The Ann Arbor District Library is the Ann Arbor city public library. It has a variety of resources, from novels and reference books to music CDs and DVDs. The AADL's services are available free of charge to all residents of the Ann Arbor school district, and for a fee to others.
The AADL website is a cutting edge system that not only has all of the features of older library web sites, but also has many Web 2.0 features. The site is built on the content management system, Drupal, and patrons can publish their own blogs, post comments to blog posts, and subscribe to RSS feeds. In addition, users can view fines due (if any), items currently checked out, and much more.
The Library provides free Wi-Fi access and public computers in various levels at their branches.
This is a meeting room available for reservations through a program called aadlFreeSpace. You can have a room free of charge 4 times per year for your organization. Other rooms at branches are available for rent. The Mallett's Creek, Pittsfield, and Downtown branches also have study rooms available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Branches
- Downtown - Fifth Avenue (at the corner of Fifth Avenue at William Street, across from the Blake Transit Center and the Old YMCA).
- Malletts Creek - 3090 E. Eisenhower Parkway (just west of the Eisenhower Packard split, near Stone School Road).
- Northeast - Plymouth Road (in the Plymouth Road Plaza)
- Pittsfield - 2359 Oak Valley Drive (just south of the Ice Cube)
- West - South Maple Road at West Stadium Boulevard (in the Westgate Shopping Center)
DVDs
One of the best things about the library is its amazing DVD collection. You can go to the AADL website, and either request DVDs by title or just look at what's new and/or hot. All rentals are free and you can see where you are in the line for a given movie by looking at your account. Talk about a cheap thrill!
Ann Arbor Reads
Every year, AADL conducts an Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti Reads program. They choose a book that the whole community is encouraged to read, then the library puts on a bunch of presentations and events to discuss the book. This year (2007) the theme "We the People" is exemplified in Tracy Kidder's Mountains Beyond Mountains, a profile of Dr. Paul Farmer, an infectious diseases specialist, and his quest to "cure the world.". It's not too late to get your copy from the library and join in the fun.
Reference
The reference desk at (734) 327-4525 answers questions free of charge, though they don't do your homework for you. Or contact the reference desk through their online form to have your answer emailed back to you.
Management and Board
- Josie Parker, director
- Barbara Murphy, board member
- Ed Surovell, board member
