Champaign-Urbana Area Public Libraries to Open for Curbside Service

Champaign, Urbana, Mahomet and Tolono Public Libraries providing users the opportunity to obtain items

Starting Friday, May 15, the Champaign Public Library will offer curbside service, providing patrons the ability to pick up items that have been placed on hold.

Service will be available at the Main Library from 3-7 p.m. Monday through Thursday and from 1-4 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Service for the Douglass Branch is by appointment only. Book returns remain closed at both locations. [Update: hours for curbside pickup will expand starting June 14: Mon–Sat 10–6 pm; Sun 1–6 pm, and returns will be accepted in the Main Library book drop.]

A release from the Champaign library explained how the process will work:

How do Hold requests and Curbside Delivery service work?

1. Find an item in the catalog and select the “Request It” button. Most items can be requested — including books, movies, video games, hotspots, Chromebooks, Kindles-to-Go, and LaunchPads.

2. Call to schedule Curbside Delivery. You’ll be notified when your request is ready. Call (217) 403-2000 or use the Curbside button on the Library app to schedule your Curbside Delivery. Staff will ask for your name, library card number, a description of your vehicle, and when you expect to arrive at the library.

3. We’ll get everything ready for you. We will retrieve your items, check them out on your account, and have them ready for you when you arrive.

4. Drive up to the front of the Main Library and park in Clara Lane. Call us at (217) 403-2000 or use the Library app to let us know you have arrived. For contactless pickup, please open your trunk from inside your vehicle.

For Curbside Delivery at the Douglass Branch, call (217) 403-2000.

Both buildings are still closed to the public. Due dates have been extended. If you have items checked out, please keep them at home — the book returns are also closed. In-person library programs and meeting room bookings have been cancelled through June 30.

Our E-Library is available any time. We’ve added 1000 new ebooks and audiobooks to keep up with the demand. And we’re adding more online resources to help you at home, including Ancestry Library Edition.

Mahomet Public Library has made options available for patrons to pick up items as follows:

Materials on the hold shelf or present in the library can be requested and picked up via the library’s pick-up lockers as space is available. New interlibrary loans will not be delivered during this period. To find Mahomet Library items, search the library catalog, using “My Library” in the “Limit By” field.
You can request items by placing hold requests through the catalog or by contacting us by phone, email, or Facebook Messenger.

We expect this service to be extremely popular, so please note that:

• We will fill requests in the order in which they are received. In the beginning, it make take a few days for a request to make it to the front of the queue and be placed in the lockers.
• We will call you when your items are ready to be placed in a locker.
• You will need to pick up your items within 24 hours. If you do not do so, your items will be removed from the locker and placed in the back of the queue of items waiting for lockers.

We will clean the keypad and lockers at least twice each day, but please remember that others will be touching these surfaces. Be sure to follow the same handwashing and safety procedures you would use when touching other public surfaces, such as grocery carts or credit card machines.

Book Drops Remain Locked [Update: Book drops are open starting May 22.]

The book drops remain locked, so please keep your items. No overdue fines will be charged while we are closed. Due dates have been extended until June 7. Some of you have asked why we are not accepting returns at this time. The Institute of Museum and Library Services, OCLC, Inc. and Battelle are collaborating to develop safe reopening practices in light of COVID-19. Among other concerns, they will be addressing the safest methods for managing returned materials during this outbreak. When we have a plan in place for safely handling and cleaning returned items, we will open the book drops and accept returns.