Sunday, February 16th, 2025

The mayor called a special meeting May 2 to discuss the fate of the Stayner library, which has been in a state of limbo waiting to know its fate.

Mayor Chris Vanderkruys said a report resulting from a 2007 study and a 2008 committee review recommended more library space was needed at the Stayner branch of the Clearview Public Library.

“It’s time we meet and try to move this forward,” he told fellow council members.

He said this council is already 18 months into its term and he would like to see action before the next election in 2018.

Vanderkruys presented three options to council members and asked them to provide direction to staff and the library board regarding steps forward.

As options for consideration were to maintain status quo with the Stayner branch remaining in its current location on the main street, build a new building at the site or at a new location, or build an addition to the Stayner arena.

Almost all council members said, given unlimited funds they would prefer to see a new library constructed in the downtown core, but seeing as that is not the reality, more information is needed before any decision can be made. They want to know how much space is needed based on updated population projections and what kind of costs they are looking at.

Based on current budgeting, the library reserve will be at $370,000 in 2017. Assuming an allocation of $150,000 per year to reserves the money could be used to pay off a $2.2 million loan debentured over 20 years or $2.7 million over 30 years, using estimated interest rates of 3.25 and 3.75 per cent respectively. There is also $45,000 set aside for architectural plans.

The Stayner library, located in an old house, has had many structural problems over the years and has undergone quite a bit of maintenance – $100,000 has been spent in the past five years to keep the doors open.

CAO Steve Sage summed up the current state of the facility by saying, “We are firefighting instead of fire preventing on that building.”

Councillor Robert Walker said maintaining the status quo is not an option for him. He said the Stayner branch is too small and is lacking in programs.

“Libraries are not just about books,” he said, adding they are important centres for culture and newcomer resources.

Councillor Connie Leishman, who sits on the library board, said she would prefer a standalone library downtown because a vital downtown is very important and Stayner is growing.

“The community centre is not my first wish,” she said. “I have a lot of wishes but when it comes to the end of the day I would like to see it sooner than later.”

Councillor Deborah Bronée said it comes back to money and was reluctant to support an addition to the arena saying, in her opinion, there is already too much underutilized space in Clearview.

Councillor Shawn Davidson said seeing how it seems that Byng Public School is likely to close as a result of a current pupil accommodation review of Stayner schools, the building and school property may eventually be sold. He suggested the township look at acquiring the property, using a portion of the building for a library and finding a developer to build a seniors complex and/or affordable housing on the schoolyard portion of the property.

“If we have $3- or $4-million to spend we need to figure out if that property fits into our equation and if it fits into the downtown revitalization project,” said Davidson.

He acknowledged the Byng plan pushes the library relocation back at least three years, and there is a level of uncertainty.

The possibility of partnering with the proposed Stayner high school and elementary school hub for library services was not discussed at the meeting but Vanderkruys said afterward that the option would be explored through the creation of the business plan.

The library board did included it as an option in its report to council. It reported that on two occasions the board attempted to partner with SCDSB in connection with Nottawa Public School and Byng Public School, saying they were “rebuffed or ignored in both cases”.

The board states its preferred option is to stick with an old plan to locate the library on the former Stayner Feed Mill property.

“Eventually, the township did acquire the property and it is currently assigned to the library. It remains the preferred option of the library board. The vision of a redevelopment of the property presented to council recently is much the same as what the board recommended to council in 2009. Although there was no specific mention of the library being included in this vision, it is expected that having proposed the plan, the library would still be considered for inclusion. It has recently been suggested that the library might occupy the ground floor of a four story mixed use building within the vision as presented,” states the report.

The downside of that option is that, again, it is not a quick fix and the board says the need for a new library building is urgent.

Council has directed staff and the library board to determine what size is needed for the Stayner branch, preferred locations with estimated costs, including a review of the current facility, partnership agreements and funding opportunities and to develop a regional library service plan to include all residents of the township.

The last part is to address a concern raised by Councillor Doug Measures who said most Nottawa residents don’t go to Stayner and want to access the library in Collingwood but so far, Clearview has been unsuccessful in establishing a reciprocal borrowing agreement.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *