Photo: Tyler A. McNeil · CC BY-SA 4.0North Greenbush’s library runs 8 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24 for libraries its size
North Greenbush Public Library serves North Greenbush’s 13,292 residents. Last year it lent 93K books, movies and e-books and logged 20K visits.
What North Greenbush’s library is like
Few programs for a library this size
North Greenbush Public Library offered 106 programs last year, 8 per 1,000 residents against a typical 24. Kids & programs ↓
Most programs are for young children
69% of the 106 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 50 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
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 North Greenbush’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, North Greenbush is ahead of 16% of U.S. towns, #661 of 751 in New York. The share of younger adults in volunteering groups holds the grade up; North Greenbush’s count of community nonprofits pulls it down.
North Greenbush Public Library spends $23 per resident, against a typical $43 for libraries its size.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($88K–$147K) 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 →
25 community nonprofits are registered in North Greenbush
1.9 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 (7 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 1 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
7.6%
7.6% of North Greenbush’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 7.4% in the typical New York 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 North Greenbush’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
North Greenbush Public Library serves 13,292 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 37 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
93K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 57K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1.1 time last year, on average.
30,930 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
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.
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in North Greenbush last year.
Find it
North Greenbush Public Library, 141 Main Avenue, Wynantskill.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in North Greenbush? 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 $4.71 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average North Greenbush cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $301K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.4M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $301K 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 2,915 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
North Greenbush ranks 2nd of 9 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Greenbush | East Greenbush Community Library fine-free | 22.4 | 63 | B+ |
| North Greenbush | North Greenbush Public Library fine-free | 7.0 | 49 | C− |
| Wynantskill | North Greenbush Public Library fine-free | 7.0 | 49 | — graded as part of its town |
| Colonie | William K Sanford Town Library | 6.9 | 59 | C+ |
| Sand Lake | Sand Lake Town Library | 6.4 | 43 | B− |
| Brunswick | Brunswick Community Library fine-free | 5.7 | 44 | C− |
| Poestenkill | Poestenkill Library fine-free | 5.7 | 29 | C+ |
| Troy | Troy Public Library fine-free | 2.9 | 60 | C |
| Rensselaer | Rensselaer Public Library fine-free | 2.7 | 43 | C− |
| Menands | Menands Public Library fine-free | — | 28 | C+ |
| West Sand Lake | None of its own | — | — | — graded as part of its town |
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.
- The library’s own count. Libraries report their own visits, loans and programs. A library that didn’t respond keeps its address and hours here, with no numbers.
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 North Greenbush
Does North Greenbush have a public library?
Yes. North Greenbush Public Library, 141 Main Avenue, serves North Greenbush’s 13,292 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 49 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is North Greenbush Public 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 North Greenbush’s library?
It logged 1.5 visits and lent 7.0 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is North Greenbush’s civic life grade?
C− North Greenbush is ahead of 16% of U.S. towns on civic life, #661 of 751 in New York. 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 North Greenbush.
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.