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Clifford Branch Library · part of Lapeer District Library

Clifford’s library is a branch of Lapeer District Library, which lends less per resident than 67% of systems its size

Clifford’s library is the Clifford Branch Library, a branch of Lapeer District Library, which serves 60,026 people and lent 187K items last year.

9530 Main Street, Clifford 48272 · about 15 hours a week
–Civic lifeNot graded: fewer than 1,000 residents
Borrowed a year
187K
3.1 per resident
Visits a year
69K
1.1 per resident · Below typical (2.6)
Programs & events
735
about 14 a week · 15K attended
Cardholders
20%
11,859 cards
Open
15 hrs
a week at this branch
In brief

What Clifford’s library is like

Open only about 15 hours a week

The Clifford branch keeps short hours: about 15 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓

Below typical on every measure

Against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, the Lapeer District Library system sits below the middle on all seven per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on three. How it compares ↓

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; Clifford’s library is a branch of Lapeer District Library, so they cover the whole system (60,026 people), not just the Clifford branch.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Clifford’s civic life grade

Clifford isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.

–
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of Clifford’s overall grade.

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 →

How it compares

Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures

Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.

Visits per resident 1.1 visits · typical 2.6Lower than 87%
Borrowing per resident 2.5 print items · typical 3.7Lower than 67%
Digital borrowing 0.7 e-items · typical 1.2Lower than 70%
Kids’ borrowing 1.1 kids’ items · typical 1.7Lower than 65%
Program attendance 0.3 attendees · typical 0.3Lower than 62%
Programs offered 12.2 per 1,000 residents · typical 14Lower than 58%
Cardholders 20% of residents · typical 39%Lower than 86%
Spending $36 per resident · typical $40Lower than 56%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Lapeer District Library serves 60,026 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.

A year at the library

Every hour the doors are open, about 18 items go out

Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Lapeer District Library system. The library’s own count.

69K
visits
1.1 per resident
187K
loans, print + digital
3.1 per resident
735
programs & events
15K attended
12K
library cards
20% of people served
Every open hour18items borrowed
Every week297people at a program
Every day908Wi-Fi sessions
21 staff (full-time equivalent)27 public computers
What people borrow

Almost half the print loans are kids’ books

187K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.

187Kloans
Books & media (adults) 43%Kids’ books & media 36%E-books, audio & streaming 21%
From your couch

39,415 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.

Kids & programs

About 6 kids’ programs a week

Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.

Schools in Clifford →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–5168
Ages 6–11146
Teens30
Adults153
All ages238
Little ones
3.2

story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.

67K
kids’ books & media borrowed
15K
people at programs
735
programs
The building

Find it

Clifford Branch Library, 9530 Main Street, Clifford.

15
hours open a week
805
square feet
With a card

No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Lapeer District Library branch.

New in Clifford? The Handbook →

Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.

What your card is worth

For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.83 worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Clifford cardholder borrows.

In a month I’d use…
Books$17 each
1
Kids’ books$12 each
0
E-books & audio$15 each
0
Movies & music$4 each
0
Programs & classes$10 a program
0
Computer & Wi-Fi$3 a session
2
Your card saves you about
$276
a year at retail prices · $23 a month

Who pays for it
$36 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $2.1M.

Local taxes 94%State 3%Gifts & other 3%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $3.9M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $2.1M 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 11,859 cardholders ÷ 12.

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.

  • System-wide. Clifford Branch Library is one branch of Lapeer District Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 60,026 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 Clifford

Does Clifford have a public library?

Yes: Clifford Branch Library, 9530 Main Street, is a branch of Lapeer District Library, which serves 60,026 people. The branch is open about 15 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Lapeer District 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 Clifford’s library?

It logged 1.1 visits and lent 3.1 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.

What is Clifford’s civic life grade?

Clifford 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 Clifford.

Town Square →
Start a conversation

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.