Photo: Jon Platek · CC BY-SA 3.0Shakopee’s library is a branch of Scott County Library, which lends more per resident than 75% of systems its size
Shakopee’s library is the Shakopee Branch Library, a branch of Scott County Library, which serves 156,529 people and lent 1.3M items last year.
Shakopee’s library, in brief
Most programs are for young children
69% of the 1,080 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 8.5 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Kids’ books are most of what goes out
Children’s books and media make up 59% of print loans. Per resident, kids’ borrowing is higher than at 82% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓
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; Shakopee’s library is a branch of Scott County Library, so they cover the whole system (156,529 people), not just the Shakopee branch.
What’s behind Shakopee’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Shakopee is ahead of 16% of U.S. towns, #246 of 271 in Minnesota. Shakopee is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Shakopee’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($80K–$134K) 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 →
119 community nonprofits are registered in Shakopee
2.6 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.
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 (21 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 3 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
5.9%
5.9% of Shakopee’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 7.4% in the typical Minnesota 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 Shakopee’s residents live; 2022.
About 14 kids’ programs a week
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 5 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 100,000+ people across the U.S.
Scott County Library serves 156,529 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 100,000+.
Every hour the doors are open, about 91 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Scott County Library system. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
1.3M loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
441,045 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
2 places to borrow in Shakopee
Shakopee Branch Library, 235 S Lewis Street, Shakopee.
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 Scott County Library branch.
New in Shakopee? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Other Scott County Library branches in Shakopee
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $3.44 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Shakopee cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $36. Operating budget $5.6M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $19M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $5.6M 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 100,762 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Who has a library of their own, and how much each town borrows. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shakopee | Shakopee Branch Library fine-free | — | 38 | C− |
| Eden Prairie | Eden Prairie Library fine-free | — | 63 | C |
| Prior Lake | Prior Lake Branch Library fine-free | — | 46 | C+ |
| Chanhassen | Chanhassen Public Library | — | 56 | B− |
| Savage | Savage Branch Library fine-free | — | 49 | C− |
| Jackson Township | None of its own | — | — | D− |
| Louisville Township | None of its own | — | — | D− |
| Spring Lake 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.
- System-wide. Shakopee Branch Library is one branch of Scott County Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 156,529 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 Shakopee
Does Shakopee have a public library?
Yes: Shakopee Branch Library, 235 S Lewis Street, is a branch of Scott County Library, which serves 156,529 people. The branch is open about 38 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Scott County 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 Shakopee’s library?
It logged 2.3 visits and lent 8.4 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.1 visits for libraries serving 100,000+ people.
What is Shakopee’s civic life grade?
C− Shakopee is ahead of 16% of U.S. towns on civic life, #246 of 271 in Minnesota. 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 Shakopee.
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.