McKinney’s public libraries will soon operate on new opening schedules that will increase the total number of hours library services are available each week, city staff said.

The operating hour changes, which will be effective Jan. 2, will add 12 more hours weekly that services will be available at the city’s two public library locations. The new schedule was created in response to service usage and demand over the past year, McKinney Public Libraries Director Spencer Smith said in a statement.

What you need to know

McKinney has two libraries, including Roy and Helen Hall Memorial Library, located at 101 E. Hunt St. in east McKinney, as well as John and Judy Gay Library, located at 6861 W. Eldorado Parkway in west McKinney.

The upcoming changes to library operating hours include:

• Expanded hours on Sunday at both library locations
• An earlier operating schedule on Monday-Thursday at Roy & Helen Hall Memorial Library

The schedule shift will also result in the two library locations having different operating hours, according to city documents. Roy & Helen Hall Memorial Library will be open 8 a.m.-7 p.m. Mon.-Thu. while John and Judy Gay Library will be open 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Mon.-Thu. Both locations will operate from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. on Fri.-Sun.

How we got here

The shift in operating hours was determined following an analysis of library user data by hour of the day and day of the week, according to city documents. The new schedule is intended to increase library use.

“We noticed that ... our operating hours weren’t optimized for use when we looked at the data,” Smith said in a statement. “Specifically, business at the Roy and Helen Hall Memorial branch remained concentrated between the hours of 10 a.m. and 7 p.m., with a steep decline in use afterward.”

Spencer also noted the libraries saw the busiest hours each week on Sundays, which prompted the expanded Sunday hours.

By the numbers

McKinney’s libraries saw year-over-year growth in a number of categories, city staff said.

In fiscal year 2022-23, which began Oct. 1, 2022, and ended Sept. 30, 2023, library system staff documented growth in program attendance, membership and material usage, including the addition of 11,769 new members. The nearly 1,000 new members added each month brought the library’s total membership to 64,913.

Other growth areas include:

• A 7% increase in household borrowing compared to FY 2021-22
• An expanded collection encompassing over 1.7 million items and a 3.6% increase in circulation compared to FY 2021-22.
• Over 140,000 hold requests fulfilled, representing a 7.8% increase from the previous year

Volunteers worked over 6,600 hours at McKinney libraries in the past year, which represents a 63.6% increase in volunteer hours compared to FY 2021-22, according to the library’s website. The volunteer hours worked is worth roughly $100,000 in time value, according to city documents. Volunteer responsibilities include program preparation and assistance, pulling materials for holds, shelving and inventory, and material processing.

The library system also saw an 14.4% increase in program attendance, with nearly 40,000 attendees at the library’s 1,317 programs and events offered in FY 2022-23.

Learn more

For more information about McKinney’s libraries and operating hours, visit www.mckinneypubliclibrary.org.