Goff-Nelson Memorial Library Director Ben Gocker gets some help with a story time activity on the Tupper Lake library’s Facebook page. (Photo provided)

LAKE PLACID — After being closed to the public for more than two months amid the coronavirus pandemic, the Lake Placid Public Library will begin offering curbside service Monday, according to Director Bambi Pedu.

The Lake Placid library closed its doors on March 16. The Goff-Nelson Memorial Library in Tupper Lake, which began offering curbside service on Tuesday, May 27, closed on March 17. The Saranac Lake Free Library, which will begin front-door pickup service on June 9, closed on March 16.

The Lake Placid library will begin offering curbside service for in-house materials only, as inter-library loan materials are not available right now through the Clinton-Essex-Franklin Library System. To make a request, either call 518-523-3200, email lkp@lakeplacidlibrary.org or send a message to the library’s Facebook page. People can pick up their items — limited to two at a time for now — at the front door of the library, located at 2471 Main St.

Staying at least 6 feet apart, people are asked to wear a face mask and access the front porch using the ramp, exiting on the stairs. People who need to access the the ramp for both entry and exit should let the staff know. There will be hand sanitizer at the pick-up station.

Anyone needing help finding a book or looking for suggestions should contact the library call or browse the online catalog at www.lakeplacidlibrary.org.

To look up a book:

• click on the “library catalog” tab;

• on the left drop down bar, choose Lake Placid Public Library;

• and on the middle drop down bar, choose how you want to search (i.e. title, author, etc.).

• On the remaining bar, type in the title, author, etc. (spelling sensitive!).

• When the item you want appears, look to see that LPPL owns the book. You can also see whether it is checked in or out.

• Call, email or message to request the book.

The hours of operation have been temporarily limited to 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.

People can also search for books on the CEF Library System website — cefls.org — by logging in with their library card number and pin number and limit their search to the particular library they are using for pick-up.

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Saranac Lake

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The Saranac Lake Free Library, located at 109 Main St., remains closed to the public. Although it will begin front-door pick-up of materials on June 9, staff will start answering the phone during regular business hours on June 2, according to Director Peter Benson.

People can either look up books on the CEF Library System website or call to see if a book is available. Anyone ordering material should call the library at 518-891-4190, and the staff will arrange for a pick-up time and date at the front door. Books are returned in the drop-off box in the front.

“We’re going to quarantine all books for at least five days,” Benson said Thursday. “That’s an important component.”

Benson said he has been getting COVID-19 safety guidance from the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Library Association.

Phone is the easiest way to get in touch with the library, but people may also send emails to saranaclakefreelibrary@gmail.com.

The library hours are 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday to Friday and 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. For more information, visit the library’s Facebook page and website, www.slfl.org.

Benson was surprised that the Saranac Lake Free Library has seen such a large increase in requests for its electronic collection during the pandemic, for ebooks and downloadable audio books.

“I expected an increase, but I didn’t expect it to double,” he said.

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Tupper Lake

— The Goff-Nelson Memorial Library, located at 41 Lake St., remains closed to the public, and the curbside service is for in-house materials only, according to Director Ben Gocker.

“It’s going pretty well,” Gocker said Thursday about the curbside service. About a dozen people had requested materials in the first two days, and Gocker has been helping patrons with updating their accounts. He had been offering a story time program daily on the library’s Facebook page, but he was taking a break this week to work on the partial reopening.

“We resumed ordering books,” he said, adding new books may arrive next week.

As a bonus, the sale books in the lobby — where people are picking up materials — are free. The hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, and 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday. For more information, call 518-359-9421, email goffnelson@gmail.com or check out the library’s Facebook page and website, tupperlakepublib.wordpress.com.