Meeting Rooms

Our meet­ing spaces are not in use due to the COVID-19 pan­dem­ic. We plan to reopen for inside pro­grams and meet­ings when COVID num­bers are on the decline and it is safe for staff and patrons fol­low­ing CDC, DeKalb Coun­ty Board of Health and oth­er gov­ern­ing agen­cies’ recommendations. 

Meet­ing Rooms FAQ

Who can use the meet­ing spaces?

DeKalb Coun­ty Pub­lic Library serves DeKalb Coun­ty cit­i­zens with a wide vari­ety of mate­ri­als, ser­vices and pro­grams. In addi­tion, some branch­es have meet­ing spaces for use by indi­vid­u­als and non-prof­it orga­ni­za­tions as defined by the Meet­ing Space Pol­i­cy.

What pur­pose do these meet­ing spaces serve?

The meet­ing spaces serve two purposes:

• pro­vide space for library-spon­sored, library co-spon­sored, or local gov­ern­ment pro­grams for the public
• pro­vide space for indi­vid­u­als or non-prof­it orga­ni­za­tions for the pur­pose of non-prof­it activ­i­ties sup­port­ing the Library’s mission

Pri­or­i­ty use of the rooms will be giv­en to library-relat­ed pro­grams and activ­i­ties. Meet­ing spaces are not avail­able for pure­ly social pur­pos­es, or for the ben­e­fit or self-pro­mo­tion of indi­vid­u­als or com­mer­cial con­cerns. Admis­sion fees can­not be charged to atten­dees and the meet­ing must be open to the public.

Who can use the meet­ing spaces?

An appli­cant who:

• has a cur­rent DeKalb Coun­ty Pub­lic Library card not blocked by unpaid fines or fees
• meets the eli­gi­bil­i­ty require­ments as defined by the Meet­ing Space Policy
• com­pletes the meet­ing space appli­ca­tion and sub­mits the required fee

When can meet­ing spaces be used?

Events sched­uled in the meet­ing spaces must begin dur­ing library hours of oper­a­tion. Library hours vary from branch to branch. Con­tact the branch of your choice to deter­mine avail­abil­i­ty. If use of the meet­ing space is to extend after library hours, there is a non-refund­able charge of $20.00 per hour or par­tial hour to pro­vide for staff to close and secure the build­ing. Extend­ed hours are only avail­able when the branch is open dur­ing the evening. Extend­ed hours can­not go beyond 9:00 p.m. and must be arranged when the space is reserved.

How are the meet­ing spaces equipped?

All library meet­ing spaces have tables, chairs, a podi­um, and access to kitchen facil­i­ties with refrig­er­a­tors, sinks and microwaves. Some have large cof­fee pots and audio­vi­su­al equip­ment. Please check with indi­vid­ual branch­es to reserve equipment.

Can refresh­ments be served?

Light refresh­ments are restrict­ed to the fol­low­ing bev­er­ages and food: cof­fee, tea, soda, punch, cook­ies, bagels, dough­nuts, fruit, veg­eta­bles, chips and dip.

How large are the meet­ing spaces?

Rooms vary in size and max­i­mum occu­pan­cy (as set by the DeKalb Coun­ty Fire Depart­ment). Occu­pan­cy lev­els are list­ed below.

Is there a fee?

Non-refund­able fees are charged for use of our meet­ing spaces. Fees are:

• $20.00 for less than 4 hours of use for a meet­ing or con­fer­ence room
• $35.00 for more than 4 hours of use for a meet­ing or con­fer­ence room
• $75.00 for less than 4 hours of use for an auditorium
• $100 for more than 4 hours of use for an auditorium

How does one reserve a meet­ing space?

An appli­ca­tion must be sub­mit­ted for each meet­ing space use. This application:

• may be down­loaded here
• may be request­ed in per­son or by telephone
• must be sub­mit­ted in per­son at the loca­tion being requested
• must be sub­mit­ted with the non-refund­able fee
• must be sub­mit­ted at least 14 days pri­or to the event
• may be sub­mit­ted up to three months in advance

Appli­cants will be noti­fied of approval with­in one week. While approval is pend­ing, the request­ed date may be ten­ta­tive­ly sched­uled. If an appli­ca­tion is denied, the appli­ca­tion fee will be refund­ed by mail with­in two weeks. Library staff can dis­cuss dates, poli­cies, pro­ce­dures and equip­ment avail­abil­i­ty with the appli­cant by tele­phone or in per­son. In addi­tion, the appli­cant may also request a tour of the meet­ing space.

What are the applicant’s respon­si­bil­i­ties for using the meet­ing space?

The respon­si­bil­i­ties are:

• arrange fur­nish­ings for meet­ing and return them to their orig­i­nal place afterwards
• fol­low library poli­cies, includ­ing the Meet­ing Space Policy
• com­ply with the max­i­mum occu­pan­cy limit
• com­plete the Meet­ing Space Security/​Exit Checklist
• take pre­cau­tions against dam­age to the meet­ing space and kitchen facilities
• pro­vide pro­gram infor­ma­tion and detailed direc­tions to attendees

Library staff is not avail­able to deliv­er mes­sages to pro­gram par­tic­i­pants. The Library is not respon­si­ble for equip­ment, sup­plies, mate­ri­als or oth­er items owned by the user. Items and sup­plies need­ed by the user must be brought on the day of the sched­uled activ­i­ty and removed at the end of the activity.

Can the event be pub­li­cized in the library?

Pub­lic­i­ty is the respon­si­bil­i­ty of the indi­vid­ual or group reserv­ing the meet­ing space. In adver­tise­ments, please include the date, time, loca­tion, direc­tions to the library, and the con­tact num­ber of the spon­sor. The library’s tele­phone num­ber and address may not be used to direct ques­tions about the event or to receive mail. If the group would like to pub­li­cize its event in the library, please sub­mit pub­lic­i­ty for approval to Library Administration.

What hap­pens if the appli­cant must cancel?

The fee is non-refund­able. If a can­cel­la­tion is made at least 48 hours in advance of the event, the appli­cant may sched­ule anoth­er date with­in the next three months at the same loca­tion where the orig­i­nal event was sched­uled at no addi­tion­al charge. If the event is can­celled by the library due to an emer­gency, the fee will be refund­ed by mail with­in two weeks, unless library staff is able to assist in sched­ul­ing anoth­er library meet­ing space.

Libraries with Meet­ing Spaces