Boone County library attempts high-tech solution to solve staffing challenges – WKRC TV Cincinnati

PETERSBURG, Ky. (WKRC) – The small community of Petersburg, on the western edge of Boone County, has the highest-tech library in Northern Kentucky, but some of the residents in the area said it’s not working the way it should.

Local 12 recently sat down with the executive director of the Boone County Public Library (BCPL) to get some answers.

BCPL Executive Director Carrie Herrmann said they did everything they could to try and find people to staff the library in Petersburg.

“It was March of 2022 when we had to close the location down because we just couldn’t get staffing for that building. Traditionally it’s been hard to staff it since we first opened it,” Herrmann said.

She also said they had been trying to find a way to re-open the facility.

“We had to think outside the box. How is there a way that we can continue to serve the people of Petersburg if we can’t staff that building?” Herrmann said.

Herrmann said she looked to the west and east before she found an “express” model that didn’t require anyone to work at the location.

“I hit on a model that’s being used out in the western part of the U.S. that has been pretty successful. Then in digging into it, I also realized that they borrowed this model from Europe, where it’s been successful for years. So, it’s an unstaffed, what we call an ‘express location.’ You have to have your library card and you have to let us know you want to use that particular library to be able to access it. So, you scan your library card to get into the building and once you’re in the building, we have a locker system. Think of the Amazon lockers. So, you go in and if you’ve put a hold on a book, which you can do either through a computer or our library app or calling us to do it, we notify you that your hold is in. You go into the library, you scan your library card at the locker system and the right locker pops open and they can get their library books and they’re already checked out and ready for them to use,” Herrmann said.

In addition, it features computer access and an honor system for the books kept on site.

But that didn’t mean they were without issues. People were having trouble scanning to use the locker. Residents also complained there wasn’t enough signage on how to use the system.

Herrmann said the locker is fixed and they’re considering adding more signage.

“We’re asking for six months to work out the bugs and get it working and then to evaluate it after that six months to see what still needs to be done. Are there any other changes? And we’re changing as we go because it’s a learning process for both the library and the community,” Herrmann said.

Local 12 asked Herrmann if BCPL could bring someone in to help people get more used to the new system.

Herrmann said an outreach van comes down once a month, which can help guide people on using the library. She said staffing issues prevent the number of outreach visits from increasing.

Local 12 asked Herrmann if BCPL is doing everything it can to make sure that the library is a success.

“We’re trying. We’re monitoring the locker system. [Staff are] helping monitor the security system that’s in place there. We have our collection development department, our collection services department. They’re monitoring the collection,” Herrmann said.

While this is a pilot program, Herrmann hopes that once the bugs are worked out, the county can open a second express location to serve a low-income area in Florence.