Halifax is one step closer to getting a new central library, but it looks like the municipality will have to sell the old one to pay for it.
"Our own funds will be garnered through the disposition of lands in the downtown core that we have off of Spring Garden Road, plus this . . . building here, and that will bring in the balance of the funds that are needed," Mayor Peter Kelly said in an interview Monday at the library after the funding announcement.
Federal Infrastructure Minister John Baird and provincial counterpart Bill Estabrooks joined Premier Darrell Dexter, Defence Minister Peter MacKay and Mr. Kelly to announce funding for the $55-million facility.
It will be built at the corner of Spring Garden Road and Queen Street.
The federal government is expected to contribute $18.3 million to the project as part of the Building Canada Fund. The province will invest $13 million, which Mr. Dexter said was "budgeted in this year and the next year," leaving the municipality to come up with $23.7 million for the construction of the 109,000-square-foot complex.
Mr. Kelly told reporters he expects "about $10 million" from the sale of the old library, which "is part of the proposal right now for council to move forward."
The proposed library would include a larger book collection, meeting and study rooms, a 250-seat auditorium and computer areas.
The library project will create short-term jobs but will have a long-term effect on the region, Mr. Baird said.
"What a great and lasting legacy of this challenging economic time, where young people, every citizen of the Halifax region will be able to benefit from this for years and decades to come," he said.
But the three-level funding agreement hasn’t been put in writing and exactly when the new library will open remains unclear.
"We’ve been working on that for some time, obviously," Mr. MacKay said of the lack of a written agreement. "I think the Nova Scotia election had something to do with the timing, but it hasn’t held up project announcements. As you can see, we’re moving forward on a lot of joint announcements."
Mr. MacKay expected the project to be completed by 2011, but when asked to described how "shovel-ready" the library project was, he suggested that reporters ask the mayor and the premier.
"They’re the ones that bring the project priority list forward and we match their dollars and encourage them to meet criteria that will have these projects complete within two years," he said.
But Leo McKenna, chairman of Halifax Public Libraries Board, wasn’t so sure.
"Completed by 2011? No, I don’t think so," Mr. McKenna said. "We fully expect to be started by then."
The library board is evaluating proposals for architectural services, and once an architect is selected, they will look at sites and designs.
He didn’t know the details of the funding arrangement but said "I’m just pleased that it is being funded by all levels of government. They seem to have agreement on that. They seem to be ready to go."
Mr. Dexter said that the design phase will be funded as soon as possible, and "next year, we would want to see the project physically being started," he said.
"The most important thing is that we get the right project on the right schedule. If you’re going to spend $55 million on a project, you want to make sure you do it right."
Coun. Sue Uteck (Northwest Arm-South End) was concerned about the future of the library project after the funding for a four-pad rink in Bedford fell through. She had wanted a written agreement but said in an email Monday that she was told by city staff that the "documents will be signed."
City hall has been discussing a replacement for the Spring Garden Road library for about 12 years.
Built in 1951, the city’s main library encompasses 38,000 square feet. It has experienced problems with water leaks and mould and has even had to be shut down in the summer due to high temperatures and humidity.
In April, city council endorsed the central library as a priority when it submitted its list of top infrastructure spending projects to Ottawa and the province.
"We have a limited opportunity for cost sharing with our federal and provincial counterparts — without this — it would simply not be possible," Ms. Uteck wrote.
Coun. Dawn Sloane (Halifax Downtown) also supports the new library and said the new project poses no risk to the north-end branch on Gottingen Street.
"The children and the residents of my area go to that and it’s very well utilized," she said.
"It was just upgraded, actually, . . . so it’s not going anywhere, and something like this is just going to infuse more things downtown and again make us the downtown that we are."
As for the fate of the statue of Winston Churchill outside the library, city spokeswoman Shaune MacKinlay said "it’s too early to say because we don’t know what the plans are for the existing building."
The federal government also announced $31.6 million in funding for road projects across the province and $5.5 million for waste-water projects in Cape Breton Regional Municipality.
(
pbrooks@herald.ca)
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