So, I checked with Dee, who is the director of the North Liberty Public Library. To them, “a patron is a patron is a patron.” In other words, they check anything/everything out to anybody who walks through the door and is a cardholder in good standing. If they had over-sized chess pieces, they would let me check them out. Even though I live in Coralville. And it’s not just because they know me and like me there. They would let some guy off the street in Iowa City (as long as he had a real address) check them out, too.
I THINK that’s the case at the Coralville library, too. They don’t make distinctions based on where you live.
I even checked the Cedar Rapids library (30 miles away)…I can’t quite tell from their website, but it looks like they charge a small fee for renting equipment…it doesn’t say they won’t rent to people outside of Cedar Rapids, though. Unfortunately, they don’t have chess pieces.
I wonder if ANYONE has over-sized chess pieces for rent? I don’t think the Iowa City library could stop me from using the giant board outside the library…they just don’t have to let me use their pieces.