Some Saskatoon city councillors say they need more information before making a key decision about a new downtown library — potentially one of the largest capital projects in the city's history.

The estimated $154-million replacement branch and the eagerly-anticipated business case were the subject of spirited debate at city hall Monday. Councillors were split on how to proceed with what quickly emerged as a politically weighty file.

"This is no small thing," said Ward 5 councillor Randy Donauer of the library project. "It's worth more than the [new] police station and quite a bit more than the Remai [Modern Art Museum].

"I have no appetite to rush either the administration or this council on a $150-million decision."

Donauer, alongside councillors Darren Hill (Ward 1) and Bev Dubois (Ward 9), asked city staffers and the board of the Saskatoon Public Library (SPL) service to weigh in during the coming weeks on everything from the impact of the project on the city's debt load to whether a new library would compete with private halls.

Some councillors want the information before 2020 budget talks begin this November. That's when the library board is hoping city council will give the board permission to borrow $87.5 million for the project.

Another councillor, Troy Davies (Ward 4), said he's concerned with how close such a decision would be to the 2020 municipal election.

"The last thing I want to do is tie the hands of the future city council," Davies said.

'Roadblocks being thrown up'

Ward 7 councillor Mairin Loewen said she was interested in the extra information but that she also sensed other motives from her colleagues.

"It feels to me like there are some roadblocks being thrown up here in an attempt to punt this into the next term of council, to be totally honest, and perhaps my perception is incorrect," said Loewen.

"That would be a real shame. Because I don't actually think that what we need in order to make the first decision in a long series of decisions is as comprehensive [as what was requested]."

Ward 2 councillor Hilary Gough, who sits as the council representative on the SPL board, addressed the concern about the library potentially competing with spaces that aren't publicly funded.

"The primary use of every space in this building will be in service primarily to library programming," Gough said — mentioning everything from reading space to areas for youth dance parties.

"That's what the spaces are permanently used for. If there are rentals and other activities above that, they are secondary and not intended to be in competition with any other services that are already being provided in our community."

Report was delayed

The eagerly-anticipated business case for the new library was originally supposed to be presented to city council last spring but was delayed to this fall.

The SPL board is hoping to open the new library in 2026.

If no decision on the borrowing comes this year, council could always append an item to the 2020 budget later, according to city manager Jeff Jorgenson.

No detailed design yet

Hill said he was concerned councillors were being asked to support a building project that has yet to be designed. (A location hasn't been picked out yet either, although the SPL board and the city have a shortlist of publicly undisclosed sites.)

The SPL board has only identified the types of spaces it wants in a new library, including outdoor green space and a potential indoor children's playground.

"Some of this is a little tricky because we're not at design [stage], right?" said Lisa Erikson, the SPL board chair.

"That's why it's hard to agree to fund it," Hill immediately replied.

Councillors had a number of probing questions for the SPL board representatives about the project.

Here are just some of them, along with the answers provided by SPL representatives.

Why the large $154 million price tag?

Ward 8 councillor Sarina Gersher noticed the proposed library's price tag was a lot higher than the $57.6 million it cost to build Halifax's new library, which opened last year (and which some Saskatoon city councillors have since toured).

Carol Cooley, SPL's director of libraries and CEO, said the Saskatoon project is priced in 2026 dollars (unlike the Halifax library) and includes a 25 per cent contingency. Also, unlike the Halifax project, the new Saskatoon library building would house all SPL administrative staff.

One city councillor pointed out that the new Saskatoon library is estimated to cost a lot more than new library (pictured here) that opened last year in Halifax. (Emma Davie/CBC)

How confident is SPL in the estimate?

That question came from Mayor Charlie Clark, who wondered too about the lack of design work so far.

"We feel that we have been quite rigorous in our planning and analysis and use of benchmarks and applying accessibility standards," Cooley said.

Accessibility issues hamper the current Frances Morrison Central Library, alongside other "critical issues" such as the lack of a sprinkler system, not enough fire exits and a "severe" shortage of public washrooms, Erikson said.

Carol Cooley, the CEO of the Saskatoon Public Library service, said the budget estimate includes a large contingency. (Guy Quenneville/CBC)

Borrowing aside, where will the rest of the budget come from?

Planning for a new library began in earnest a decade ago. A reserve fund is estimated to reach $46 million by 2026.

Cooley said SPL hopes to fundraise another $15 million. Provided city council approves the borrowing, SPL would then hire a contractor to handle the fundraising effort.

Davies said he liked how other projects, such as the expanded Gordie Howe Sports Complex, leveraged city dollars by fundraising their own money. He suggested the city could agree to match every dollar raised for the new library, to a maximum of $40 million.

Cooley said there's a risk to fundraising before the project is approved.

"Would donors even be willing to commit prior to approval, whenever approval might come?" she asked hypothetically.

Even more of the budget could come from the proceeds of selling the land the current Frances Morrison Central Library sits on. SPL owns that parcel.

What does this mean for the average taxpayer?

If approved, the $87.5-million loan would be repaid using tax dollars collected from the library levy. That levy needs to be approved by city council every year.

According to Cooley, each year between now and 2025, taxpayers would pay an extra 2.25 per cent on the library levy (which is separate from the property tax). The increase would go down to 0.69 per cent in 2026.

"We've costed that out. For the average [2019] homeowner with a $371,000 assessment value, it would be about a $5 per year increase," Cooley said.

How many new full-time SPL staffers will be needed in a new library?

Six, according to SPL board chair Lisa Erikson.

"We've been readying the organization for this for some time. And I think that's reflected in that number," she said.

"Excellent," replied councillor Bev Dubois. "I was expecting you to say something like 26 or 16 or something. So that's excellent. "

Does a bigger library mean more materials?

Yes and no.

Physical books and media are still popular with SPL users. The downtown library loaned out 500,000 physical items last year. "So we're planning to add 100,000 physical items to the collection," Erikson said.

The library service also loans out e-books, but their supply is not infinite, Cooley said.

"Publishers place a premium on libraries being able to purchase materials electronically, whether it's through severely limiting the number of borrowing or just not making an e-title available to us."

So how about putting a highrise on top of the library?

That idea was raised by Ward 6 councillor Cynthia Block. She wanted to know if the SPL board was interested in design options that would help the city to reach its growth plan of 500,000 residents.

There was a bit of a pause before Erikson answered.

"We are happy to hear from in the community with ideas," she said, before adding that the board has recommended a "standalone" library.

"It best aligns with our functional program and with community input to date," Erikson said. Then again: "We have ruled nothing out."

Councillor Davies said having an infill development above the library might help the SPL board reach its full $154-million goal.

"We can't do things in separate standalone projects," he said. "We've proved that. We've lived off of the support we've had from donors, businesses, philanthropy. Without them, we would have nothing because we couldn't afford any of this."