Essa council puts halt to proposed Angus library construction
By Richard Blanchard

By a margin of three to two, Essa council has decided not to proceed with the construction of a new library building in Angus this year.

Township mayor Dave Guergis and councillors Rick Newlove and Ron Henderson voted against the proposal to debenture $1,300,000 for the new facility while deputy mayor Terry Dowdall and councillor Sandie Macdonald voted in favour of moving ahead.

Total cost of the new library building would be around $2 million for a building which would be about 7,500 square feet in size.

With council approving a budget increase of 4.3 per cent, councillor Rick Newlove said that he felt the proposal was unaffordable this year.

"I don't think that we have the money this year," he said. "To move ahead would not be fair to Essa taxpayers."

Mayor Dave Guergis said that he felt that debenturing the cost of the project, which had been recommended by the township's library board, should not be made as a snap decision.

"We're moving to approve a budget with a 4.3% increase. Using over a million dollars from our reserves or through debentures means that we're going to in debt. Its a lot to think about," he said.

Councillor Sandie Macdonald said that there was about $200,000 that had been already pledged towards the new library's construction.

"I have my doubts if all of this money remain in place if we don't proceed with the library this year," she said.

Deputy mayor Terry Dowdall said that the status of the donations were one of the reasons for his support for moving ahead with the library this year.

"I'd hate to lose the $200,000," he said.

Council heard earlier from Dominic Sasco, vicechair of the library board, who said that the township had failed to get funding from the province earlier this year because all of the plans for the library weren't completed.

The Municipal Infrastructure Investment Initiative turned down Essa's project. The same funding program provided funding for the new library in Cookstown. Guergis said that he had concerns about the final cost of the building and ability to raise donations for the building.

"I can see the new library building costing $2.25 million. I don't think that its going to cost $1.3 million."

Macdonald said, after the vote, that she felt a vote to debenture would have allowed the township to move ahead with the architectural plans for the new building.

"I still think that the library should have been built. We were doing well in our fundraising and I do hope council will reconsider in the future," she said.