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Her plan? Go out to the private sector to see what interest there is in partnering with the city to build a great new facility.

“We need to know what all our options are,” said the councillor. “Is there a more cost-effective solution with a private partner somewhere in the city? People are already planning to build things in the urban core near transit. I think this will open the door to opportunity.”

The status quo for the library is not an option. The 40-year old eyesore has undergone only minor renovations over its lifespan, so there are structural elements that need to be addressed — such as the heating and electrical systems — to say nothing of the massive functional shortcomings of the building, including lack of study areas, public reading rooms or community spaces. You can’t get smart-phone reception or wi-fi in many parts of the dispiriting concrete structure. The most basic coffee shop addresses the needs of a modern, urban society better than our main public library branch.

No one knows this more than the 16,000 people who walk through the doors of that library every week. Even though it’s a dump, it’s still the most used branch in the city. Imagine how popular it would be if it were actually inviting.

The people of Ottawa can imagine it. They’ve responded to the city’s research (including professional polling) and residents have said they’re willing to give up some space for physical collections for more public programming and personal study areas, places where people can gather as well as work independently. That’s why the Ottawa public library now believes it needs just 130,000 square-feet of space instead of the 345,000 feet it was asking for in the failed 2008 attempt at building a new main branch. (The current library has just 81,000 square feet of usable space.)