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The library will be closed Saturday, May 29 – Monday, May 31 for Memorial Weekend.

Have a safe and happy holiday with your family and friends!

Birth – Preschool

The Allegan County Library Association, Allegan County United Way and Volunteer Center, and the Otsego District Public Library have partnered to bring you this amazing program. Developing literacy skills begins at birth and continues through toddler and preschool years.

The best way to ensure a child has the skills necessary to learn to read is having someone read aloud to them. Sign up at the library for our easy, fun, FREE, 1000 Books Before Kindergarten program for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers! Any child that has not started kindergarten is eligible to participate. Anyone in Allegan County can sign up at their home library for this program.

Click HERE for more information and to sign your child up today!

Checkout the Internet with our Wi-Fi Hotspots
Internet access via circulating Wi-Fi hotspots from the Otsego District Public Library is an extension of the library’s mission to meet the community’s information needs. The Otsego District Public Library neither monitors nor controls information accessed through the Internet and cannot be held responsible for its content, quality, accuracy, or currency. The Internet is a worldwide community with a highly diverse user population and it is the customer’s responsibility to use this resource wisely.

Parents or guardians, not the library or its staff, are responsible for the Internet information selected and/or accessed by their children on the hotspot they check out. ONLY RESIDENT ADULT LIBRARY CARDS (ages 18 and up) are allowed to check out ODPL Wi-Fi hotspots.

The Wi-Fi hotspots must be used in a responsible manner, respecting the rights of others, and taking care with use of the equipment. Hotspot settings and passwords may not be changed.

The Library’s Wi-Fi hotspots may not be used for any unlawful or improper activities prohibited under local, state, or federal laws. These activities include, but are not limited to:

• Displaying, transmitting, or exhibiting ­sexually explicit material harmful to minors as defined by the MCL 397.606 (Section 6 of the Library Privacy Act).
• Hacking or spamming
• Infringement of copyright law
• Damaging or altering of software or equipment
• Fraud
• Distribution of unsolicited advertising or propaganda, or propagation of computer viruses
• Libeling, harassing, or slandering other users
• Solicitation of minors

The library does not condone the use of library equipment to access material that can be classified as obscene, pornography, or harmful to minors. The Otsego District Public Library is committed to providing an environment free from sexual and other forms of harassment and hate. Patrons may not access, create, or print materials that may be objectionable.

Library employees are authorized to terminate any user’s access session via hotspots or in-library internet usage for up to one month if the user has failed to comply with the library’s Internet Policy and/or rules. The library director may impose longer or permanent restrictions for violations of the library’s Internet Policy. Internet users whose access session has been terminated or prohibited may request the decision reviewed by the Board of Trustees.

The Otsego District Public Library considers use of any ODPL Wi-Fi hotspot to constitute an acceptance of its Internet Use Policy. Patrons will sign this agreement each time they checkout a Wi-Fi hotspot. Failure to abide by the provisions of this policy will result in the loss of Internet privileges via the Otsego District Public Library.

Wi-Fi Hotspot Checkout Information
Hotspots go out for 1 week with no renewals.
Only Resident Adults (ages 18 and up) may check out one Wi-Fi hotspot per library card.
Wi-Fi hotspots can only be reserved for two days.
There will be a service charge of $5 if the hotspot is not returned on time and needs to be deactivated.

Wi-Fi Hotspot Replacement Costs
A LOST or DAMAGED Wi-Fi HOTSPOT costs $200

• The Hotspot itself costs $150 to replace.
• You will also be charged $25 for the month of service lost to other community members by taking this hotspot out of circulation and $25 for processing, case, and charger, for a total replacement cost of $200.
• If you fail to return the Hotspot at the end of your checkout limit, the service on the device will be deactivated and no longer provide internet access.

Individual items lost or broken replacement costs:

• Lost case: $20
• Lost charger: $15
• Lost instruction sheet: $3

Wi-Fi Hotspot Agreement
Patrons will sign the below agreement at the library upon checkout:
I have read and agree to follow the Otsego District Library’s Internet Use Policy on the flip side of this page while utilizing this hotspot. I agree to return the Wi-Fi Hotspot to ODPL in working order with all parts included (hotspot, charger, instruction sheet, case). I understand if allowing my children to use this hotspot, it is my duty to monitor the content they access and create on the internet. I agree to the checkout limits and replacement costs outlined above.

We are VERY excited to announce a new collection at ODL: Rising Reader Activity Kits!

These are packs families will be able to check out that have phonics sets of books, games, flashcards, puzzles, and reading activities in them to help kids learn to read/improve their reading skills!

The kits are based on the areas of vocabulary, phonics, comprehension, fluency, and phonemic awareness and are full of fun activities for families to do together. There will be multiple kits for preschool through third grade!

Rising Reader Kits require parental supervision and are not for children under 3 due to choking hazards in some of the game pieces.

These kits were brought to us by the generous memorial donation of Albert Hoekstra.

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The library roof was damaged in an April hailstorm, with over 1,000 holes! Since April, insurance has covered some very extensive repairs and complete replacement of the roof: the entire roof has been replaced by Division 7, some HVAC units have been replaced, while others were repaired, interior HVAC ventilation insulation has been repaired, the doorway in the teen room had been ruined and was repaired, the carpets were cleaned, interior ceiling tiles have been inspected and replaced.

In the end, 21 water damaged books were requested to be reimbursed for replacement. (It was very fortunate that the library’s interior contents were quickly wrapped in plastic following the damage to prevent any further damage to the library collection.) Between the library director and library’s maintenance man, over 80 staff hours have gone into facilitating and implementing repairs, which also were billed to insurance.

The work that remains is still daunting: the skylights are all damaged and need to be replaced. These skylights are structural and the quotes came in high. . All the skylights need to be custom cut and the work on these will cause a library service interruption. Other work to be done is replacement of the carpeting that did not come clean – in the back work space and Early Literacy Center, where water heavily came into the building, and cleaning of the leak from the skylight onto the roof of the Early Literacy Center.

We have been fortunate to work with a great roofing company (Division 7) and insurance company (Burnham and Flower) through this process and are thankful that the library roof is now solid and will protect our facility and collection for years to come.

UPDATES:
Updates will be posted below and on our Facebook page as they become available. Different sections of the library will be closed off as to accommodate repair access and safety. If materials wished to be checkout are not accessible we will reserve these items to be made available as soon as access returns.

December 3, 2020
The skylight repairs are beginning Monday, December 7! With the replacement of all of the skylight sections, they will have sections of our building closed and remove just one panel at a time. It is yet to be determined how much this will impact the temperature of our building on the days they are working, but it will definitely bring in lots of healthy fresh air during the install! Please dress accordingly and be aware of the not so silent library next week.

December 7, 2020
Today marks the beginning of our skylight install! Just a reminder that although the library will be open, some sections may be closed throughout the week and please dress warmly! We also ask that you do not walk into roped off areas. We will try to post daily what areas of the library are closed. Today they begin with the small skylight in the kid’s area.
Closed Sections:
•  TV shows T-Z
•  Teen Fiction S-Z
•  Junior Graphic Novels S-Z
•  Please enter the Juvenile and Teen sections from the back of the stacks.

December 8, 2020
Skylights on the install list are the two large southern panels. These are large and it will be chilly.Please enter these stacks from the back by walking around by the fireplace.
Closed Sections:
•  Some of the Audiobooks
•  History Room
•  Adult Non-Fiction, Large Prints and Inspirational

December 9, 2020
Today’s skylight install are the two main center ones. Dress warmly and please do not enter roped-off areas. Please enter the Juvenile section from the back.
Closed Sections
• A few TV shows
• Teen Fiction R-S
• Junior Graphic Novels R – Z

December 10, 2020
The history room is closed today for replacement of the side wall skylights.