| San José Public Library | |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Type | Public |
| Established | 1872 |
| Location | 150 E. San Fernando Street San Jose, California |
| Branches | 19 |
| Collection | |
| Size | 2,298,116 |
| Access and use | |
| Circulation | 14,918,873 |
| Population served | 1,023,083 |
| Other information | |
| Budget | $38.5 million USD |
| Director | Jane Light, City Librarian |
| Website | [1] |
| References: [1] | |
The San José Public Library is the public library system of San José, California.
Its central library, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Library, is also the main library of the San José State University. The building of the library in 2003 was the largest single library construction project west of the Mississippi. It has more than 1.6 million items. The building has eight floors that result in more than 475,000 square feet (44,100 m2) of space with a capacity for 2 million volumes.[2]
The city has 21 neighborhood branches (17 of them open and not currently undergoing renovation or reconstruction) including the Biblioteca Latinoamericana which specializes in Spanish language works.[3] The East San José Carnegie Branch Library, a Carnegie library opened in 1908, is the last Carnegie library in Santa Clara County still operating as a public library and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. As the result of a bond measure passed in November 2000, a number of brand new or completely reconstructed branches have been completed and opened. The four branches currently undergoing construction are the Calabazas Branch, the Educational Park Branch, the Seventrees Branch, and the Bascom Branch and Community Center. The yet-to-be-named brand new Southeast Branch is also planned, bringing the bond library project to its completion.[4]
The San José system (along with the University system) were jointly named as "Library of the Year" by the Library Journal in 2004.[5]