Nearly a dozen tool libraries are operating in the Puget Sound region and Kirkland is aiming to join the club.
A few years ago I undertook a home improvement project that involved putting loops at the end of some heavy steel wire. To do this, you need what’s called a “swaging tool,” which looks like a pair of bolt cutters, but instead of blades, it has little cutouts to crimp metal ferrules down on the cable and hold it securely. So I did what most folks do – hopped in my car and drove to Harbor Freight, where I plunked down 30 bucks for an implement of questionable quality. I used the tool (it worked fine) for the project, and it has been hanging unused in my garage ever since.
What a waste – of money, of space, and of stuff. I have countless examples of tools I have purchased for one project: screen spline rollers, a heat gun, car trim removers, an obscenely large adjustable wrench. The list goes on.
If, like me, you are fortunate enough to have an oversized garage and some disposable income, you might not think this is so terrible. In a society that glorifies consumption at all costs, this is even normal – it’s why places like Harbor Freight exist. When you know you’re only going to use it once, it doesn’t make sense to actually invest in a quality tool. But what if I told you there was a way to spend less, consume less, and get access to high-quality tools, even if you don’t have the space to store them? Enter the humble tool library.
A tool library is exactly what it sounds like – a place where you can borrow the tools you need, just for the time you need them. Just like book libraries get high-quality books that can survive being read hundreds of times, tool libraries have high-quality, well-maintained tools that have already been proven to do the job. Additionally, you get access to a community of people who can help you understand how to use the tool, and maybe even give you some tips on your next project.
Tool libraries can host classes, sell common consumables (like paint rollers or fasteners), offer space for working on your bike, and serve as a nucleation site for enduring social connections. Want to plant a small garden? An integrated seed library can get you started. If you live in an apartment or have limited space – which is increasingly likely – you can borrow a carpet cleaner or a catering set for your next (small) dinner party. If the library uses widely-available services like MyTurn, you can browse, reserve, review, and report issues with tools right from your home computer or mobile device.
In the Puget Sound area, there are already nearly a dozen operating tool libraries. Seattle REconomy is a nonprofit focused on promoting sustainability and community via tool libraries, and they run both the Northeast Seattle Tool Library and the Shoreline Tool Library. Josh Epstein, Seattle REconomy’s executive director, has been working in the space for the past five years.
“People get the idea of a tool library as soon as you first explain it,” says Epstein, “They immediately see the benefit of not buying, storing, and owning something that they only use once or twice a year.”
At this point, Seattle REconomy has the mechanism of running tool libraries down: their part-time staff of about five full-time-equivalents includes folks doing multiple jobs across the two current locations: an operations director, marketing manager, education manager, bike shack manager, volunteer manager, and reuse store manager. Scaling up to additional locations would likely mean adding more hours to the roles they already have, along with a small number of location-specific personnel.
As part of the Tool Library Alliance, Epstein helped create the Library of Things Toolkit, along with Shareable.net, which details everything from how to set membership costs, find suitable space, navigate liability issues, and everything in between. Because they’ve solved so many of the common problems, working with Seattle REconomy means coming up with two things: space and startup funding.
For space, Epstein recommends a location where a long-term lease of 10 or more years is possible. “We can do three years at a bare minimum, if it’s the only option,” he says, “but a longer lease means we are able to make investments in the space that pay dividends in the long term.”
As regards startup funding, Epstein says the organization only needs it for the first couple years of operation. Beyond that, they work quickly to attain self-sufficiency from a variety of funding sources. “We like to say, ‘Grants are for growth,’” notes Epstein.
At the Shoreline location, the tool library began as an initiative of the City of Shoreline. Partnering with nearby Lake Forest Park, they applied for and won a King County Re+ Grant, bringing in almost $100,000. The Washington Department of Ecology also chipped in $120,000 over two years. Since the opening, the County has been very supportive, adding even more funding to expand every single program.
With more than 3,400 members between the two current locations, the average of $53 they collect from each member actually forms the lion’s share of the operating budget. They offer memberships at various levels depending on ability to pay: $80 for a standard membership to all of their libraries, $50 for a student or senior discounted membership, $160 for a “community supporter” membership that sponsors another person who cannot pay, and they also accept in-kind contributions in the form of volunteering and tool donations.
Volunteers are a huge part of both the NE Seattle and Shoreline Tool Libraries, and they come mainly from two groups, Epstein says. First is retired folks who still want to be doing something productive for their communities: serving on the board, handling check-in/check-out as librarians, or repairing and maintaining tools. The second group is skilled professionals who are looking for fulfillment they aren’t finding in their day jobs: marketers, software engineers, web designers, etc.
Volunteering is also the primary way people are finding community at the Shoreline Tool Library. It’s easy to make connections when you have a shared purpose with a fellow volunteer and run into them frequently for an overlapping shift. Educational programs and events that use the community space are also building social capital. “Members come together, but politics don’t come up,” says Epstein.
Kirkland’s Quest for a Tool Library
Back in late 2023, when I needed some tools to build the A-frame sign for Coffee Outside, I reached out to friends for some of the tools I would need. For those interested, I had a miter saw, but I needed a pocket screw jig, a sander, and a router. A friend lent me the sander and router, but I wound up buying the pocket screw jig.
The thought of the swaging tool came back to me all over again and I decided it was time to do something about it. I started by reaching out to my Kirkland City Council members, as well as getting in touch with city staff members working in relevant areas. Kirkland City Council member Amy Falcone latched on to the idea right away.
“When Kurt introduced this idea to me, I was thrilled by the potential. It’s an innovative initiative that supports our residents, reduces waste, and encourages the sharing of resources,” says Falcone, “It’s also a practical step towards achieving the goals outlined in our city’s sustainability plans.”
We quickly followed with several invigorating meetings at City Hall talking with Kirkland Solid Waste Programs Lead Jenna McInnis and Senior Sustainability Planner David Barnes, both of whom were immediately on board. After reaching out to Josh Epstein and Seattle REconomy, we took a field trip to the grand opening of the Shoreline Tool Library on January 6, 2024.
What we saw really cemented that this was something we wanted in our community. Over the following months, we shopped the idea to more staff members and council members, including Mayor Kelli Curtis and Penny Sweet. Liveable Kirkland put up a page on its website dedicated to the Tool Library project and promoted it at local events. We held multiple Zoom meetings with Seattle REconomy. Eventually, working with staff and councilmembers during the Kirkland 2044 Comprehensive Plan update, I helped the project find a home in the City’s highest-level planning document, as part of the Sustainability, Climate, and Environment (SCE) element.
Policy SCE-4.12: Work locally and regionally with partners and the community to develop multiple facilities that house and promote equitable access to hand and electric tools, re-use of building materials, and other usable materials to foster a reuse community and strengthen existing tool swapping or re-use, promote equitable access to resources, and reduce embodied carbon waste, energy use and emissions.
Now that the City has adopted the comprehensive plan, we have two big remaining hurdles: finding a space, and securing funding for the first two years of operations. With federal funding for much of anything in serious jeopardy, we will have to look to the county or the state for grants, possibly including funds from the recently upheld Climate Commitment Act. With enough community support in Kirkland, we might even be able to crowdfund to supplement operations costs until the project reaches financial self-sustenance.
What you can do in your community
I have yet to meet a person who was not enthusiastic about our project to bring a tool library to Kirkland; the idea sells itself. I see many folks light up with, “Where is this located? Can I join?” Of course, they are crestfallen when I explain that this is a project for a new tool library that doesn’t yet exist. Many urbanist goals have a habit of stirring up opposition almost immediately. Reducing car dependency, allowing more housing of all types, building bicycle and transit infrastructure – our bread and butter issues – often find us girding for a battle.
A tool library, on the other hand, is something you can support without having to worry about reactionary backlash. At least, I have yet to see yard signs with disinformation about tool libraries. What you do have to overcome is complacency and inertia. Someone has to push to make projects happen and this is no different. If you’re interested in having a tool library in your city (and you should be!), tell someone. Write to your city council. Go talk to your city’s staff. Put up a cheap website. Maybe you can be there helping hold the wooden ribbon on opening day while someone cuts it with a chainsaw.
Kurt Dresner is obsessed with finding and building community. He moved to Kirkland in 2009 for a software engineering job, first renting in Houghton, then taking a brief detour through Kenmore before settling in Kirkland’s Everest Neighborhood, where he serves as vice-chair of the Everest Neighborhood Association. Additionally, he’s a cofounder of Liveable Kirkland, an organization dedicated to improving sustainability and quality of life in Kirkland through building more homes, providing more transportation options, and fostering complete communities.
