Palm Springs Library thrives as vital hub for physical media amid streaming dominance

This year marks 50 years since the Palm Springs Library opened its doors for the first time. Since then, the library’s collection and its role in the community have expanded, necessitating a rethinking of the library’s future and its infrastructure. 

The library’s traditional role as a place to read and check out books has not changed; in fact, it’s thriving. In Fiscal Year 2023-24, the library saw a 17% increase in foot traffic and issued 19% more library cards. Library patrons checked out 6.5% more physical books and media.

The biggest increase, however, was in the number of people attending library programs. 

The popularity of the programming is one of the driving forces behind the design of the library’s major renovation. Staff hopes to submit construction documents to the city sometime in the coming months to begin renovations funded by $6.5 million from the California State Library Grant Program with matching funds from Measure J.
 
The plans for the renovation will double the capacity for events and add a maker space, flexible rooms that can be used as demonstration spaces for art or cooking classes, private study rooms, and an increased children’s section.  

The library hosted 19% more programs, and 29% more people attended those programs.

Library staff don’t need the data to tell them how popular the programming is because they’re the ones turning people away at the door when an event reaches capacity.

“Honestly, we’ve had to scale back in terms of what we do because we just don’t have the space,” admits Julie Warren, library and public services manager.

She recounts several past events in which the library had to turn away more people than it could admit. 

“We hosted [HGTV’s] Desert Flippers; we had to turn away probably 200 people because we only had room for about 100,” she said.

The library hosts roughly 300 programs a year that go far beyond the usual book clubs and kids’ reading hours.

In 2017, the library gave people eclipse glasses to view the total solar eclipse. They quickly ran out of glasses while a line stretched down to the corner of Ramon and Sunrise. A popular music program, Notes in the Desert, was axed in part because it outgrew its space. 

Another popular program is the regular film screenings offered by the library, selected by librarian Scott Biegen, who also curates the library’s extensive film collection totaling more than 21,600 DVDs and 2,195 Blu-Rays.

Similar to how the library is expanding programming to meet demand, the film section has also expanded, offering more Blu-Rays, foreign films, and blockbusters.

“DVDs are one of our most popular circulating items,” said Jeannie Kays, director of library services. 

The demand is a testament to the city’s deep connection to the film industry, the ease of renting from the library, and the breadth of its collection.

Biegen works hard to curate the films and ensures the shelves are stocked with blockbusters, foreign films, classic films, and films from a diverse spectrum of people.

“It’s important because we want everyone to be welcome here and be seen in this collection,” he said. That’s why anyone browsing for women directors, Black directors, Hispanic filmmakers, LGBTQ+ filmmakers, and more should be able to find something among the stacks.

Kays said the popularity of DVDs at the library contradicts the common narrative about the rise of streaming services killing interest in physical media. 

But it makes sense. There’s no paywall at the library. No ever-increasing monthly fee locking out people who can’t afford to pay. The library won’t sell data about your movie preferences to the highest bidder.

Browsing the library’s shelves of films might remind visitors of browsing the aisles of Blockbuster but without the fear of late fees. It’s the exact opposite experience of scrolling through the home page of a streaming service’s seemingly infinite options. 

Film options on streaming services only seem infinite, but in reality, their offerings of older films and foreign films are shrinking.

Currently, Netflix has just four films available to stream from before 1970, and two of them are from one director, Alfred Hitchcock.

Biegen contends that the library has a better variety than most streaming services, particularly in older and foreign films. He also keeps up with emerging films by tracking award nominees and offerings from the Palm Springs International Film Festival. 

“The other day I went to see the film “I’m Still Here” directed by Walter Salles, starring Fernanda Torres, who just won the Golden Globe,” he said. “If you want to see his other film, “Central Station,” you would have to go and get a physical DVD of it. It’s not available anywhere else.”

Biegen’s selections are informed by his expertise and passion for films, adding a human touch that’s missing from the streaming services’ algorithms. 

That human touch is found throughout the library. The library is a place of socialization, community, and learning, and it’s also a place where visitors can just be.

“It’s one of the last free places that you can come to and not be required to buy anything,” Kays said. 

---