The Library is Now Open

We are pleased to announce the Dover Public Library is open to the public with limited services and some restrictions. To help encourage social distancing and stop the spread of COVID-19, capacity will be limited to 32 people and all visitors will be asked to wear a face covering while in the library. Services will be limited to quick browsing and checkouts, with an emphasis on reduced interactions with staff. Remember to bring your library card or photo ID with you to expedite checkout. Library patrons are encouraged to limit their time in the building so others can use the facility. Computer usage is limited to one hour. The Summer Reading Program will only be offered online and all other in person programming is canceled until further notice. Use of the library's meeting rooms is suspended until further notice. To allow for proper cleaning of library materials, returns are accepted in the drop boxes outside. Use of the self-checkout station is recommended for those who are comfortable using it. Curbside service will continue for those who are not comfortable coming into the Library.

Changes to Look For During Your Visit

During the closure staff have been working hard to keep our digital resources available for you, pivoting to on-line programming and, for the past month offering curbside delivery of materials you requested. We have done some rearranging, done deep cleaning and the building is labeled with signs, signs, signs! We will only be able to allow a limited number of people into the building at a time, so we ask everyone to PLEASE keep your visits short, so that we can accommodate more patrons. Sadly, the days of coming to the library to while away the day by reading or studying are behind us. In order to keep everyone safe we have these limits in place and ask for your understanding in making the library a safe place for everyone.  In order to keep the flow within the building and to promote social distancing we are asking the following: Kindly wear a mask while in the building to protect the others around you. We can provide one if you don't have one. Plan on keeping your visit short (under an hour.) You may need to wait to enter the building depending on capacity. Please maintain social distancing while waiting in line and especially during curbside pickup times. Or plan to come back at a later time if you are able to. Hand sanitizer is available around the building on service desks or wall mounted units. Feel free to use either. All returns need to go into the outside book returns, unless you have an item that won't fit. Media materials like music CDs and audiobooks can be returned in the silver Media Only Drop outside the Children's Room door off the parking lot. Your items will be quarantined and not checked in for at least 4 days. Entrance to the building must be made through the door off the parking lot (Children's Room door) and we ask those using the upstairs areas of the building to exit by the front door facing Locust St. Families and those who can't manage the front steps are welcome to exit via the Children's Room door. Just be mindful of keeping your distance to those who may be trying to enter at the same time, or those who may still be utilizing the curbside pickup service. Speaking of the curbside service, we will continue to offer it even after opening for anyone who would rather get their library materials outside of the building. Also, you can save yourself time by placing what you want on hold for pickup inside the building. Unless you schedule an outside pickup time, your items will be waiting for you inside. Remember that we will only hold your items for 7 days (an extension of the usual 5 days) before we return them to the shelf or pass them along to the next person waiting. No food or drinks will be allowed in the library while we are asking patrons to wear masks for safety. Library hours will be limited to 9 AM - 5 PM, Monday - Friday, for the time being. Please follow guidelines about social distancing and directional arrows and signage for where to stand for service at the desks. We have a self-checkout station for use by patrons to checkout their own materials. Or staff are happy to check out to your materials. Please hold your card barcode up so we can scan it without touching it. You can also hold your card up to our plexiglass shields and they can be scanned through there. Credit card payment for printouts (not copies) is available using a new service called Princh. See staff for more details.

Senior Hours

We are offering special hours for our elderly population or immune compromised folks Monday through Friday between 9-10 AM.

Due Dates, Fines, and Card Renewals

During the closure, book due dates were automatically extended and there are no fines for overdues. If you have items out and have finished with them, please drop them in the outdoor book returns so others may enjoy them. Now that we have an opening date, fines will resume beginning on July 8. If you feel you have fines on your account in error, let us know and we can help you figure it out. The quarantine period for returned items won't accrue fines, so don't worry about that. Thank you for sheltering some of the collection at your homes. We appreciate the care you gave to them and the enjoyment you received from the items. Also, during the closure, library cards which came due during that period were automatically renewed for 3 months, and some even renewed for another 3 months. New library cards issued during the closure were given 3 months of validity. If you receive a notice that your card is up for renewal and don't feel comfortable coming in to renew it, give us a call and we can help you out.

DVD Collection Has Moved

We have moved the adult DVD collection to the Lecture Hall to give more space in the Browse Room for people browsing for new adult books. Staff will be checking out DVDs upstairs. Don't panic when you don't see them in their normal place!