Photo: Thshriver · CC BY-SA 3.0River Grove’s library lends 1.5 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size
River Grove Public Library District serves River Grove’s 10,578 residents. Last year it lent 16K print books and media and logged 17K visits.
The short version on River Grove’s library
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people, River Grove Public Library District sits below the middle on all five per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on five. How it compares ↓
Still charges late fines, unlike its neighbors
River Grove Public Library District charges late fines on some overdue items. All three libraries in neighboring towns have dropped them. 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.
What’s behind River Grove’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, River Grove is ahead of 7% of U.S. towns, #699 of 754 in Illinois. All three inputs sit below most U.S. towns; River Grove’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($52K–$87K) score higher, so income alone doesn’t account for it.
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 →
26 community nonprofits are registered in River Grove
2.5 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.
Community nonprofits, by kind
Counted from the IRS list of tax-exempt organizations by mailing address (fractions where a ZIP code spans towns). Congregations are counted apart (8 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
3.9%
3.9% of River Grove’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.1% in the typical Illinois 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 River Grove’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
River Grove Public Library District serves 10,578 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 5 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
16K 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 River Grove’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 20K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.8 time last year, on average.
About 1 kids’ program 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
River Grove Public Library District, 8638 West Grand Avenue, River Grove.
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 River Grove cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $591K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $287K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $591K 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 2,835 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
River Grove ranks 3rd of 4 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elmwood Park | Elmwood Park Public Library fine-free | 5.4 | 66 | C+ |
| Franklin Park | Franklin Park Public Library District fine-free | 3.7 | 56 | D |
| River Grove | River Grove Public Library District | 1.5 | 56 | D |
| Melrose Park | Melrose Park Public Library fine-free | 1.0 | 42 | 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 River Grove
Does River Grove have a public library?
Yes. River Grove Public Library District, 8638 West Grand Avenue, serves River Grove’s 10,578 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 56 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is River Grove Public Library District fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is River Grove’s library?
It logged 1.7 visits and lent 1.5 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is River Grove’s civic life grade?
D River Grove is ahead of 7% of U.S. towns on civic life, #699 of 754 in Illinois. The grade combines library visits per resident, community nonprofits per 1,000 residents and the share of adults 25–44 in volunteering groups. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in River Grove.
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.