yarrow Point do not have library service at all.
Under a $172 million capital bond passed in 2004, the King County Library system is rebuilding, renovating, and expanding most of its existing libraries, as well as building new libraries.
KCLS has annexed the city of Renton's public library system, the result of a vote by the city's residents in February 2010. This library system includes a 22,500-square-foot (2,090 m2) library branch built completely over the Cedar River.
In 2011, KCLS won the Gale/Library Journal "Library of the Year" award.
Services
KCLS provides several community services King County and Seattle Public Library patrons including participation in Book Clubs, access to Information Technology such as Computer Reservations, Homework Help for kids and teens, Interlibrary Loans, access to Meeting Rooms, Museum Passes, Community Newsletters, Personalized Recommendation, and opportunities to meet with authors. KCLS is an integral part of the county's history and culture, and the state of Washington overall by bringing people together in a shared space to learn, study, and share knowledge and experiences
Facilities
KCLS consists of 48 branches, Traveling Library Center, ABC Express Vans, mobile TechLab, and a service center located in Issaquah that houses the library's administrative offices.