Lee County Library reports rising visits, programming and an estimated $6.65M economic impact

Philip Shockford, executive director and CEO of the Lee County Library, told the Tupelo City Council the system logged roughly 117,000 visits over the past year and reported strong gains in community use.

"We welcomed over 117,000 visits to our libraries this year," Shockford said, adding a 43% increase in meeting-space use and a 10.8% rise in program attendance that translated to more than 12,000 program participants. He said children’s programming accounted for the largest share of attendance and that summer-reading signups had increased 81% over two years.

Shockford also presented estimated economic figures derived from data submitted to the Mississippi Development Authority. The library’s analysis showed about $6.65 million in positive economic impact across the two counties it serves, the creation of roughly 44 direct and indirect jobs and a nearly 4:1 return on investment. He said patrons saved an estimated $2.1 million by borrowing materials rather than purchasing them.

Council members received hard copies of the annual report and were invited to request links or additional breakdowns. Shockford said the library is in year two of a five-year strategic plan emphasizing people, outreach, programming, space and funding.

The presentation closed with an offer to provide additional data on request; no formal action or budget vote accompanied the report.