Open the evidence.

How to read this guide

Facts describe cited public records at the date stated. Analysis connects those facts and makes the reasoning visible. Proposals describe what Civic Lab thinks should be tested; they are not County policy, approved spending or commitments from workers and partners.

“Portland libraries” is a useful public shorthand. The actual subject is Multnomah County Library, including locations in Gresham, Fairview and Troutdale. This is not an inventory of university, school, private, Washington County or Clackamas County libraries.

Comparisons we can defend

• The usage chart takes FY2019 and FY2025 from a single May 2026 Board follow-up. Physical circulation is total minus digital; both include renewals. We do not mix in partial FY2026 data.
• Door counts are visits, not unique people. MCL’s nearly nine million FY2025–26 visits combines online and in-person traffic; it is not the physical foot-traffic series.
• Registered cardholders, active-cardholder households and annual resident users have different units and denominators. None is a substitute for the others.
• Construction and pandemic closures change access. Raw totals cannot isolate a change in demand. A rigorous update should compare branch-open hours and comparable operating periods.
• The 2024 patron survey is self-selected; its published sample differs from the county. Report it as patron feedback, not a resident-wide estimate. The material-finding question changed wording across surveys.
• Missing data is unknown, not zero. We do not infer a count of certified resilience hubs or a worldwide position from incomplete evidence.

The October 27, 2026 redesign supersedes the earlier web presentation and its unsupported comparisons. These are substantive corrections, not just a new visual style.

• Authorship: long-term targets and the future vision were Civic Lab’s proposals, not “the County’s own report” or adopted commitments.
• Construction: $387 million was the bond authorization; roughly $459 million is total program resources. Completion of major projects does not mean every location is open or all work is finished.
• Branches: Albina’s current entrance is 205 NE Russell Street. Northwest is at 2030 NW Pettygrove Street, opened in 2026. East County replaces the closed Gresham branch. Coordinates and service descriptions were rechecked.
• Use: incompatible global reach comparisons were removed. The usage chart now uses one official reporting series, not a mixture of versions or a misclassified 2011 total.
• Feedback: the published material-finding result is 86%, not an unavailable baseline. Sample limitations and changed question wording are explicit.
• Safety: the 2022 and 2025 workforce findings are historical evidence, not current safety rates. No unsourced claim of zero resilience hubs remains.
• Money: a recurring forecast gap is not an unbalanced adopted budget. Capital, reserves and one-time funds are not automatically available. The 20-year renewal estimate is not a current bill.
• Tax: a voter-approved local-option levy is distinct from an increase in the permanent rate limit; the latter cannot simply be approved by district voters.
• Readiness: the earlier fixed September 2026 launch is replaced by a relative schedule after any future authorization. Self-assigned “10/10” ratings are removed; missing official work stays visible.

What is still unknown

A representative annual-use rate; branch-level post-construction outcomes adjusted for open hours; current comparable staff-safety experience; a verified emergency-capability inventory; full recurring costs of proposed services; workforce requirements; executed partner commitments; and how commissioners would vote.

Those are research and decision tasks, not blanks to fill with confident language. The readiness plan names who should resolve them and what must wait.

Earlier reports

The August 2026 research report is a historical draft. Its numerical ambitions and some descriptions were superseded by this guide and decision brief. It should not be used as a current operating plan or evidence of official adoption.

Historical report, with correction notice (PDF) ↓

Refresh construction notices before changing a branch’s status. Review fiscal facts after budget adoption, survey results when methods are published, and trends when a comparable full year is available. Update only the dates attached to facts actually rechecked.

Readers can send a correction, a public source or a substantive disagreement. We distinguish a factual correction from a change in recommendation, and retain an explanation of meaningful revisions.

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