Whistler has seen its share
of ribbon cuttings in recent years, but few events have attracted as much
attention as the opening of the Whistler Public Library this past Saturday,
Jan. 26.
The ceremony started outside,
with a crowd of more than 300 people waiting to get their first glimpse of the
inside of the building. Mayor Ken Melamed and library board chair Alix Nicoll
did the honours cutting the ribbon, then invited the public inside for
speeches, refreshments, music, a performance by the Short Skirt Theatre,
readings by locals authors, and a tour of the facility. A steady stream of
people took out new library cards at the front desk, while community members
took out thousands of books, CDs, and DVDs using the new scanner and radio tags
system.
It’s been almost 22 years
since Joan Richoz started the first public library in the basement of municipal
hall, before the facility moved into a pair of trailers off of Main Street.
Although trailers were supposed to be temporary until the library could build a
permanent facility, that proved more challenging than expected. At last, in
2004 the sitting council approved a new library building on the lot beside the
existing library, for a $7 million price tag. With construction costs soaring
across B.C. due to the stiff competition for workers and materials, however,
the final cost will be over $11 million.
Part of the blame has been
assumed by members of the previous council that approved the library under a
construction management model that allowed local companies to bid on aspects of
the construction, rather than the fixed price model recommended by municipal
staff. With the construction boom, the bids attracted less interest and
competition than council expected.
In his speech to open the
library, Melamed acknowledged that it was a challenging project but praised the
final outcome.
“It’s been a long time
coming, but I think you’ll feel it’s been worth the wait,” he said, giving
credit to past councils and community members that made the library a
reality.
“It’s been 15 years of
work to get a permanent facility…This council is the one that gets to cut the
ribbon, but we wouldn’t be here without the work of past councils.”
The mayor also took the
opportunity to defend the project and project managers from past criticisms,
noting that it takes thick skin and perseverance to get a project this big and
complicated off the ground.
For her part Alix Nicoll was
concerned that people would focus too much on the cost, but was reassured in
her talks with community members that most people have moved on and are
embracing the library.
“I think we’ve overcome a lot
of the negativity out there,” she said. “The most exciting thing for me has
been to just watch people’s faces light up when they walked through the door
for the first time. Yes, it did cost a lot of money, but now people can see
what it’s for. And watching all the little kids walk in today and their smiles,
and know that this is their library — it’s just such a great day for the
community.”
Nicoll says the community can
be proud of the library, which the community of 10,000 residents will share
with an equal number of second homeowners and visitors from around the world.
“I’ve had a Mountain Host
come up to me and say he would no longer be ashamed to tell visitors how to
find our library. We also had someone inquire as to whether they would be
allowed to have their wedding in the plaza out front,” said Nicoll.
“As for what it means to the
community, I think Ken (Melamed) said it best today when he called the library
‘Whistler’s living room.’ It really has that feel about it, and this is a
perfect day to enjoy it with the big windows and skylights, and snow falling on
the trees outside.”
Having a new facility and
more than four times the space of the previous library opens up new
possibilities for youth and adult programming.
According to Jomichele Seidl,
Youth Services Librarian, the additional space for children’s and youth
collections, as well as a dedicated room for their activities (The Burrow), is
already making a difference.
“It’s not only space for new
programming, it changes the way we’ve been able to do programs we’re continuing
from the past,” said Seidl. For example, children’s programming can take place
any time during regular library hours without disturbing other library users.
As well, there is a quiet place for the junior book club and teen advisory
group to meet, without scheduling meetings when the library is closed.
The parent-infant drop-in
program has also been moved from the Whistler Health Care Centre to The Burrow,
and the first class was held on Tuesday.
“It’s a great space, and they
didn’t have to shove any furniture around to make space for their babies…and
the parents also had a chance to get up and wander the library to pick up a few
movies and books for themselves, which is a good thing for them,” said Seidl.
As well, there is now a
dedicated children’s desk for 23 hours a week to provide assistance to students
looking for information on various topics, and to recommend to children and
parents.
In the coming weeks the
library will host every elementary and high school class in Whistler to
introduce them to the facility, and let them know what’s available.
In the next few months the
library will also host regular meetings with the teen advisory group, which
among other things helps decide what books and media are added to the teen
collection.
As for the collection itself,
Seidl says there is still a storage container of books to get on the shelves
that wasn’t able to fit in the old library.
“It’s a tedious process
really (with the RFID) tags, but we’re pretty excited to get the books out
because there are some real favourites in there,” she said.
“We’re also adding to our
collection, buying more children’s books and series, which is a departure from
the way things were done previously. We didn’t used to buy books in series, but
now we have the shelf space and the children really like them. It’s especially
comforting for children learning to read, that when they pick up a book the
Magic Treehouse series they know they will be able to read it.”
Nadine White, the Public
Services Librarian, is also rolling out new programs that take advantage of the
new library.
One of the new programs is
the result of a partnership with Late and Unique Nighttime Alternatives (LUNA),
who produce alcohol-free events for young adults. They will be hosting movie
nights once a month at the library, with the first movies following a music
theme.
As well, the library will
offer more traditional library programs like computer training workshops, and
labs on how to use library materials. For example, the library can now offer
electronic audio books that people can download onto their computers and
transfer to portable music players.
“We’re teaching people to use
the resources, and get more out of them,” said White.
The multi-purpose room will
also be available for public events and community programs that had to meet
after library hours or at other venues.
“Before, we always had to do
programming in the evening, and we lost the people that are out and about
during the day and stay home in the evenings,” White added. “Now we can tailor
program times to the patrons we’re trying to reach. It’s exciting that we’re
not limited any more in that sense.”
As for the library’s
collection, White says it’s about to get a lot bigger.
“A large chunk of the capital
money is for a big, one-time purchase of materials in addition to what’s in the
operating budget,” she said. “For example, we ordered a lot of DVDs and CDs in
one order, and those collections are doubling. For books, it’s harder to
quantify because everything is divided by subject, or by fiction and non-fiction,
but we’ve order books from popular authors. I can’t say we’re doubling that
collection, but there is so much coming in that it’s going to be hard keeping
up with all the cataloging of books, magazines, CDs, DVDs, audio books and
other materials.”
According to White, the
library is always open to suggestions from the public.
The library is open from 11
a.m. to 7 p.m. from Monday to Saturday, and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sundays.
The library is closed on all statutory holidays.