Canadian cities spending big on new libraries

Saskatoon needs one, too, but are we willing to pay for it?

Plans for a new downtown library in Saskatoon have been discussed for more than a decade, so it seemed odd to hear public consultations will begin in January.

Library director Carol Cooley appeared in front of city council to explain how the dream of replacing or updating the antiquated Frances Morrison Central Library might become reality.

The library plans to consult residents for three months starting in January, including an online survey. Cooley said she plans to have a detailed proposal prepared in a year to 18 months. She also promised a business case for a new library.

That case is being made elsewhere. There’s no shortage of cities in Canada willing to spend money on new central libraries.

Calgary seems the best example. For a city that has appeared skeptical about ponying up millions for a new arena, it may be a surprising place to find a $245-million new central library slated to open next year. The building will cost nearly as much as Regina’s new Mosaic Stadium ($278 million).

The money comes largely through a community investment fund, but it’s a huge show of faith in the relevance of libraries when some think the digital revolution has rendered them obsolete.

Edmonton is spending $69 million to revamp its downtown library, which is scheduled to reopen in 2020. Ottawa is planning a $168-million library as part of efforts to redevelop a central part of the nation’s capital. The City of Ottawa is paying $99 million of the cost.

Mid-sized cities are building new libraries, too. Halifax opened its new $57.6-million, 120,000-sq.-ft library in 2014. It bears a striking resemblance to the Remai Modern Art Gallery of Saskatchewan.

Unsurprisingly, any consideration of a big public project leads back to the city’s controversial new gallery. The cost of building it and the parkade below it has ballooned to more than $104 million and it’s estimated to be another $4 million over budget. Lawsuits have already been launched between the companies that built it.

That experience will make any new project a tough sell in Saskatoon.

But the downtown library is badly outdated, nobody can argue that. Cooley told council the building, which dates back to 1966, was deemed 17 years ago to fall short of fire, mechanical, electrical and accessibility codes.

While finding money to pay for a new downtown library — estimated last year at between $80 million and $120 million — promises to be difficult, proving the library’s value to the community appears easier.

The library counted 1.4 million visits to its nine branches in 2016 and visits are on track to increase two per cent in 2017. That compares to about 900,000 annual visits to the TCU Place performing arts centre and convention space, 800,000 visits to SaskTel Centre arena and 220,000 visits expected at the Remai Modern.

Like the Mendel Art Gallery and TCU Place (formerly Centennial Auditorium), its age sparks inevitable debate about repairing versus replacing.

A study expected early next year will explore the possibility of a new downtown convention centre and the potential to combine it with a new arena. How will a mega-project-weary Saskatoon afford all this?

Cooley said last year the library has $6 million stashed in a reserve fund for a new downtown branch. She also confirmed the library is willing to consider a lease arrangement.

An abandoned plan to redevelop the former police station into student housing towers would have leased space for a new downtown library. The soon-to-be-empty Sears building has also been suggested.

Cooley said the new library will be paid for through fundraising and the library’s property tax levy, which is poised to increase by zero per cent this year.

Calgary and Halifax offered up naming opportunities to help fund their new libraries, but still needed mostly taxpayer money to build them. Saskatoon’s library brain trust will soon hear what this city’s residents think about a similar path.