Columbus Metropolitan Library is expanding its curbside pickup program to four additional branches on Tuesday.
Although library buildings are closed to the public, patrons can swing by in their car to pick up reserved materials and drop off previously checked out items.
After piloting the idea at the Parsons, Gahanna and Hilliard branches, library spokesman Ben Zenitsky says they’re ready to add new locations.
“Those locations are Northern Lights, Whetstone, Southeast and Dublin,” he says. “So that will bring the total number of curbside pickup locations to seven, and obviously we are going to look to continue to expand slowly and cautiously.”
The entire process is touch-free, Zenitsky says.
“You drive through, you’d call the number on the sign, you’d get a hold of a staff member who would help you check out those materials using your library card number,” Zenitsky describes. “The staff member would bring out the materials and place them in the rear of your vehicle so whether the trunk or the backseat [in] a way that is avoiding any contact.”
The library selected the additional locations based on geographic reach and number of outstanding holds. Materials aren’t being transferred between branches so they can only fulfill the holds if a given branch has the book in its collection.
Columbus Metropolitan Library closed all its branches in March.
