After being closed for months due to COVID-19, some Los Angeles County public libraries began the process of slowly reopening Monday by offering sidewalk service.
Two dozen libraries are participating in the new program, which allows the public to place holds on books, CDs and DVDs, and pick them up between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, officials said.
Users can now reserve materials through the online catalog at LACountyLibrary.org or by phone, while those who had existing holds paused during the coronavirus-related closure will be notified when an item is available.
Library staff are answering phone lines from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays.
Customers will be contacted once materials are available and can retrieve all items through contactless pickup. To do that, they should simply call the library upon arrival and their holds will be brought to a table outside.
As most county public libraries are not offering sidewalk service, officials said those interested in using the service at a location that is not their local branch can call for assistance.
“This is the first step of a phased reopening, with additional locations to be added at a later date,” the library emphasized on its website.
Also on Monday, all 85 libraries in the county reopened their bookdrops, which were also part of the closure. Library users have until July 15 to return any materials checked out before the public health emergency began in mid-March, according to officials.
Following public health recommendations, all returned items will be quarantined before they can be checked out again.
The libraries will also resume standard borrowing schedules, which is three weeks for books and CDs, and one week for DVDs.
Digital offerings, meanwhile, will still be available at LACountyLibrary.org/coronavirus.
The following L.A. County libraries are now offering sidewalk service:
A C Bilbrew Library
Agoura Hills Library
Angelo M. Iacoboni Library
Avalon Library
Baldwin Park Library
Carson Library
Claremont Helen Renwick Library
Culver City Julian Dixon Library
Diamond Bar Library
East Los Angeles Library
Huntington Park Library
La Crescenta Library Lancaster Library
Lawndale Library
Leland R. Weaver Library
Manhattan Beach Library
Montebello Library
Norwalk Express Library
Rosemead Library
Rowland Heights Library
Stevenson Ranch Library
View Park Bebe Moore Campbell Library
West Covina Library
West Hollywood Library
