Photo: A.Davey from Portland, Oregon, EE UU · CC BY 2.0Elk River’s library logs 20 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries its size
Elk River District serves 207 people in and around Elk River. Last year it lent 1,985 books, movies and e-books and logged 4,200 visits.
The short version on Elk River’s library
More library cards than residents
269 cards for 207 people. Cards held by people from outside the service area count too, so the total can pass the population. At the typical library serving under 2,500 people, it’s 54%. How it compares ↓
Seven times the programs of a typical library its size
Elk River District ran 81 programs last year, about 2 a week. That’s 391 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60. People show up: 2,689 attended. Kids & programs ↓
One of the busiest library systems its size
Elk River District logs 20 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries serving under 2,500 people, and lends 9.6 print items per resident against a typical 3.9. On both counts it beats 86% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
Open only about 21 hours a week
The Elk River branch keeps short hours: about 21 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
A well-funded system
Elk River District spends $217 per resident a year, about four times the typical $54 for a library its size. What your card is worth ↓
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; Elk River District serves 207 people in and around Elk River, and its numbers cover all of them; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Elk River’s civic life grade
Elk River isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.
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 →
81 programs a year
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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Elk River District serves 207 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 2 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Elk River District system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
1,985 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Elk River District, 203 Main St., Elk River.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Elk River District branch.
New in Elk River? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $4.26 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Elk River cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $45K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $192K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $45K budget.
Late fines apply to some overdue items.
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 269 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Visits count everyone. Elk River’s 4,200 visits include people from nearby towns and summer visitors; the survey has no resident share.
- System-wide. Elk River District serves 207 people in and around Elk River, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Elk River.
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 Elk River
Does Elk River have a public library?
Yes. Elk River District, 203 Main St., serves 207 people in and around Elk River (the survey’s count) and is open about 21 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Elk River District fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
It charges late fines on some overdue items, and it lends e-books and audiobooks with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Elk River’s library?
It logged 20.3 visits and lent 9.6 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Elk River’s civic life grade?
Elk River isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in Elk River.
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.