The municipality had a lower level of people at its libraries, but turned it around so much, chief executive Gerry Smith has described the trend as “through the roof”.

Figures showed an 8.97 per cent increase in library users during 2015-16, including those reading eBooks, taking them to 14.17 of the population.

The extra members were due to the first full year of the new Yackandandah Library relocation, Beechworth Library upgrade and extended hours at Chiltern Library.

“The uptake from the community has been fantastic,” Mr Smith said.

“Libraries are as much a reference location as a community hub.”

He said programs run by staff, such as children’s reading groups, drew users to the libraries and were very important to the community.

Chiltern and Rutherglen libraries were the next in Indigo Shire on the list for an upgrade.

Wodonga’s population included 12.13 per cent library users and Wangaratta had 17.4 per cent, but the number had dropped slightly from the previous year.

Next year’s know your council figures will include the first numbers since Wangaratta, Alpine and Benalla councils took back control from the High Country Library Corporation.