About Borrowing

  • How many items can I borrow at a time?
    • You can have up to 30 items checked out on your card at a time. (The day you get your card, you can check out three (3) items; once you bring those back, you can have up to 30).
  • What can I borrow and for how long?
    • Audiobooks: up to four (4) at a time for three (3) weeks
    • Blu-Rays & DVDs: up to four (4) at a time for one (1) week
    • Books: up to 30 at a time for three (3) weeks
    • CDs: up to four (4) at a time for three (3) weeks
    • Hotspot: one available for up to one (1) week
    • Magazines: up to ten (10) at a time for three (3) weeks
    • Media (Wonderbooks; Launchpads, Playaways): up to four (4) at a time for three (3) weeks
    • Park Passes: one at a time for up to one (1) week
    • Puzzles: up to four (4) at a time for three (3) weeks
    • Telehealth Kit: one available to borrow for up to one (1) week
    • Video Games: up to four (4) at a time for one (1) week
  • How do I renew items?
    • Your items will automatically renew two (2) days before their due date unless someone else has them on hold or if you have reached your renewal limit (usually up to two times).
  • How do I place items on hold?
    • Visit the online catalog and place a hold using your library card, or call the library at (607) 753-1042.
      • To place a hold using the library’s online catalog:
        1. Conduct a search and identify the item you wish to request.
        2. Click on the Place Hold Request button to the right of the title information.
        3. Enter your Barcode Number and Password in the corresponding fields. (Your password will be the last 4 digits of your phone number.)
        4. Click on the drop down menu next to Pickup Library and select the library where you will pick up the item.
        5. Click on Submit Request.
        6. Verify your contact information.
    • You can have up to ten (10) holds at a time.
    • Once your hold is in, it will be held for seven (7) days before going back to its owning library.
    • Unfilled holds expire in 120 days.
  • What’s a “hold”?
    • This is when you select an item from our library or another library in the Finger Lakes Library System to be reserved for you, using your library card number. If it is a Cortland item, we will pull it from our shelf and put it in our hold shelf for you. If it is at another library, it will be pulled from their shelf and put into the delivery that occurs between libraries in our system. You will be notified when your hold is ready to be picked up.
  • How do I return items?
    • You can return items in our book drop on Court Street (outside the Youth Services entrance) 24/7 or during regular library hours at either the Church Street entrance or the Youth Services circulation desk.
  • What else should I know?
    • You can use your Cortland Free Library card at any of the libraries in the Finger Lakes Library System!
    • Your borrowing privileges may be temporarily blocked if you owe more than $10 in fines, if you’ve lost an item, or if you have three current claims (e.g., “claimed returned” or “claimed never borrowed”). You may also encounter a block if your card has expired, but that’s a quick fix with a call or a stop in to the library.
    • New items owned by Cortland Free Library are available exclusively to Cortland County library patrons for the first four (4) months they’re here, then they become available to everyone in the Finger Lakes Library System.
    • Cortland Free Library has eliminated overdue fines, however you’ll still incur fines if items are damaged or lost. Please note the following:
      • 30 days after an item is due, if it has not been returned, it will be considered lost and a billing notice will be sent with a replacement cost for the item. Replacement costs vary by material type and may incur a $5 processing fee. For a full notice schedule, see below.
      • If you borrow items owned by another library, you will still be responsible for any fines still in effect at that library.
    • Reading history feature: Ask us to activate this if you’d like to keep track of the items you borrow. Your reading history, if activated, is available for three (3) years or 1,000 titles.

 

Notice Schedule

  • Three (3) days before an item is due, you’ll get an “Almost Overdue” notice via email.
  • Seven (7) days after an item is due, you’ll get a “First Overdue Notice” by phone, text, or email, whichever is set as your preferred method.
  • 14 days after an item is due, you’ll get a “Second Overdue Notice” by phone, text, or email.
  • 21 days after an item is due, you’ll get a “Third Overdue Notice” by phone, text, or email.
  • 30 days after an item is due, it will be considered lost, and you’ll receive a billing notice, which will include the replacement cost for the item. At this time you will also receive a phone call from one of our staff to help determine if the item is truly missing or if you need help getting it back to the library, etc.
  • 45 days after an item is due, you’ll get a “Fine Notice” with your patron account statement detailing what is owed.

At any time, please feel free to call us at (607) 753-1042 or email reference@cortlandfreelibrary.org or director@cortlandfreelibrary.org to discuss any difficulties you’re having returning materials. We will work with you whenever possible to find a solution.

 

Borrowing Options:

Borrow from Libby / Overdrive

Borrow from Our Catalog

 

Borrow Items by Mail

 

Borrow Museum and Park Passes

 

Borrow Items from TBBL (The Talking Book and Braille Library)