Arlington’s library runs 195 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size
Arlington City Library serves Arlington’s 431 residents. Last year it lent 799 books, movies and e-books and logged 2,005 visits.
The short version on Arlington’s library
Kansas pays a big share
100% of the budget comes from the state, and 0% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
More library cards than residents
598 cards for 431 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 ↓
Programs are almost all for children
100% of the 84 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 42 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Kids’ books are most of what goes out
Children’s books and media make up 89% of print loans. Per resident, kids’ borrowing is higher than at 54% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓
A small-town library
Arlington City Library serves 431 residents with about one full-time staff, open about 25 hours a week. It’s compared only with libraries serving under 2,500 people, because per-person numbers always look big in a small town. A year at the library ↓
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; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Arlington’s civic life grade
Arlington 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 →
About 2 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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 5 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Arlington City Library serves 431 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
A year at Arlington City Library
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Not reported for 2024: funding. The survey fills a missing figure with its own estimate; we leave estimates out rather than show them as the library’s count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
799 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 8,440 books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.1 time last year, on average.
57 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Arlington City Library, 900 W. Main, Arlington.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Arlington? 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 $1.68 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Arlington cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $11K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $18K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $11K 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 598 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Not reported for 2024: funding. The survey filled the figure with its own estimate, so it is left out.
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 Arlington
Does Arlington have a public library?
Yes. Arlington City Library, 900 W. Main, serves Arlington’s 431 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 25 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Arlington City 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 Arlington’s library?
It logged 4.7 visits and lent 1.9 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Arlington’s civic life grade?
Arlington 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 Arlington.
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.