It may not be the prettiest building, but Ottawa’s central library isn’t getting a makeover any time soon.
At last week’s meeting of the Ottawa Public Library Board, it was confirmed that a complete remodel of the Metcalfe Street branch still isn’t in the cards. The board approved funding for a new location in Ottawa South and earmarked $6 million for the growth of branches in the downtown.
Though the board approved a plan at the meeting to spend the $35 million raised by development charges, a complete remodel of the 40-year-old Metcalfe branch remains unlikely in the near future. There are several obstacles in the way of a remodel, according to library board chair and city councillor Jan Harder.
First and foremost, the city’s population is growing much faster in the suburbs than in the downtown core, which means the board is forced to expand deeper suburban communities.
A 2010 report to the board estimated that the Ottawa South region would need 15,000 square feet of new space in the next 10 years to keep with population growth. The same report estimated the central (downtown) region will only need 4,000 new square feet over the same period.
Another obstacle for a Metcalfe remodel are the regulations as to how the money raised is to be spent. According to a city bylaw, the board must use the revenue for elements specifically tied to growth.
Building a new branch counts, but under most circumstances remodelling an existing one does not. Development charges are one-time fees, charged to developers of new properties.
The money is collected by the city to be spent on infrastructure like sewers, recreation centres, and libraries. The Ottawa Public Library system doesn’t generate much revenue itself. “We’re too good at calling people before their books are overdue,” jokes Harder.
Without any revenue streams, the Ottawa Public Library relies on development charges to pay for most of its new infrastructure.
The charges can seem like a pain for Ottawa developers such as Pierre Dufresne, president of the Greater Ottawa Home Builders’ Association. But,he says, the fees can also be seen as a sort of investment for developers.
As development increasingly sprawls into the suburbs, developers look for a “return on their investment, in the form of libraries or other public infrastructure in the area. We’re not paying money without knowing where it’s going,” says Dufresne.
In 2011, the board identified eight branches which needed updating, but every time the main branch at Metcalfe makes the shortlist, there isn’t enough money for anything else. It is by far the largest branch, but having been built in the 1970s, some of the space is ill-suited for today’s technology, says Harder.
In addition to the $15 million allocated for a new branch in Ottawa South and the $6 million for growth in the downtown area, the board approved spending $14 million on expanding the library’s collection over the next 10 years.
For those still hoping that the Metcalfe location will get a $6-million facelift, think again. Harder says the money will likely be spread across the area. For now, and for the foreseeable future,
Centretown residents will have to make do with their old, and arguably, ugly, but functional library on Metcalfe.