Rockford Public Library Board of Directors voted on Monday, February 28^th to adjust the hours of operation for the Rockford Public Library locations. The new hours will be effective as of Sunday, April 3, 2011.

The Main Library will be open Tuesday – Thursday, 12:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. and Friday – Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. The East Branch will be open Monday – Thursday, 12:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. and Friday – Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Rock River and Montague Branches will be open Tuesday – Thursday, 12:00 – 8:00 p.m. and Friday, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Rockton Centre Branch will be open Monday – Thursday, 12:00 – 8:00 p.m. and Friday, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Lewis Lemon Branch will be open Monday – Friday, 2:00 – 6:00 p.m. All library locations are closed on Sunday.

The Board took the following into consideration when approving the new hours:

• The new hours can be maintained without adding staff.
• A library location on both the east and west side is open each day of the week.
• The East Branch, RPL’s busiest branch location, will be open 6 days per week.
• The Main Library will be open Tuesday – Saturday eliminating the mid-week closure.
• The new schedule helps accommodate a memorandum of understanding between the library and its unionized workers requesting that staff be scheduled two days off in a row at least twice every five weeks.

“We’ve had reduced hours for a little over a year now,” said Frank Novak, Executive Director of Rockford Public Library. “We received feedback from customers and staff and adjusted our hours to make library access more convenient without negatively impacting our still limited budget.”

About the Library

The Rockford Public Library, founded in 1872 as the second library in Illinois, currently has six facilities, including the Main Library and five Branch Libraries. The Rockford Public Library’s mission is to enhance community life and development by informing, educating, entertaining, and providing cultural enrichment to all people of all ages by collecting information to address the diverse interests of our dynamic community.

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