Photo: Carol M. Highsmith · Public domainUniversity Park’s library runs 13 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24 for libraries its size
University Park Public Library serves University Park’s 24,954 residents. Last year it lent 139K books, movies and e-books and logged 48K visits.
University Park’s library, in brief
Programs are almost all for children
91% of the 316 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 4.3 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Kids’ books are most of what goes out
Children’s books and media make up 80% of print loans. Per resident, kids’ borrowing is higher than at 78% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 17% of the people University Park Public Library serves have a library card, against a typical 40% for its size. 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.
What’s behind University Park’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, University Park is ahead of 26% of U.S. towns, #267 of 539 in Texas. University Park’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; library visits pull it down.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($188K–$313K) 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 →
104 community nonprofits are registered in University Park
4.1 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: education.
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 (16 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 University Park’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 5.7% in the typical Texas 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 University Park’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 4 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
University Park Public Library serves 24,954 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 63 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
139K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 52K books and other items on the shelves went out about 2 times last year, on average.
33,042 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 6 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.
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in University Park last year.
Find it
University Park Public Library, 8383 Plaza at Preston Ctr Ste 200, Dallas.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in University Park? 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 $1.97 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average University Park cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $2M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1M budget.
Late fines apply to some overdue items.
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 4,224 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highland Park | Highland Park Library | 11.9 | 42 | C+ |
| University Park | University Park Public Library | 5.6 | 42 | C |
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 University Park
Does University Park have a public library?
Yes. University Park Public Library, 8383 Plaza at Preston Ctr Ste 200, serves University Park’s 24,954 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 42 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is University Park Public Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
It charges late fines on some overdue items, and it lends e-books and audiobooks with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is University Park’s library?
It logged 1.9 visits and lent 5.6 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is University Park’s civic life grade?
C University Park is ahead of 26% of U.S. towns on civic life, #267 of 539 in Texas. 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 University Park.
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.