Duluth, MN library a hub for the entire community

Throughout 2014, we’ll be recognizing the recipients of NRC’s Voice of the People award. 

The Voice of the People Awards are granted jointly each year by ICMA and NRC to the communities with the highest rated services according to a representative sample of their own residents. The awards recognize excellence in local governance and help to build a community of best practice leaders for the benefit of all.

Awards are granted to communities with the highest rated services (the Award for Excellence) and the services showing greatest improvement (the Transformation Award) according to results generated by The National Citizen Survey™ in the previous calendar year.

Voice of the People Award for Transformation

Duluth, Minnesota

Library Services

The public library in Duluth is more than just a place to check out books – it’s become a hub of activity for the entire community!

After several years of limited library hours due to city budget challenges, the voters of Duluth passed a referendum in 2011 that freed up additional funding for the library.  This vote of confidence inspired the library’s staff and supporting organizations to take library services to the next level by not only restoring the hours that had been lost but by organizing more programs and free events at the library than ever before.

The summer lineup included a new anime club for teens, Food Truck Fridays during the month of August, and an outdoor performance by the Grammy award-winning Okee Dokee Brothers.

As the library continues to provide new services to meet community needs – and the community continues to respond with enthusiasm – the Friends of the Library organization and library foundation are receiving more donations, which in turn helps the library do even more.

Duluth has used their library to create a cycle of positive energy that radiates throughout town – just one of the reasons NRC is proud to grant them the Voice of the People Award for Transformation in Library Services!