by PAUL RAYNER

If all goes according to plan, the long desired new library complex in Boissevain should be a reality next year.

On the agenda of the Boissevain & Morton Regional Library Board for nearly a decade, the new library has taken several serious steps forward in the recent past. One of those was to find a site that would accommodate a new complex. This has now been done, with the building planned for the northern part of the Kinsmen Park area, fronting on Broadway Street.

The board and staff had looked at several sites over the last few years, and chose this one for many reasons.

“We did it because it met our criteria,” said library board treasurer Bernice Cuvelier. “For one thing, we held a meeting with the public last June and people said they were interested in a central location, and this one is fairly central.”

As well, there were other factors. Cost, of course, is important. As the site is owned by the Town of Boissevain, it means they do not have to purchase a lot from a private owner. All that will be happening is the Town will be negotiating with the RM of Morton for a fair price to purchase half of the lot the new structure will sit on. As well, it is a clean site.

“This will be an expensive project. With this location, we will not have to pull down and demolish a building, or do environmental clean up. We looked at several sites and there would be fairly large costs for demolition and some required fill. We want any money contributed by the community to go to the building itself.”

The possibility of getting infrastructure grants also figured in. As one of the grant priorities is the project in question must be more or less ready to go, this site fit the bill.

They are looking to build a structure up to 10,000 square feet. Cuvelier said that is a ballpark figure, but it is what they will be basing their conceptual plan on.

The building will include a library, the community archives and the Moncur Gallery. Cuvelier said the Moncur Gallery is looking at 1500 square feet of space, up from their current 900-950 in their present digs. Exactly how much space each other part of the complex will take has not yet been completely determined.

Plans are also to include a multipurpose room and storage space, and to be on one level, so it is wheelchair accessible.

Why a new library? There are many reasons. For one, the present facility on South Railway is too small a space. The library and archives now encompass about 4500 square feet, and that lack of space forces staff to limit the number of books. It limits public space and workspace and kills future expansion. It does not meet accessibility standards while being on two levels makes it difficult and dangerous to haul items up and down stairs. As well, air quality is poor, and there have been concerns regarding the weight of books on the floor.

“We want more display space, more storage space, to make it wheelchair accessible,” Cuvelier explained. “We want more space for the collection, more workspace for the staff. We want a structure built for the purpose of being a library, which the current building was not.”

They have established a building committee, which has now been meeting for several months. One of the next priorities for the committee is to hire an architect to develop the conceptual design for the building. From there, many different facts will emerge, including cost.

“It is hard to put a cost on this at this point. After we get an architect, then we can get some idea.”

At this point, the library has about $97,500 raised for the project in a fund managed by the Boissevain & Morton Foundation. The Town and RM have also been socking away money for the project for several years, with Cuvelier saying that between the three of them, they have close to a half a million dollars.

They will soon be looking to form a fund-raising committee, for which they want volunteers. Obviously, one of the major priorities will be looking for grants, particularly from higher levels of governments, to contribute to the project. Cuvelier said the Moncur Gallery would be contributing to the fund-raising effort.

Cuvelier said they are planning to hold an event this fall to celebrate 50 years of the library. They would like to have the conceptual drawings ready to show the public at that time.

As they will be building in a park, she said they would like to maintain as much green space there as possible, and have the structure work with the nearby Kinsmen playground. Of course, much depends on the drawings and other factors.

They are hoping that 2010 is the year a new library becomes a reality. In fact, the timing is similar to that discussed by the board when the project was first seriously discussed nearly a decade ago.

“We want to be ready to roll next year. We have talked in those terms. We knew it would be a long process. It is a scary project to take on, and I think it just takes a decision to get going.”

Now that it has, everyone is happy to get moving.

“I think everyone is excited,” Cuvelier said, “The staff is excited to get a new facility. The people in the public are anxious to see a new facility. The Councils think we’re due for a new library, so I think everyone is excited to get going.”