Verona’s library lends 24 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size
Verona Public Library serves Verona’s 24,171 residents. Last year it lent 698K books, movies and e-books and logged 231K visits.
The short version on Verona’s library
Verona uses its library more than almost any town its size
Verona Public Library logs 9.6 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people, and lends 24 print items per resident against a typical 3.9. On both counts it beats 96% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
More than half the print loans are for kids
Children’s books and media are 59% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 99% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 85 items per child in Verona last year. Kids & programs ↓
Big on e-books and audiobooks
Digital borrowing runs 4.5 e-items per resident, against a typical 1.1, higher than at 95% of similar-size libraries. It’s 16% of all loans. What people borrow ↓
Twice the programs of a typical library its size
Verona Public Library ran 1,404 programs last year, about 27 a week. That’s 58 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24. People show up: 34,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
The shelves work hard
Each of the 121,000 items on the shelves went out about 4.9 times last year, on average. 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.
What’s behind Verona’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Verona is ahead of 52% of U.S. towns, #215 of 358 in Wisconsin. Verona is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups ranks highest.
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 →
57 community nonprofits are registered in Verona
3.7 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 (4 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.
7.9%
7.9% of Verona’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.6% in the typical Wisconsin 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 Verona’s residents live; 2022.
About 18 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 Verona last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Verona Public Library serves 24,171 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 197 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
698K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 121K books and other items on the shelves went out about 4.9 times last year, on average.
109,685 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Verona Public Library, 500 Silent St., Verona.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Verona? 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 $4.60 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Verona cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $2.7M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $13M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $2.7M 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 17,600 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Verona | Verona Public Library fine-free | 28.9 | 68 | B− |
| Madison | Madison Public Library fine-free | 10.3 | 68 | A− |
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 Verona
Does Verona have a public library?
Yes. Verona Public Library, 500 Silent St., serves Verona’s 24,171 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 68 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Verona 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 Verona’s library?
It logged 9.6 visits and lent 28.9 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Verona’s civic life grade?
B− Verona is ahead of 52% of U.S. towns on civic life, #215 of 358 in Wisconsin. 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 Verona.
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.