CLAYTON— The Rabun County Public Library lobby is once again closed to the public following Gov. Brian Kemp’s executive order on July 15 that bars local governments from mandating the wearing of masks on public property.
Caroline Frick, library manager, said that the decision to close the lobby was one of concern for public safety.
“Since we felt with the rising number of cases in Rabun County and across the state, the mask requirement was one of the reasons we could stay open,” Frick said.
While open, the library had put precautions in place to protect patrons which included requiring them to wear masks. The library provided fabric masks for those patrons who needed them.
Kemp’s executive order 07.15.20.01 “Providing additional guidance for Empowering a Healthy Georgia in response to COVID-19 reads “…any state, county or municipal law, order, ordinance, rule, or regulation that requires persons to wear face coverings, masks, face shields, or any other Personal Protective Equipment while in places of public accommodation or on public property are suspended to the extent that they are more restrictive than this executive order.”
The executive order does encourage residents and visitors to Georgia to wear masks, but customers cannot be turned away for refusing to wear a mask.
Library still servicing customers
Library hours are Monday-Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and many services are still being offered.
There is 24/7 access to the Wi-Fi and there are two iPads that patrons can check out to use.
These are 30-minute checkout periods and it’s first come, first serve, Frick said.
Call the library at 706-782-3731 (option no.2) to check out an iPad.
The library also offers remote printing from a phone or tablet.
To print in black and white, email the document to rabunbw@libdataprint.com and in color email to rabuncolor@libdataprint.com
The cost is 25 cents per page for black and white and 50 cents per page for color.
“The system will hold their print job for 3 hours,” Frick said.
To obtain the copies, call the library at 706-782-3731 (option no. 2) and a librarian will bring the prints out to the white table located at the front entrance of the building. The patron can then leave their money on the table when they pick up the prints.
“If they have correct change, that can help us,” Frick said. But she said that they will give change when needed.
If someone wants to pay by credit card, they can call the library and that can be worked out as well.
Frick said that they can also do copying. Customers should place the item they want copied and the payment on the white table and call, and the copy will be retrieved by a staff member and placed back on the table with the requested number.
The cost for copying is the same as printing, Frick said.
The library is also offering curbside pickup of items on hold with or without reservations.
To place an item on hold, patrons should go to rabuncountylibrary.org and click on the “PINES” link to search the catalog.
Books from other libraries can be requested and brought to Rabun as well.
If someone does not have a reservation, they would simply call and a staff member will retrieve their item they placed on hold.