Carlisle residents didn't mince words last Thursday, when they told Hamilton Library Board members and staff last Thursday that their community deserves its own library and the city should approve funding for a new structure when the existing portable reaches the end of its lifespan.

Board chairman George Geczy, a resident of the Copetown area, assured the close to 100 people at the community meeting that the board hasn't made a decision to close the Carlisle branch and is willing to keep it open even after a proposed new branch is built in Waterdown. But his comments contradict what has been posted on the library's website at www.hpl.ca in a Q & A (Question and Answer) section devoted to library service in Flamborough. The seventh question on the site asks how long it will be before existing branches may close and the answer posted for the past month has been: "Unless Millgrove or Carlisle or the current Waterdown buildings deteriorate to the point where they cannot be safely used or maintained (or unless one of the other triggers in the Ontarians with Disabilities Act is activated), these three locations would stay open until there is a new branch in Waterdown. This will...take several years."

Although welcoming Geczy's assurances, Julie Brown, president of the Carlisle Library Committee, said the pledge to keep the branch open doesn't provide as much comfort as she would like because "they can't tell us how long that structure (the existing portable) will bear the weight of the books." At a meeting with library officials in March, she said the message was that the branch has less than five years left in its lifespan.

Geczy told the Review this week that the double portable that has housed the Carlisle branch since 1989 has a 20-year lifespan. But, "its condition is quite good" and it could continue for a number of years, he added.

Also skeptical about the board chair's comments is Marilyn Haxton, vice-president of the local committee formed in March to mobilize public protest over the potential closure of the Carlisle Library. At a private meeting that she and Brown had with Geczy and Hamilton's chief librarian Ken Roberts on March 19, Haxton recorded the following comments from Roberts: "I want to make sure that the people understand in these meetings (community meetings hosted by the library board) that the new Waterdown Library will be larger than we could afford if we kept the small guys open. It will have a bigger computer centre, bigger meeting room area, bigger collection, (and be) open longer hours (and) therefore will better serve the community than if we had three branches."

The board has approved the closure of the Millgrove branch once the new Waterdown Library is built. In the case of the Carlisle branch, it has approved the review of four options: closing the Carlisle branch and merging it with the new Waterdown library; closing the branch and building a new library attached to the adjacent Carlisle Arena; closing the branch and providing bookmobile service to the community or replacing the existing portable.

Residents at the meeting were upset about the prospect of losing their branch and having to drive into Waterdown for library services. "Our library is hugely important to this community and we need you to include us in your business plan," resident Judi Partridge said. "It's absolutely unacceptable to even think about closing our library."

One presenter who had the crowd's full attention was 10-year-old Rebecca Lanteigne, a Grade 5 student at Balaclava Public School who said it's good exercise for her to be able to walk to her local library that also has a park nearby where she and other children can play. "Driving down to Waterdown to get a book every day will hurt our environment," she said.

A couple of residents, still smarting from a recent city council decision to share the Flamboro Slots money with all Hamilton residents rather than use it to ease Flamborough's heavy municipal tax burden, suggested any decrease in services isn't acceptable. "With the taxes that we pay, I think it is about time that we got something back," one woman stressed, alluding to a new library for Carlisle.

At least three other residents insisted that the library board should approach city council now and request money for a new building to replace the portable currently housing the Carlisle Library should it become no longer feasible to offer library services on the site. According to Roberts, the Ontarians with Disabilities Act states that if significant renovations are undertaken on library buildings, rural libraries must meet guidelines for accessibility. To accomplish this, they would need to be replaced at a minimal cost of about $1 million each, he said during an earlier interview.

GEOGRAPHICAL AREA

Stressing that Flamborough is geographically bigger than the entire city of Hamilton plus its suburbs of Dundas, Stoney Creek, Ancaster and Glanbrook combined, area resident Roman Sarachman told Geczy and Roberts, "Based on our size, shutting down any (Flamborough) library is totally unacceptable." Branches in Millgrove and Rockton, also housed in aging facilities, are also facing closure while the board moves forward with plans to build a $1.1-million branch in Lynden to serve both Lynden and Rockton residents and a $4-million branch in Waterdown.

In recent weeks, more than 1,000 people have signed a petition to quash any plans for closure circulated by the Carlisle Library Committee. During Thursday's meeting at the Carlisle Arena, another 64 signatures were added.

Geczy assured residents he will report back to the board with their suggestions. He plans to present his report in mid June, he told the Review. Besides keeping the Carlisle branch open "as long as practical," he said the board will continue to review the cost of new construction, react to public input and keep communication lines open with the community.

"The community wasn't very interested in the Waterdown option," Geczy said this week, referring to the merger of Carlisle library services with those in Waterdown.

"We got that message loud and clear. My personal feeling is that option will be off the table."