The Sackville Public Library is too small, and local leaders are looking to fix that with a bigger, better space to serve a growing local population.

The current library is “a far cry” from the 8,200 square feet recommended by the provincial library service, said board chair Merrill Fullerton.

With the basement of the library only accessible by stairs, that leaves the main floor of the small building to host the library’s books, public computer workstations, circulation desk and programming areas.

“We’re only talking about usable space of about 2,600 [square feet],” Fullerton said, “so we’re a fraction of where we should be.”

The target of 8,200 square feet comes from a needs assessment by the provincial library service based on Sackville’s 2021 census population of 6,099, according to Fullerton.

The province said it cannot share the needs assessment with CBC News because it is a draft document.

Fullerton recently presented the board’s case to Tantramar council, requesting the municipality’s help in addressing the need for more accessible space.

While New Brunswick’s public libraries are run by the province, local municipalities are responsible for the facilities, and local library boards serve to advocate for the community’s needs.

“This is [the municipality’s] building,” Fullerton said. “And they have been very gracious and generous over the years in terms of keeping it maintained.”

But now it’s time to start figuring out what a larger facility might look like, he said.

Larger, multipurpose space preferred

The Sackville library board is open to any proposal that would meet its space and accessibility requirements, said Fullerton, including private partnerships or leasing opportunities.

Currently, the municipality leases space for the Dorchester Public Library from the non-profit Westmorland Historical Society.

The board’s preference, Fullerton said, is “to see us be an anchor tenant as part of a larger facility that can serve other needs in the community, whether that’s the farmers’ market or theatre or arts or performing arts.”

“I think there’s some real, interesting potential to see a multi-use facility emerge,” Fullerton said.

Multipurpose building a recurring conversation in Sackville

A new multipurpose municipal building has been a topic of conversation in Sackville for decades, said Tantramar Coun. Michael Tower, who sits as a liaison on the Sackville Library board.

The idea has come up every few years around the council table, but because of the high probable cost and the difficult question of locating such a building, it “never really got off the ground,” Tower said.

In recent years the Sackville Farmers’ Market has been pitching the idea of a new multipurpose municipal building as it searches for a permanent year-round location to host Saturday markets.

Market chair Greg Burton said the market participated in a rough construction estimate for a building in 2021, and council voted to form a committee to work on the problem in 2023.

Ultimately, the proposition “doesn’t make sense for the town to invest in something solely for the Farmers’ Market.”

“The market can’t do it on its own,” said Burton, who welcomed the library board’s push for it as well.

Board open to fundraising

The current library building opened in 1984 after a grassroots funding campaign, and Fullerton said today’s board is also open to helping fund the new building.

“We have the ability to fundraise right now,” he said, “once we know what this is going to look like.”

“We really need to hear officially from [the municipality] on where they see this going and how that can tie in to some other community needs.”

“This is going to be many years in the making, we recognize that … but we want to see that officially get underway.”

Decisions on any future library or multipurpose building projects “will be on the new council,” Tower said.

With municipal elections just two months away on May 11, the veteran councillor said it’s not appropriate for the sitting council to take on a major new project.

But the library’s current size limitations may be a hard issue to avoid, Tower said.

“With Sackville’s population still growing, I think the new council would have to give great consideration towards doing something.”

Source: CBC New Brunswick