Falls Church Library Achieves Star Status

The Library Journal has rated the Mary Riley Styles Public Library as one of the best in the nation.

The magazine assigns libraries star ratings similar to those used in Michelin guides.  Falls Church’s library recently received a 3-star rating, which was surpassed by only one other library in Virginia.

The Journal’s Index of Public Library Service rates over 7,000 libraries.  Only 256 have received star ratings, which range from 3 to 5.

Williamsburg’s library received a 5-star rating.  However, that library’s operating budget is considerably larger than Falls Church’s.  Libraries in Leesburg and in Loudon County received 3-star ratings.

Within its expenditure category ($1 million to $4,999,999), the library achieved exceptionally high use-per-capita rankings in the following areas:

14th – Circulation
22nd – Visits
21st – Program Attendance
16th – Internet Terminal Usage

On Tuesday evening the Falls Church Planning Commission unanimously recommended that $2 million be allocated for library expansion.

For more on the library’s need for funding, see our January 24 story on “The Stacks Are Packed”.