Library Petition on Track for Over 1,400 Signatures
Prince George, B.C. – Prince George City Council will address a petition drive aimed at improving the entrance to the PG Public Library this week.
Launched by Friends of the Prince George Public Library, president Margaret Johnston expects council to receive it tonight and then to address it at Wednesday’s meeting.
She says they’ve already submitted a preliminary petition with 1,350 signatures and says they plan to add more signatures by the time the group addresses council Wednesday.
When all is said and done Johnston expects they’ll have “1,400 plus” signatures, and though less than their goal of receiving 2,000 hopes it will send the necessary message.
“It’s a new council coming in. I’m hopeful they will consider (a new entrance) a priority.”
As for where the mayoral candidates stand on the issue she says Don Zurowski has indicated to her “it’s a need not a want,” but says she hasn’t had the chance to discuss it with Lyn Hall.
When the petition was launched last month Johnston said it was to remind the city of the importance of building a new library entrance.
“The library has needed a new entrance for quite some time. The most commonly used entrance is the one from the parking lot into the library and up those stairs. Initially it was thought that would be a trade entrance and down the road it would be made more appealing and secure but that hasn’t happened.”
She says council appeared to be on board with the need for an upgrade when in December 2013 they voted to set aside funds in the 2015 budget but notes those hopes were dealt a blow when a city report last month recommended council drop the library improvements from the funded category and postpone them to an unfunded option in 2017.
Johnston says the $2.5 million originally set aside in the 2014 capital budget wouldn’t cover the entire cost but would be enough for the “city to work with.”
Comments
Well, I guess when the people in charge, pick a library design that looks like an off-shore drilling rig, the entrance has to be way up in the air. You know, for when the tide comes in.
One of the rare good decisions this council has made… Just say NO to spending millions on this.
P Val –> Pay me now or pay me later. One or two lost law suits due to negligence will more than cover the 2.5 million and still result in the expenditures to upgrade the entrance. The safety issues with the entrance have been identified and documented. A slam dunk for any lawyer. And the judge will likely add punitive measures for being so foolish to ignore the safety issues in the first place.
Times change. Drug dealers and junkies hanging around the parkade were not an issue for the first number of decades. They are now. Deal with it.
2.5 Million for a new entrance. WOW!! And that wouldn’t cover the cost??
Only so many tax dollars to go around. If we do this, what gets taken off the list?
Or, do we do like past councils and simply raise taxes to cover the cost. Maybe a special Library Levy on your yearly Property tax statement?
If there are so many “Drug dealers and junkies hanging around the parkade” (and yes there is)….why did a bunch of money get spent on a “knowledge garden” ?
Well P val, perhaps you should send your wife or daughter down there in the evening to see if the current entrance is good enough and report back later!
2.5 million would pay for dedicated evening security in the parkade for a long time….
I have a hard time understanding this fervor for saving money as opposed to doing things right.
The so called main entrance to the Library was wrong from the start, and the budget for re-construction has been requested and promised for some 30 years already! When it finally got approved for the 2015 budget they thought it would finally happen, only to it once again get bumped off the priority list by someone else’s project! This is not about aesthetics, or simple beautification, this is about safety, and access for ALL, not just the big strong able bodied males of Prince George!
I repeat, if you don’t think it is an issue, send your own wives or daughters there after dark, and see if they feel safe!
SAVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE. DONT SPENDDDDD. SAVEEEEEEEEEEE.
Seriously people, spending money is part of life. get over it.
Looks like phje stepped on his own foot again.
Seriously, why do people get so upset when someone brings up the issue of having to pay for something and how that’s going to be done. In my opinion, we haven’t had enough people in leadership asking those questions. Everybody thinks their item is a ‘priority’ for one reason or another.
The City is drowning in debt and I have yet to hear about how that is going to be dealt with.
I have no issue with saving money, or not spending money when it is not needed or for some hair brained scheme…but I find the constant whining over every penny spent whether necessary or not aggravating…Again, I would rather pay a few more dollars a year in taxes to have things done right the first time. Sometimes saving money today, or not spending it today ends up costing you a whole bunch more down the road! Let’s not save nickels today so we can spend dollars tomorrow!
I use the library a bit and have a possible solution. It wouldn’t cost anything to try it out to see if it works. If it doesn’t work then go for Plan B.
Put a one way lock on the door in the underground parking lot so that people can’t use it other than as an emergency exit (which I think was its original intention).
If people don’t have access to the stairwell in the parking lot, they will walk to the front entrance staircase and walk in the front entrance of the library. It is a much more pleasant experience to enter this way than from the parking lot stairwell.
If a visitor needs an elevator or the front entrance staircase is icy, they can use the entrance/elevator that connects the library to the civic centre.
Some people will have to walk 50-100 meters using this method, but no more than they have to walk to go shopping at Walmart or Costco.
Just a thought. Sounds crazy but it just might work.
They probably have out of town contracted too!
Interesting idea Kolberg – redoing the locks and putting up a couple nice signs would be a cheap test to see if it makes things better and solves the problem; it won’t make everybody happy – that’s impossible but it might buy some time until the city can afford to remodel the entrance.
With $2.5 million you can build a whole new library. Maybe they should raise the parking floor by several feet and level it with the civic center street so that the visibility of it is increased and its safety increased. The cars parked in the parking area are a bit hidden and not very safe from the folks wandering there and the parking entrance can be improved too that way.
The parking ceiling is very high and can accommodate several feet of raising its floor, but they need to modify the fire exit and lift area which will cost (because of material used), or leave it that way and use it as emergency one-way exit that kolberg proposed above.
I would sure be interested in seeing what they are trying to get for $2.5 million. That is an awful big number just for an entrance!! Put a $1.00 user fee on the library aND they should be able to self fund this in no time.
Library’s are dinosaurs.. A waste of time if not part of a school, college or university. Shut the doors and call it done. The Internet offers more information and every book in the world. Nytehawk , I haven’t been in the library in over 20 years.. No need to go there. When a petition is signed by a minute .0175 percent that isn’t saying anything..it’s screaming to close the doors .
Phew….thanks prof. I was guessing you would like to see the parking area filled with liveable containers so the junkies don’t have to walk to far to the welly office a block away. (prof….center…..really ? Where y’all from ?).
If the library already has an entrance that works then why fix it ?especially if it again on the backs of the taxpayers then we should just say NO thank you , be happy with what you got as it is a WANT not need . We need better paved roads not want them . SAY NO
Pval…tell that to the thousands that use the library..of course in your small world there isn’t room for anything but your own narrow view
By the way…I can tell you haven’t set foot in a library for 20 years…your lack of knowledge about why it exists and who it serves is proof positive
Tell the tens of thousands that don’t use it why we should waste millions on it while our water mains are breaking.
Us with intelligence know where to spend the money those that don’t ..well you obviously know ;)
How very sad some of these comments are this morning, all I have to add is this quote…
“I think the health of our civilization, the depth of our awareness about the underpinnings of our culture and our concern for the future can all be tested by how well we support our libraries.” Carl Sagan
Carl Sagan can think all he wants.. I think spending money on this is a waste.. the difference is..I live here and he is dead. He died in 1996. So how old is that quote.. 30-40 years ? Well before the power of the internet was seen and he probably had no clue to the vast information is now availiable at ones fingertips..
Also all you who mention the “undersirables” who hang around the library ent.. do you think making a change to the entrance will deter them..of course not..matter of fact it might make it more of a draw to those types.
“The internet is the library of the world” anonomous.
I wonder how many of those placing their names on the petition support a PAC as well? 2 million dollars could be spent on playground equipment around the city. I don’t think our kids need anymore idle time facilities, but rather a reason to put down the book or controller and get outside.
The library stands as a testament to the “we know better” snobbish elite. How this design every got approved as it sits is a wonder, but I’m sure the council of the day figured…they knew better.
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