The City of Melfort is now playing a waiting game to see what’s going to happen with Prince Albert’s bid to separate its John M. Cuelenaere Public Library from the Wapiti Regional Library.
Prince Albert held a public meeting about its desire to change the boundaries of Wapiti so that it doesn’t include that city’s boundaries at a council meeting Jan. 23. The remaining hurdle for them is getting the approval of the Municipal Board and/or the education minister.
“Basically, the Wapiti region will hurt, because some of the funding that JMC received helped all of us, helped all of the smaller communities, so it’s a concern,” said Coun. April Phillips, the chair of the community services committee.
Melfort has built its library budget with the assumption that Prince Albert will pull out so that it’s not caught in a jam if that’s what happens.
Phillips said that small communities struggle with ensuring their libraries have the resources they need.
“I think working [in partnership] is better than going it alone and we depend a lot on the bigger centres to help, so we’ll see what happens.”
As for how Melfort would respond if the John M. Cuelenaere Public Library was no longer part of Wapiti, Phillips said the city will have to cross that bridge when it gets to it.
