When COVID-19 closures were announced, one of the first things that the IT department at the Innisfil ideaLAB & Library did was to reconfigure the WiFi availability.
The idea was “to ensure a high-quality, reliable connection, from outside,” said Librarian Kathy Hammer, so that Innisfil residents with poor connectivity at home could still access the internet at the Lakeshore, Cookstown and Stroud branches.
The WiFi ‘hot spot’ in front of the Lakeshore Library was also equipped with electrical outlets, and the Hack-Lab built Muskoka chairs and tables, to make users comfortable.
But ideaLAB staff recognized that there was still a gap in service.
While those residents who had their own devices – tablets, computers, iPads – could use the free WiFi, there were others who did not have access to the technology, who under normal circumstances would have come to the Library to access the hardware, like computers, iPads, printing and faxing services.
As Hammer noted, “Those with the least number of resources are disproportionately impacted” by the pandemic closure. “There were many households that didn’t have the access but also didn’t have the necessary hardware.
“We know that there is a digital divide.”
That set the stage for the next phase of reopening at the Lakeshore Library. While the building at 967 Innisfil Beach Rd. remains closed to the public, at least for now, the back patio has just opened as a kind of Internet café, where Innisfil residents can come to use the library’s iPads and WiFi, at no charge.
All that is required is a library card.
The patio is accessed via a gate at the northwest corner of the rear parking lot, just past the pollinator garden.
Patio participants are asked to take a COVID-19 quiz, before ringing the bell or phoning in to the library to gain admission. For those who lack a cell phone, a tap on the front window can signal arrival.
Once inside the gates, patrons are asked to use the free face masks and hand-sanitizer. Then they’ll be assigned to one of five tables, complete with patio umbrella, and given one of the five iPads currently available.
Only the user and immediate family members can share a table, allowing access to the technology while maintaining social distancing.
“We do in theory have more tables and iPads,” said Hammer, that will be available as demand grows for the outdoor iPad Patio. It’s all “a creative, fun, summery idea to get the technology back in people’s hands that need it,” she said.
The iPad Patio is open Tuesdays to Thursdays from 1 to 8 p.m, and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday at the Lakeshore branch – the same times as the library offers curbside pick-up of library books and resources.
Staff recommend calling ahead of time to book an iPad session - although, Hammer promised, “we will accommodate walk-ups” as quickly as possible. If the patio is at capacity, users will be limited to one hour on the iPads, to minimize the wait.
And to minimize contact between staff and patrons, the ideaLAB has prepared an info sheet on iPad basics – “How to turn it on, how to access email, how to print. Everything to make the service as safe and contactless as possible,” she said.
If printing or faxing is needed, staff will carry out the functions inside the building, then set the printed copies on a separate table outside.
There is even a plexiglass sign on each patio table, made in the Hack Lab, that asks users to set the sign upright when they are done and ready to leave. Upright, the sign reads “Needs Cleaning” – alerting staff to sanitize the table.
The new service was just launched on Tuesday, and “we’ve already got a booking for tomorrow,” Hammer said. “Hopefully the word will get out quickly.”
The next step could be the staged reopening of the library itself. “We are missing our people, and our people are missing us,” Hammer said, but patrons can expect a different kind of library experience, a ‘new normal’ with COVID-19 restrictions in place, when the facility does reopen.
Through all of the pandemic restrictions and the uncertainty, library staff have continued to explore ways to deliver needed services, programs and resources to residents, both online and through innovations like the iPad Patio.
“The staff have been amazing – the creativity and the innovation and the willingness to just try,” Hammer said.
And, she added, “There are more exciting announcements coming!”
Note: Free WiFi is offered outside at the Cookstown and Lakeshore Branches of the ideaLAB Tuesday Thursday from 1 to 8 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Stroud also offers free WiFi from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday to Saturday. Printing and faxing services are also available at the Cookstown and Stroud branches.
