Lake County Libraries

LAKEVIEW, Ore.—March 13, 2020—The Lake County Library district board voted today to implement protocols immediately in response to the coronavirus outbreak. In response to Governor Brown’s decision to close all K12 schools statewide, Lake County Library District will implement a rolling closure over the next several days lasting through March 31, 2020. Virtual services will be available during the closure.
 
Upcoming open hours and closure dates for each location are as follows: Main Library – Lakeview open 12:00 PM to 4:00 PM on Saturday, March 14, 2020, then closed through March 31; Christmas Valley Branch Library open 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM on Saturday, March 14, 2020, then closed through March 31; Silver Lake Branch Library open 1:00 PM to 6:00 PM on Monday, March 16, 2020, then closed through March 31; and Paisley Branch Library open 12:30 PM to  6 PM on Tuesday, March 17, then closed through March 31.
 
“The library board and I felt that creating a closure time was necessary for the health of our library patrons, staff, volunteers and community,” said Library Director Amy Hutchinson. “Our libraries are community hubs where people gather, providing a vector for illness to transfer. Given that many of our library patrons, over half of our library staff, and almost all of our library volunteers fall into one of the categories of those vulnerable to serious illness or death from COVID-19 infection, there was no other responsible decision to make,” Hutchinson.
 
During the closure period, library staff will still be available regular hours over the phone and via email for questions, recommendations, renewals, and help navigating online resources. No overdue fines will be charged. Patrons are encouraged to check out items they may need for the closure period during the next several days, and plan to download e-books and audio books online.
 
Book drops will also be emptied and materials checked in during the closure. The Main Library meeting room is still available for public use and current reservations will be honored, but users are encouraged to consider whether an in-person meeting is necessary at this time. For updated information, visit the Lake County Library District website at https://lakecountylibrary.specialdistrict.org/, or call your local library.