$2.5M set aside for safety measures at Millennium Library

The City of Winnipeg is setting aside money to bolster safety at the Millennium Library following a recent suicide.

The budget unveiled Friday allocates $2.5 million for “safety improvements” to the downtown library, including a redesign of the third and fourth floors.

On Aug. 6, a 40-year-old man died after jumping over the railing on the fourth floor. It was near the same area where a 25-year-old man died by suicide in 2017.

In September, the city erected metal fencing on the third and fourth floors after the August tragedy. At the time, the city said the fencing would remain in place until a permanent fix was found.

Gord Delbridge, president of the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 500, which represents library staff, called the budget measures a step in the right direction.

“This is what Winnipeggers need. They want to see better safety in a downtown core,” he said. After the August incident, the union had threatened possible legal action against the city if steps weren’t taken to make the library safe.

Details on the project were scant, but Mayor Scott Gillingham said any excess funds could be used to modify the library lobby.

Delbridge said he had hoped the overall library budget would increase, including to add to the staffing complement.

Joe Curnow, a spokesperson for advocacy group Millennium for All, agreed.

“The librarians who work there are really pulling things together with shoestrings and tape and they deserve better from this city council,” she said.

“Not addressing what we know has been a long-term problem of under-staffing our system is disastrous, honestly. The investments in capital are important, but that actually doesn’t do the work.”

Friday’s budget also allocates cash for one full time-equivalent position to staff the Windsor Park pool at 333 Speers Rd.

The city’s 2024 budget proposed to shut down the outdoor pool before council voted to allow it to open for two more summers.

Finance committee chair Jeff Browaty said Friday as long as the pool’s infrastructure is sound and it doesn’t require “significant investment,” the pool could remain open until at least the end of the multi-year budget, in 2027.

“We’ll continue to monitor the condition of the tank and then the infrastructure,” he said.

In September, the city estimated it would cost $159,000 to operate the pool for the 2026 season, while fully repairing it would cost $4.6 million.

St. Boniface Coun. Matt Allard said he’s pleased the pool’s life will be extended, but he hopes future budgets prioritize a regional aquatic facility.

A fund for a St. Boniface outdoor aquatic facility is close to $5 million, budget documents show.

Allard said it will likely be up to a future council to decide on when the regional facility will be funded and built, but it should be done in consideration of facility closures in the area.

“I’m hoping that with time … enough funding becomes available that that regional facility can be funded and that the construction of it can happen in co-ordination with the Windsor pool operations,” Allard said.

nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca