Antelope Valley Indian Museum · Photo: Junkyardsparkle · CC0Lake Los Angeles’ library is a branch of LA County Library, which lends less per resident than 82% of systems its size
Lake Los Angeles’s library is the Lake Los Angeles Library, a branch of LA County Library, which serves 3,248,285 people and lent 11M items last year.
The short version on Lake Los Angeles’s library
Few programs for a library this size
The LA County Library system offered 12,795 programs last year, 3.9 per 1,000 residents against a typical 9. Kids & programs ↓
48% of borrowing happens on a screen
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 48% of loans. Print still makes up 52%, much of it kids’ books. What people borrow ↓
This summary is written from the numbers on this page. Numbers are the library’s own report to the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024; Lake Los Angeles’s library is a branch of LA County Library, so they cover the whole system (3,248,285 people), not just the Lake Los Angeles branch.
What’s behind Lake Los Angeles’ civic life grade
Lake Los Angeles isn’t graded on civic life: it’s unincorporated, so its nonprofits can’t be counted reliably (mailing addresses don’t follow its boundary) and its library is a branch of LA County Library, so there is no town figure for visits.
Civic life counts registered nonprofits, library visits and online volunteering groups, so it can miss civic life that runs through congregations, mutual aid or neighbors looking out for each other.
Library visits: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024. Nonprofits: IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File, October 2026. Volunteering: Social Capital Atlas (Opportunity Insights), from data by Meta Platforms, Inc.; Chetty et al., Nature 2022. How TownRatings grades civic life →
Volunteering in Lake Los Angeles
Lake Los Angeles is unincorporated, so its nonprofits aren’t counted: they file by mailing address, which doesn’t follow its boundary.
3.7%
3.7% of Lake Los Angeles’ Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 5.9% in the typical California town and 7.5% nationally.
Volunteering: Social Capital Atlas (Opportunity Insights), from data by Meta Platforms, Inc.; Chetty et al., Nature 2022. ZIP-code figures, weighted by where Lake Los Angeles’ residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 100,000+ people across the U.S.
LA County Library serves 3,248,285 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 100,000+.
Every hour the doors are open, about 52 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole LA County Library system. The library’s own count.
48% of borrowing is digital
11M loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
4,997,082 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 140 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
Find it
Lake Los Angeles Library, 16921 East Ave. O, #a, Palmdale.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every LA County Library branch.
New in Lake Los Angeles? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Lake Los Angeles cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $36. Operating budget $195M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $169M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $195M budget.
Fine-free. No late fees on books returned late.
Retail prices are typical, rounded down: a new book $17, a kids’ book $12, an e-book or e-audiobook $15, a movie rental $4, a class or program $10, a computer or Wi-Fi session $3. The average cardholder’s month = the library’s yearly loans, attendance and Wi-Fi sessions ÷ its 2,115,003 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Lake Los Angeles Library is one branch of LA County Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 3,248,285 people it serves.
Hours are the survey’s yearly average; libraries are compared with others serving about as many people. How TownRatings uses library figures →
Questions about the library and civic life in Lake Los Angeles
Does Lake Los Angeles have a public library?
Yes: Lake Los Angeles Library, 16921 East Ave. O, #a, is a branch of LA County Library, which serves 3,248,285 people. The branch is open about 56 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is LA County Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
Yes to both: no late fees, and e-books, audiobooks and research databases with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Lake Los Angeles’ library?
It logged 1.7 visits and lent 3.2 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.1 visits for libraries serving 100,000+ people.
What is Lake Los Angeles’ civic life grade?
Lake Los Angeles isn’t graded on civic life: it’s unincorporated, so its nonprofits can’t be counted reliably (mailing addresses don’t follow its boundary) and its library is a branch of LA County Library, so there is no town figure for visits. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in Lake Los Angeles.
Libraries: Institute of Museum and Library Services, Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024. Each library reports its own numbers. Distances are straight-line from the town center. “What your card is worth” uses typical retail prices and is an estimate, not an official figure.