'Desperate' financial situation could shutter Cumberland County library, says librarian

Library-goers in Cumberland County, N.S., may find the doors closed at one of their branches permanently if the province doesn't improve their "desperate" funding situation, says a chief librarian with Cumberland Public Libraries.

Denise Corey said funding for the libraries in Advocate, Amherst, Oxford, Parrsboro, Pugwash, River Hebert and Springhill is up 1.3 per cent compared to eight years ago, but that isn't enough to match cost increases.

The funding shortfall has led to multiple cuts in service,said Corey."Now we're at a desperate point."

The board of directors for Cumberland Public Librariesis expected to choose between decreasing hours at all branches in the region, or closing one location entirely.

Province responds

The spokesman for Nova Scotia's Communities, Culture and Heritage Department, Daniel McNeil, said in an emailthe province is committed to reviewing the current funding model for libraries.

He said while the government makes a "significant investment" in public libraries each year, the ultimate goal is to build a long-term, sustainable funding planthat is not based entirely on the number of people living in each library district.

Hesaid, in the meantime, library staffare eligible to apply for individual program grants as a way to access extra money.

Fewer materials

That won't be enough to stop the cuts in the short term, Corey said.

"We're cutting everything," shesaid, including one full-time staff position.

Staff aren't buying as many copies of booksand they aren't replacing those that get ruined or lost, Corey said.

They are cutting allsubscriptions to online databases andpublications, she said, and theywon't be renewing their licence to screen movies when it expires this year.

At the same time, there have been cuts at the federal level, Coreysaid, including the elimination of the Community Access Program in 2012, whichprovided freepublicaccess to the internet.

"That's money that we're not receiving to update our technology that we're having to find someplace else," she said.

Popular services

Corey said the libraries in Cumberland County arequite busy,adding that:

• 24 per cent of the population has anactivelibrary card that was used within the last three years.
• 119,000 items were signed out in 2016.
• More than 8,400 people participated in programs at the libraries in 2016.
• Users logged 18,000 hours on library computers in 2016.

Call to action

Corey said she's speaking out now because the libraries are at a tipping point, andher attempts to communicate with provincial officialsare "not getting any traction."

A notice on the landing page for the Cumberland Public Libraries website urges people to contact their MLAs and the minister of communities, culture and heritage and share their concerns.

The board of directors has invited provincial politicians and members of the public to attend itsannual general meeting April6 to discuss the issue, and is expected to decide whether to close a branch shortly thereafter.