New Weymouth Waterfront Library official opening July 29

The much-anticipated official opening of the Weymouth Waterfront Library is at 2 p.m. on Thursday, July 29. The new 307 square-metre riverside facility provides a spacious program/community room, more reading areas, high-speed Internet access, a children’s area, wheelchair accessible washrooms and 21 paved parking spaces.

Nova Scotia Minister of Education Marilyn More; West Nova MP Greg Kerr; Digby-Annapolis MLA Harold “Junior” Theriault; Provincial Librarian Jennifer Evans; Municipality of the District of Digby Deputy Warden Jimmy MacAlpine; Municipality of the District of Digby Coun. Randall Amero, Roderique Lefort, Chairman of the Weymouth Waterfront Development Committee; and Western Counties Regional Library Board Chair Gary Archibald will be on hand to officially open the library. The library is located at 4577 Highway 1 at Sissiboo Landing in downtown Weymouth.
“I commend all members of this community who have worked tirelessly to make this library a reality,” says Minister More. “This new library will empower, educate and enrich young and old alike, and will be the focal point of this community.”
“The Government of Canada is pleased to support Weymouth’s downtown and waterfront revitalization program through federal stimulus funding provided under Canada’s Economic Action Plan,” says West Nova MP Kerr. “This new library represents the first phase of the project and it is going to be a fine asset for this community for years to come.”
Deputy Warden MacAlpine says the new library is the result of seven years of planning and saving by the council and of community consultation with residents and Team Weymouth. The consultations ensured the library fit with plans to improve the inner core of the village.
“I believe that the new library building located where it is beside the river is going to be an asset in the revitalization of the village,” he says. “It shows the municipal council’s commitment to the village and to the people of the Weymouth area.”
An active player in the site selection and development was the Weymouth Waterfront Development Committee. The committee, through a cost sharing agreement between the committee, Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and Nova Scotia Economic and Rural Development, was able to pave the parking lot, provide landscaping and supply equipment and technology for the community training room in the library.
“This community training room will enable companies to upgrade or retrain their labour force as well as give the village of Weymouth the ability to provide teleconferencing seminars in any given field of endeavour or interest,” says committee chair Rod Lefort. “The overall goal is to make the village of Weymouth more competitive in attracting industry to our area.”
Coun. Amero, who represents Weymouth, believes the new library is a positive step forward for his community.
“It is nice to see something added to the Village of Weymouth since it has lost so much,” he says. “It provides an anchor for the waterfront.”
Regional library board chair Gary Archibald says Weymouth has always been a strong supporter of its library and it is exciting to see the library become a key part of the village’s revitalization.
“I believe public libraries are central to any community and the citizens of Weymouth have seen this and placed their new facility in the centre of their community,” he says.
The involvement of the citizens of Weymouth was a key part of the process, echoes Regional Library Director Trudy Amirault. She commends the federal, provincial and municipal governments for working together and ensuring the residents had input in the process.
“This library involved all three levels of government working cooperatively to improve both the infrastructure of the village and the access to educational opportunities for its citizens,” she says.
The new facility’s collection of books, DVDs and other materials is bigger, she adds.
“We were pleased to provide 1,000 new books and materials in other formats as part of our contribution to enhanced library service for Weymouth,” says Amirault. “Weymouth is an area that has always used and appreciated its library branch, and we expect an even higher level of interest and use in the new building.”
Starting in September, the library will increase its hours of operation to 25 hours per week, up from 20, says Erin Comeau, Coordinator of the Weymouth library.
“A library is a place where people can go to socialize, exchange ideas as well as access a wealth of information and services that might not otherwise be available to them,” Comeau explains. “For the community of Weymouth, the new library will help contribute to the development of the community and its citizens.”
Federal, provincial and municipal funding for the library, totalling $417,900, is through the Building Canada Fund – Communities Component. The building is environmentally friendly, meeting the silver standard of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System.