What is your stance on the new central library branch? (question posed by Alex MacPherson of the StarPhoenix to all mayoral candidates)
I don’t believe that a standalone library of this stature should be built. In this digital age, I think a more conservative structure should be envisioned, and I think that that structure should be multi-use so that it ties into other usage groups to help foster cross-use and a higher level of activity throughout the day and evening. The most inefficient building for the city to build and maintain is a standalone structure. Some of the most successful branch libraries in Saskatoon share space alongside other amenities, such as a swimming pool or a hockey rink, for example. If the library is supposed to offer these great spaces and these inviting meeting rooms to draw people in, why not best take advantage of that so that they coexist with other stakeholder groups which would use that facility more often? Is that not in our best interest? Immediately, I would halt any borrowing for the library, and I would work to stop the library from taking another $5 million next year out of city coffers to put in reserves. The city is operating in an emergency situation that this pandemic has created and it seems that some city administration and definitely the library board are oblivious to the actual reality on the ground.
The library board already has enough money to continue with their planning for a structure and it takes years to complete drawings of this nature and to get building permits to start full construction. By asking for one year of reprieve so that we can look at the hardships that are hitting our society and our citizens should not be a big ask from the library board. The library will never be a money-making proposition. The repeated claim that the library will create economic activity is a false statement. The library takes taxpayer funds that were economically generated in our city to provide a service. They are not in the hospitality industry, so this talk of creating another destination is a blind vision by a board that wants their own monument to bookend the other taxpayer-funded monument (the Remai Modern) at the other end of 2nd Avenue. Using the same people to sell taxpayers the same promises made for Remai is becoming thin fast. That the highly paid library executives do not live in the daily financial reality of the average citizen does not excuse their ambivalence.
If they persist with this game that it is their turn and do or die, they will get their money and library; they should hope that I am not elected to head this city. I will be a loud voice against this if I am elected mayor, and it is my hope that many councillors will agree with my view on this emergency situation. As far as failing maintenance issues with the current library building, if the library board properly managed their facility over the long term, these issues would always be properly funded and maintained. If you buy a car and drive it without oil changes or new tires, whose fault is a breakdown later down the road? There is no indication that this library board will physically manage a brand-new building any differently than the older one they siphoned money away from. If they had put some of the millions that they already took from taxpayers into the existing structure they have, would we even be talking about a new library?