Photo: MrHarman at English Wikipedia · Public domainKankakee Township’s library runs 11 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24 for libraries its size
Kankakee Public Library serves 24,052 people in and around Kankakee Township. Last year it lent 57K print books and media and logged 72K visits.
What’s behind Kankakee Township’s civic life grade
Kankakee Township 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 →
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 2 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Kankakee Public Library serves 24,052 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 21 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
57K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
The survey has no count of children’s loans for Kankakee Township’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 80K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.7 time last year, on average.
About 3 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, 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
Kankakee Public Library, 201 East Merchant Street, Kankakee.
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 Kankakee Township cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1.8M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.2M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.8M 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 2,452 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Kankakee Township ranks 4th of 5 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bourbonnais Township | Bradley Public Library District fine-free | 4.6 | 58 | C− |
| Bradley | Bradley Public Library District fine-free | 4.6 | 58 | C |
| Limestone Township | Limestone Township Library | 2.6 | 52 | D |
| Kankakee Township | Kankakee Public Library | 2.4 | 52 | — graded with its twin city |
| Kankakee | Kankakee Public Library | 2.4 | 52 | B− |
| Aroma Township | None of its own | — | — | C− |
| Otto Township | None of its own | — | — | D |
Loans = print + digital items borrowed in the library’s fiscal year, per person it serves. — = no library of its own, a county or regional system (its numbers cover many towns), or no report. Civic life: — = not graded (unincorporated places, whose nonprofits can’t be placed by mailing address, or towns with fewer than two of the three inputs).
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Digital loans not reported. Illinois libraries often don’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
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 Kankakee Township
Does Kankakee Township have a public library?
Yes. Kankakee Public Library, 201 East Merchant Street, serves 24,052 people in and around Kankakee Township (the survey’s count) and is open about 52 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Kankakee Public Library fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Kankakee Township’s library?
It logged 3.0 visits and lent 2.4 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Kankakee Township’s civic life grade?
Kankakee Township 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 Kankakee Township.
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.