The latest round of speculation over what will happen with Ottawa’s main library branch has concluded rather anti-climactically: Nothing will happen with it.
The $33-million in-city development fees that were earmarked for capital funding for Ottawa’s library system is being mostly spent in the suburbs, the Ottawa Public Library Board decided this week. Many people, including a few trustees on the OPL Board, were hoping to see that money go towards renovating or rebuilding the dilapidated, four-decades-old central branch.
Yet it is difficult to argue with the OPL Board's decision, as explained by board chair Jan Harder in our news story this week. The overriding mission of the OPL must be to ensure that as many Ottawans as possible have easy access to a library. It would be highly unjust for the OPL to leave thousands of residents in the suburbs isolated from a local branch in order to build a nice new downtown location. So, for now, the bulk of the library funding will be heading to the growing neighbourhoods of Ottawa South.
There is no question that Ottawa deserves a much better main library branch than the cramped eyesore it has now. Some argue the internet age has made physical libraries increasingly irrelevant, but that’s certainly not true. The central libraries of most large cities in Canada, the U.S., and Europe are not just beautiful book repositories, but also hubs of public events, debates, and cultural exchanges. Even if it wasn’t the nation’s capital, Ottawa’s population size alone is enough to warrant such a space.
There’s reason for hope, however. When the LRT opens in 2018, it may create better conditions for justifying a large, expensive downtown branch. The increased residential density around LRT stations will generate more population growth downtown, for one thing. But just as importantly, if a central library branch can be built right near one of the downtown LRT stations, access to that branch is suddenly much easier for residents all over the metro area.
Over the past decade of discussions about where, when, and how to build a new downtown library, one possibility occasionally raised has been to build a joint library complex, perhaps with a concert hall or an office tower as part of the development. There is precedent for this in other cities. This should be something that city councillors and OPL Board members keep in mind over the next few years, as new development starts to sprout around LRT stations. There will surely be an opportunity to include a modern main library branch in one of these projects, if the city is proactive enough in pushing for it. Combining the library with another project should also lower the price tag for taxpayers.
For Centretown residents, of course, there’s still the benefit of having the local branch also be the largest one in the city, even if it is a little uneasy on the eyes. But for the sake of everyone in Ottawa, advocates of a new downtown library shouldn’t get too discouraged over the latest setback. The funding may not be there now, but there remains plenty of creative possibilities for the long-term in how to build a central library the whole city can be proud of.