The State of the Library, 2022
Circulation
In 2022, the number of books, eBooks, audiobooks, large print books, etc. borrowed by our community grew by 6% to a total of 541,468 checkouts system-wide, including:
- Bowling Green: 358,236 (^5%)
- Walbridge: 46,167 (^10%)
- Bookmobile & Outreach: 12,297 (^49%)
- Wood County Jail Library: 6,524 (^21%)
- eMedia & Digital Content: 118,244 (^4%)
Cardholders: 22,843
The library owns a collection of 171,502 items across four locations.
- Items Added in 2022: 14,118
All library locations cumulatively saw 125,117 total visitors (a 49% increase), with an average of 2,406 visitors per week.
Events
The library offered 745 programs and events over the course of 2022. These programs and events were attended by 20,084 people (a 66% increase).
2022 Highlights
- The Foundation's Novel Night was held in-person and raised over $129,000 for the purchase of new books, audiobooks, eBooks, large print books, picture books, and more.
- Author visits like those with Danny Trejo, Carole Lindstrom & Michaela Goade, Robin Yocum, and Raúl the Third were met with excitement and large crowds.
- Our Connect Magazine now has content featuring a more comprehensive list of programming for all ages, plus information on ways to support your library.
- Partnerships with the community took many different forms, from events to social media collaborations.
- Over 1,600 children explored Oceans of Possibilities in the 2022 Summer Reading Program.
- Over 900 entries were submitted to our Winter Reading Program, Travel Through Pages.
- We were out and about around Wood County with Outreach & Bookmobile services, going to more schools, learning centers, childcare facilities, and senior living facilities than ever before.
2022 Revenue
| Source: | Amount: | Percentage: |
| State Public Library Fund | $1,937,501 | 58.39% |
| Local Levy | $1,123,863 | 33.87% |
| Fees, Misc. | $77,551 | 2.34% |
| Foundation & Friends | $179,136 | 5.40% |
| Total | $3,318,051 |
2022 Expenditures
| Category: | Amount: | Percentage: |
| Personnel | $1,760,416 | 61.26% |
| Supplies | $44,238 | 1.54% |
| Services | $514,585 | 17.91% |
| New Materials | $435,732 | 15.16% |
| FFE & Technology | $102,757 | 3.58% |
| Other | $16,040 | 0.56% |
| Total | $2,873,768 |
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- 0.8 mill, 5-year levy passed in November 2010 with 58% approval.
- Levy RENEWED for 6 years in November 2014 with 70% approval.
- Levy RENEWED for 6 years in November 2020 with 73% approval.
- Levy funding accounts for 40% of the library’s tax revenue support.
- The current levy will next be on the ballot in November 2026.
- State funding for libraries is set at 1.70% of General Revenue.
- As the economy improves and state revenues grow, so does support for libraries. As General Revenue decreases (or is cut), so does support for libraries.
- State funding accounts for 60% of the library’s tax revenue support.
You may download PDFs of the current and previous States of the Library from the links below.