Visit

HOURS - ALL FLOORS OF THE LIBRARY ARE CURRENTLY OPEN! 

Under the pandemic, we're open 7 days a week during the following hours:

• Monday through Friday: 9 a.m. – 9 p.m.
• Saturday:  9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
• Sunday: 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.

If you're planning a visit, be sure to check our special hours and closing dates.

Getting here and parking

The library sits right in downtown Des Plaines. We're on the south side of the Metra tracks. Our address is:

1501 Ellinwood Street Des Plaines, Illinois 60016

You can get here by car, train, and bus.

Parking

You can park in the municipal garage behind the library or in the parking spaces in Library Plaza. Most of the parking spots are 2 or 3 hours spots. Please make sure that you follow the posted rules about parking.

Need a longer parking time? Use the commuter lot with meters over at Metropolitan Square, on the other side of Northwest Highway.

Public transportation

It is easy to reach the Library from the Metra's Union Pacific Northwest line—the Des Plaines stop is directly in front of (north of) the Library. Six Pace bus lines also stop at the Metra station or across Miner Street from the station: 208, 209, 226, 230, 234, 250.

What you can do here

Libraries are so much more than just warehouses for books (of course we have over 250,000 of those too). Here are some of the things you can do and the services we provide for you. Please note that some of these services are not available during the Covid-19 pandemic:

• Use a public computer.
• Bring your laptop and use our public wifi.
• Use our printers, scanners, and fax machines.
• Reserve a study room. 
• Attend an event or class.
• Get help from our awesome staff.

Do you need a library card?

Learn more about getting a library card or using your home library's card.

For our visitors with special needs

If you have special needs or accommodations, visit our accessibility page to learn how we try to help you.