Cortland library celebrates 25th anniversary

Danielle Donnelly places a returned DVD to the correct shelf on Tuesday afternoon at the Cortland Community Library. The library recently celebrated its 25th anniversary. (Rob Winner - rwinner@daily-chronicle.com)

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Young Aliska Flatter admired a stack of books Tuesday that she had piled on the checkout desk at Cortland Community Library.

“All of these are my very favorites,” the 6-year-old said of the group of about 10. “They are all girly books.”

Lucky for Aliska, the library doesn’t limit the number of books patrons can borrow, said her mother, Leslie Flatter, who reads stories to children there during the week. The Flatters moved to town just five years ago, Leslie said, but have since watched the library’s role grow in the community.

Executive Director Barb Coward assures that in the 25 years the Cortland Community Library has been open, it has become the epicenter of the town. With the time has come an ever-changing collection of reading materials, DVDs, videos and even children’s games.

“This is the only place kids can go in town where they are supervised, other than when they are in school,” Coward said. “We see a lot of the young families that have recently moved to the area, but this is a place for everyone.”

Nearly 5,600 people walked through the tiny facility’s doors in June, Coward said, adding that the number of visitors exceeds Cortland’s population of nearly 4,000 residents. Library cardholders in Cortland, Sycamore and DeKalb can borrow books at any of the three public libraries, she noted.

Cortland Community Library first opened on July 3, 1984, across the street from its current location next to the town hall on Somonauk Road. A little blue building, it was originally situated where the gas pumps of Casey’s General Store are now, Coward said. The collection was moved into the Cortland Town Hall for about eight years and then into an old firehouse before arriving in its current building.

The library was staffed by all volunteers until 1996, Coward said. Money from various grants and clearance from a 2006 referendum allowed the facility to hire a few more employees and expand its hours of operation from 10 to 54 each week.

“When I started (seven years ago) we were only open about 25 hours a week,” said staff member Chrissie Donnelly on Tuesday. “We have a growing community and we have grown to meet the need that comes along with it.”

New computers – there are eight, total – were recently added to the library and all of them were being used by community members Tuesday morning. There are 2,200 movies, Donnelly noted, which are among the most popular checkout items.

The library’s reading materials are constantly evaluated to ensure they are being used, since storage space is very limited.

“I have watched the ladies who work here creatively jam books into small spaces,” joked Leslie Flatter. “You’d think people in the community would be upset that it’s so small here, but everyone has something positive to say about the library.”

Flatter recalled watching Aliska, and her 9-year-old brother learn to read at Cortland Community Library, where interactive games offered them encouragement.

Kids are free to play games there at their leisure and can even chat with friends, staff said.

“We are not your everyday library,” Donnelly said. “You don’t have to be quiet in our library. ... It’s one of the reasons I love working here.”

The diversified interests of the small town’s patrons never ceases to amaze Coward, who is constantly working to update the library’s collection. Cortland resident Josh Reynolds, 11, is impressed with the variety of fantasy books, he said.

Josh stood beside his 9-year-old brother, Angel, on Tuesday, who was seated at one of the computers. In the summer, the two visit the facility nearly every day, they said.

“There are really, really good books here,” Josh said. “I like all the things that happen in your mind when you are reading something. I really like that big imagination.”

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Cortland Community Library

63 S. Somonauk Road, Cortland

815-756-7274

www.cortlandlibrary.com