The phrase "24/7" isn't always reserved for gas stations and fast-food restaurants. Book lovers will be able to visit the library at any hour when a new 24-hour "library in a box" is installed in western Licking County later this year.

The phrase �24/7� isn't always reserved for gas stations and fast-food restaurants.



Book lovers will be able to visit the library at any hour when a new 24-hour �library in a box� is installed in western Licking County later this year.



The Licking County Library system announced Wednesday that the new EnvisionWare standalone library will be installed this fall in the parking lot at the Central Ohio Technical College Pataskala campus at E. Broad Street and Taylor Road in Reynoldsburg.



A photo of the �library� shows what looks like a large ATM, but with a window full of books and library materials. The unit will hold between 350 to 400 items, including books, DVDs and audio books and will feature a Wi-Fi hotspot, a book return and a portal to download free digital eBooks, pay late fees and place holds. The structure will measure about 13 feet wide, 5 � feet deep and 8 feet tall, according to manufacturer's information.



Even though the library will only hold a few hundred items, community members can also select from the more than 8 million items in the library�s online catalog, and get a notification when the item is ready for pickup at that location, said Licking County Library Director Babette Wofter.



The self-service location will expand library services to the heavily-populated western side of Licking County, and to those who may not make the trip to main Newark library or other branches, Wofter said.



�I�m just so excited to see what the response will be and I really hope that it will fill a need and that people will make the most of it,� she said.



Meghaan Hilgert, who was headed to the Pataskala Public Library Wednesday morning with her three young children, said the 24/7 library could come in handy, especially when the local branch is closed on Sundays, or when her family gets an early start in the mornings before the libraries open.



�That�s pretty neat,� she said. �That would definitely be something that we check out.�



The 24/7 library was purchased with funds generated from a 1-mill library levy approved by voters in 2014, as well as about $100,000 in grant money, Wofter said.



Other libraries in Ohio, including Worthington�s, have started experimenting with library vending machines in their communities, but Licking County�s 24/7 box library is thought to be a first in Ohio, Wofter said.



It�s another example of Ohio libraries looking for alternative methods for delivering materials, said Douglas Evans, executive director of the Ohio Library Council.



�The libraries have done a very good job of adapting to the customer needs and looking at the current retail experience and adopting that, and offering the full range of needs that are out there in today�s customer base,� he said.