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Sweetheart CornersPhoto: Doug Kerr · CC BY-SA 2.0
Northern Onondaga Public Library

North Syracuse’s library runs 21 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 14 for libraries its size

Northern Onondaga Public Library serves 57,438 people in and around North Syracuse. Last year it lent 432K books, movies and e-books and logged 124K visits.

100 Trolley Barn Lane, North Syracuse 13212 · about 55 hours a week
C−Civic lifeAhead of 20% of U.S. towns · #629 of 751 in New York. Nonprofits and volunteering.
Directions (315) 458-6184 What’s a card worth?
Borrowed a year
432K
7.5 per resident
Visits a year
124K
2.2 per resident · Below typical (2.6)
Programs & events
1,222
about 24 a week · 22K attended
Cardholders
47%
26,758 cards
Open
55 hrs
a week
In brief

What North Syracuse’s library is like

The shelves work hard

Each of the 82,000 items on the shelves went out about 4.1 times last year, on average. What people borrow ↓

Northern Onondaga Public Library serves more than North Syracuse

The library’s service area covers 57,438 people in and around North Syracuse, so its per-resident numbers are measured against that wider population. 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.

Civic life grade

What’s behind North Syracuse’s civic life grade

On community nonprofits and volunteering, North Syracuse is ahead of 20% of U.S. towns, #629 of 751 in New York. North Syracuse is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups comes closest to the middle.

C−
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of North Syracuse’s overall grade.
–Library visitsServed by a county or regional system, so there is no town figureC−Community nonprofits2.3 per 1,000 residents · NY towns 4.2 · U.S. 3.7C+Volunteering6.8% of adults 25–44 · NY towns 7.4% · U.S. 7.5%
All U.S. towns we grade (17,556)Ahead of 20%
FewerMore
New York towns we grade (751)Ahead of 16%
U.S. towns with similar incomes, $53K–$89K (9,080)Ahead of 19%

Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($53K–$89K) 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.

How sure. Graded on two inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. North Syracuse is small (6,773 residents), so a few dozen organizations or visits move its per-resident figures; the volunteering share is a 2022 estimate from Facebook users aged 25–44.

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 →

Places to belong

15 community nonprofits are registered in North Syracuse

2.3 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.

Community nonprofits, by kind

Arts & culture10.10 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.24
Youth, sports & recreation20.34 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.52
Civic groups, clubs & veterans50.70 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.74
Human services10.19 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.59
Education20.25 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.43
Health10.19 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.16
Environment & animals10.15 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.17
Other20.34 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.47

Counted from the IRS list of tax-exempt organizations by mailing address (fractions where a ZIP code spans towns). Congregations are counted apart (3 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.

Volunteering

6.8%

6.8% of North Syracuse’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 Syracuse’s residents live; 2022.

How it compares

Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures

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

Visits per resident 2.2 visits · typical 2.6Lower than 60%
Borrowing per resident 5.8 print items · typical 3.7Higher than 69%
Digital borrowing 1.8 e-items · typical 1.2Higher than 66%
Kids’ borrowing 2.4 kids’ items · typical 1.7Higher than 64%
Program attendance 0.4 attendees · typical 0.3Higher than 60%
Programs offered 21.3 per 1,000 residents · typical 14Higher than 71%
Cardholders 47% of residents · typical 39%Higher than 63%
Spending $49 per resident · typical $40Higher than 61%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Northern Onondaga Public Library serves 57,438 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 49 items go out

Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.

124K
visits
2.2 per resident
432K
loans, print + digital
7.5 per resident
1,222
programs & events
22K attended
27K
library cards
47% of people served
Every open hour49items borrowed
Every week429people at a program
Every week2,390visits
26 staff (full-time equivalent)17 public computers82K books & media on the shelves
What people borrow

Mostly books and media off the shelf

432K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.

432Kloans
Books & media (adults) 45%Kids’ books & media 32%E-books, audio & streaming 23%
How hard the shelves work
4.1×

Each of the 82K books and other items on the shelves went out about 4.1 times last year, on average.

From your couch

100,963 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, by who they’re for.

Schools in North Syracuse →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–5181
Ages 6–11133
Teens101
Adults584
All ages223
Little ones
3.5

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

138K
kids’ books & media borrowed
22K
people at programs
1,222
programs
The building

Find it

Nopl @ North Syracuse, 100 Trolley Barn Lane, North Syracuse.

Directions(315) 458-6184
55
hours open a week
8,894
square feet
82K
books & media
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.

New in North Syracuse? 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 $2.37 worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average North Syracuse 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
0
Your card saves you about
$204
a year at retail prices · $17 a month

Who pays for it
$49 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $2.8M.

Local taxes 93%State 4%Gifts & other 3%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $6.7M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $2.8M 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 26,758 cardholders ÷ 12.

How to read these numbers

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 Syracuse

Does North Syracuse have a public library?

Yes. Northern Onondaga Public Library, 100 Trolley Barn Lane, serves 57,438 people in and around North Syracuse (the survey’s count) and is open about 55 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Northern Onondaga 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 Syracuse’s library?

It logged 2.2 visits and lent 7.5 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.

What is North Syracuse’s civic life grade?

C− North Syracuse is ahead of 20% of U.S. towns on civic life, #629 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 Syracuse.

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.