At the Scarsdale Library: It's Getting Better All the Time

To those who predicted the demise of public libraries due to e-books, the digitization of data and the explosive growth of information on the internet, an increase in the usage of Scarsdale’s state of the art library has proven you wrong.

By all indicators library usage is up – whether it be adult and children’s book borrowing, e-book loans, program attendance or use of the facilities including the maker space and room rentals.

At a work session of the Village Trustees on January 21, 2025, Library Director Beth Bermel revealed some stunning statistics. By all measure, the library is getting better and better.

Bermel told the trustees that in addition to general increase in foot traffic and usage, there are more room rentals and higher usage of the technology room and business center, the maker space and teen programs – with students “coming in droves.”

Here are a few numbers to illustrate the trends.

Year    Book Circulation    Libby (ebooks and audio) Only

2024   331,883                  81,359
2023   293,787                  67,352
2022   265,317                  67,911

The numbers show that Scarsdale Library usage ranks among the top in Westchester, falling just behind far larger towns and villages.

-Scarsdale is fourth in Westchester in terms of visits, after New Rochelle, Yonkers and White Plains.

-In terms of total circulation, Scarsdale is fifth in the county, after Yonkers, White Plains, Yorktown and Greenburgh.

-Also impressive are the programming numbers. Bermel reported that in 2024 the library hosted 1,124 programs attended by 44,244 users. This is up from 2022 when 627 programs were attended by 23,220 users.

-Scarsdale serves a high percentage of cardholders. 70% of those using the library have a Scarsdale Library card as compared to the Westchester average of 50%. Explaining the usage by non-residents, Bermel said, “We are a public library, which means we are open to all. Just as Scarsdale residents freely use other libraries, we allow non-residents to use ours. We are part of the Westchester Library System, and therefore required to abide by their NYS-mandated Free Direct Access Plan, which codifies this philosophy of open access."

-Bermal was happy to report collaborations with a wide array of community organizations and the schools. She concluded, “We are leaders in Westchester,” and “The appetite for services and programs is growing exponentially.”

Commenting on the stats, Bermel said, "It is gratifying to see that all of our hard work to improve the Scarsdale Public Library is coming to fruition. We have created spaces that our community enjoys, but, more importantly, we have dedicated, knowledgeable and responsive employees who provide excellent programs and services. The library is bustling no matter the time of day--babies, kids, teens, adults and seniors all love coming here to choose books, attend programs and meetings, work remotely, or just hang out. We're thrilled to be a destination for all."