Library Facilities Master Plan

Over the next several months, DC Public Library will develop a Library Facilities Master Plan to help guide the next 10 years of planning for library services across the city. The plan will:

• Evaluate the condition of library buildings and help us plan for future maintenance needs.
• Analyze how customers currently use libraries and what services might be needed or expanded.
• Explore the impact of city growth on how we deliver library services.
• Engage the community in conversations to ensure future planning aligns with community needs.

Once complete, the Library Facilities Master Plan will provide a framework to ensure future investments in DC Public Library buildings align with community needs.  

Why Now?

Over the past decade, DC Public Library has invested or allocated a half-billion dollars in renovating and rebuilding the city's libraries. To date, 19 projects are complete, with five more libraries in the design or construction phase. These new buildings have raised the bar for what D.C. residents expect in library service. 

Every measure of use has grown tremendously. Library circulation has increased 250 percent in the past decade. The Library now welcomes nearly 4 million visitors per year.

The way libraries are used can differ by neighborhood. In some locations, meeting rooms are more in demand while public computers or books are the most used service at other locations. As such, there is potential to increase use even more by customizing building programs based on community needs. In addition, as neighborhoods in D.C. have changed and grown over the past several decades, some residents are without easy access to a neighborhood library.

The Library Facilities Master Plan will help steer decision making. The Plan will help the Library work with elected leaders to determine funding priorities.

We Want to Hear from You

Community input is a vital part of the process. Please lend your voice about what you want from your library. This will help ensure that future planning around libraries is aligned with community needs. There will be several opportunities for community input.

Focus Groups -- The Library will conduct focus groups with customers, D.C. residents who currently face barriers to library access and customers who do not speak English as a first language.
Surveys -- The Library will conduct surveys to gain more in-depth insight into what residents want from their public library. 
Community Meetings -- The Library will host community meetings during the development of the Library Facilities Master Plan. This will include meetings to share the final report with the public. 

If you are interested in being considered for a focus group, please email community.feedback@dc.gov.  Surveys and announcements about community meetings will be posted here, in the Library's monthly Beyond Words Newsletter and in neighborhood libraries, so be sure to check back often.