10:30 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Imagine one of Japan’s largest book and media retailers joining forces with cities in Japan to create dramatic new “cultural department stores” that combine a library, a full-service bookstore, a Starbucks, and often a sit-down restaurant including a bar. It is happening, and our speakers share the secrets of true public/private partnerships in which the private partner designs the facility in cooperation with the city (these are all either totally new facilities or total refurbishments), puts up a share of the capital needed to build it, and then operates the entire facility—including the library portion— under contract to the city. Most serve populations of 50,000 to 100,000, some, in quite rural areas; facilities are open 12 hours a day, 365 days a year. The focus is on books, and the combination library and bookstore allows them to serve both those who want to buy and those who want to borrow. There are no public access computers … but there is Wi-Fi everywhere and you can borrow an iPad from the reference desk if you do not have your own device (most people bring their own). There are no databases, and there are no dedicated meeting rooms. They do lots of programming, but furniture and fixtures are designed to be rearranged to accommodate programs, and they are hugely successful, with visits in some locations up as much as 1427%, with comparable increases in circulation, and the average length of visit has increased dramatically from 30 minutes to 3 hours in one facility, with comparable stats elsewhere.
