The Whitefish Community Library is celebrating its first birthday.

It was one year ago that the Whitefish library re-opened as a city-run facility after parting ways with the county.

The library endured a rough start as the ownership of thousands of books in the library came into question and became part of a lawsuit. It’s shelves were a bit sparse while the lawsuit was making its way through the courts.

Today when Director Joey Kositzky looks out over the library she says she’s proud of how far it has come.

“When we separated from the county we started a new library,” she said. “It’s been a really successful year.”

The library has added more than 10,000 items to its inventory. Its increased the number of patrons visiting the library to between 350 and 400 per day.

“Each month the number of items checked out increases,” Kositzky said. “Our shelves are full because of donations. It feels like a success.”

When the library opened last July its shelves were a bit sparse as it waited for the resolution of a court dispute between the library and the Flathead County Library System. Some eight months after a lawsuit was filed a resolution resulted in the return of many of the materials to Whitefish. Also returned was a microfilm reader and an archive of the Whitefish Pilot. About 30 pieces of furniture were also returned.

Last Thursday the library held a birthday party with balloons and cake for its patrons. However, many folks at the library that day were there just to use the library itself. A short line was waiting at the checkout counter, a few people searched the rows of shelves, several of the computers were full and a large group of youngsters sat down for storytime.

That’s exactly what Kositzky wants to see.

The library has made an effort to listen to its patrons, in part through a survey, and respond. The library has adjusted its hours, added computers and provided additional programs based on the public’s input.

“The most important thing is that we listen to the community,” Kositzky said. “We work for them.”

In addition to the books housed in Whitefish, the library has also joined the Montana Shared Catalog, and the state Partners consortium enabling it to share materials with libraries across the state. The library also joined Montanalibrary2Go to provide digital access to ebooks.

Kositzky said the library hopes to conduct another survey and is prioritizing its plans for the next year. Technology will continue to be an important aspect, she noted.

The library was the recipient of several awards in the last year. Namely the 2011 Great Fish Award from the Whitefish Community Foundation, which came with a $1,000 grant and honors for service to the community. The library also received a certificate of award from the Montana State Library for collection management and earned a Books for Children grant from the Libri Foundation for a selection of about 70 children’s books.

“So many people said we wouldn’t be able to do it, but we did,” Kositzky said. “We live in an incredible valley and people all over have helped. It takes a community — I’m so proud of what we’ve done.”