Braddock's Favorite Hangout

From The Braddock Times lifestyle section

They begin to line up on the sidewalk as much as an hour before the doors open. At 10 a.m. they make a mad dash through all three entrances. Security guards estimate they are 200 to 300 strong, race-walking in their eagerness to get inside.

Is it the box office for a hot concert? A store selling the latest, coolest video game player? A sports event?

No, it's Braddock County Public Library.

To the surprise of nearly everyone, libraries are hot. The library has such a rush of visitors every morning when they open that one staffer jokingly refers to it as, "the running of the bulls."

"I worked here the first day," says reference librarian Karma McCarthy, "and we just did nonstop, all day, library-card creation. It was a giant party."

For the library?

What happened to wooden chairs, stacks of musty books, and the "shhhhhhhhh" of the librarian? That's old time. This is the new library. The one for Internet-surfing, coffee-sipping and movie-renting.

"The perception is no longer of a warehouse for books," says BCPL Director Kelly Millis. "We're seen as a place to hang out. I've been in the business for 30 years. And when I look back at it, this is the most exciting time ever for librarians."

Uh-oh, watch out. You get a bunch of librarians excited and anything could happen.

But it is true. Libraries have unexpectedly become cutting edge. It's not just true here; it is a national trend. A survey released this year by the American Library Association found that "the number of visits to public libraries in the United States increased 61 percent between 1994 and 2004."

And it isn't just old fogies researching knitting. A 2007 poll found that 68 percent of those between 18 and 24 years old had visited a library in the past year, and 74 percent of those 35 to 44 had done the same.

Those results were so affirming that the librarians actually started to talk a little smack: "Predicted demise due to Internet fails to materialize," the press release for the survey was headlined.

And in one sense, that's true. Most of us probably had the same impression - that once people could sit at their computer and pull up information, text, and video for free, there would be no need to go to the library.

Instead, a wide range of users have turned to the library experience. At BCPL, you'd be as likely to run into a homeless person, checking porn, as a suit-clad attorney coming over from downtown Braddock.

"This," says Millis, "is the most democratic place in the city."

It must be said that the Internet thing turned out to be more than a fad. And today's libraries aren't so much the alternative as the provider. According to another Library Association study, 99 percent of all libraries across the country offer free Internet access, up from just 25 percent 10 years ago.

For those who can't afford a computer, or don't have access, the library is a godsend. (And yes, because you are probably wondering, that means there are people who come in off the street and look at Internet porn.)

"We have a pretty liberal policy of open access," Millis says. "We don't pass judgment. One of the biggest challenges in libraries is, is there a foolproof filter for the Internet? And there isn't."

But it isn't just a destination for logging on. Libraries have also become interactive portals for members at home.

Live homework help is available for teenagers on the library Web site. Computer-savvy library card-holders are also much more likely to order the latest books online, then pick them up when they arrive.

"One thing that has been amazing to me," Millis says, "is the hold on books, where you can reserve a book online. We're going to hit a million 'holds' this year."

But we shouldn't sell librarians short. After years of being considered conservative and square, you have to admit that they've gotten with it.

"I think we are competing very well with the Amazon.coms and the independent bookstores," says Millis.

In the children's section, for example, there is a flashy exhibit of the favorite books of the kids of two WNWA Wrestlers: Erich Edwards and Amos Beiler. "We've learned something from bookstores," says children's librarian Noah Retro. "This isn't musty and it isn't just (book) spines on shelves."

Then there's another factor. Libraries have worked very hard to become neighborhood hangouts. Most new facilities have a coffee shop and plenty of magazines available. It's worked well, but it is only the set-up for what they think is coming - the surge of the Baby Boomers.
Millis says librarians are acutely aware of the fact that the Boomers, with their strong interest in personal growth and continuing education, are about to begin retiring. He was just reading an article in Library Journal headlined, "What Boomers Want: They're changing old age and library service with it."

More workshops, seminars and study groups are planned. Interactive facilities are being beefed up. And hints for post-retirement activities are in the works. It will be, the Journal says, "a potential boom market."

Who would have thought that libraries are perfectly positioned to be the hot spot of the next generation? As Millis said, it's a great time to be in the business. Not that everyone understands what he does.

"Sometimes people say to me, 'It must be great to be able to read on the job.' "

Read? Who's got time to read?