Community Connections is a vital library service

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 28/01/2025 (222 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Community Connections, the low-barrier library resource hub in the lobby of Millennium Library, closed on Dec. 31, 2024 because the City of Winnipeg did not renew funding for 2025.

Community advocates have been urgently calling for the space to reopen, given how vital it was for downtown library patrons.

At the executive policy committee meeting for budget delegations on Jan. 22, the Downtown Community Safety Partnership proposed that they could replace Community Connections in the Millennium Library lobby. While DCSP does important work in downtown Winnipeg, they are not a library service provider, and thus are not a suitable replacement for Community Connections.

Some city councillors argue that Community Connections, because it helps patrons access resources related to mental health, addictions, and food security, in addition to so-called “traditional” library services, is a social service that should be funded by the province. This is incorrect. Community Connections is a library service and ought to be funded as part of the municipal library budget.

When Millennium Library introduced metal detectors and security screening in 2019, many patrons no longer felt comfortable accessing the main library. Community Connections was established to mitigate this barrier by providing library services outside the security checkpoint. Librarians were paired with community safety hosts and crisis workers to better meet the needs of all patrons. Patrons who were not intimidated by the security screening could still enter the main library, while those who were uncomfortable with it could go to Community Connections.

Before its closure, around 100 individuals daily accessed Community Connections. They used the internet, got library cards, and found help with resumes, system navigation, tax filing, ID replacement and more. Community Connections responded to 45 per cent of all information requests at Millennium Library, more than any other reference desk at that branch.

People go to Millennium Library for many reasons: to sign up for a library card and check out books, access the internet, participate in programming, use the washroom while they’re downtown without having to pay for anything, work on resumes, or simply sit and chill in a comfortable, quiet, friendly space.

Community Connections offered all these library services, tailoring them to the specific needs of a target group of patrons, as library services always do. The services inside the main library are likewise tailored to the needs and interests of patrons, whether they are parents, crafters, job-seekers, or simply readers.

When the library offers toddler storytelling programs, do we call it a child-care agency or say it should be funded by the provincial families department? No, we fund it as a library service and recognize that this group of patrons — families with toddlers — needs particular accommodations and an appropriate setting.

When the library offers knitting classes, do we say it should be funded as an arts organization? No, we fund it as a library service, specialized for the particular needs of patrons looking to build creative skills.

When the library offers an Excel training class, do they expect someone from the main resource desk to teach the class? No.

Even if that librarian may know how to use Excel, they bring in a specialized instructor so that patrons receive the best possible service, and librarians aren’t strained beyond their capacity or performing extra duties.

There should not be a double standard when it comes to offering specialized services to the patrons who benefited from Community Connections. While some patrons come to the library looking for knitting patterns or resources about spreadsheets, others come looking for info on housing, mental health supports, or food security.

All patrons deserve to receive quality service at the library, specialized to their needs and interests.

Downtown libraries will always be places with higher-needs patrons — librarians across the country have known this for a very long time. Community Connections allowed the Millennium Library to take a proactive approach to this reality, rather than reacting to situations. Its staff had extra training in de-escalation and crisis response skills, just like the children’s area is staffed by librarians with experience serving young families.

With the closure of Community Connections, Millennium Library has lost four full-time equivalent positions, so the remaining staff, already understaffed, will struggle to meet the needs of those who previously accessed Community Connections.

Community Connections is a vital library service and is the city’s responsibility to fund. It is critical to ensure that all library patrons — even those for whom the metal detectors are a barrier — can receive the quality access to information that they have a right to depend on.

Samantha Klassen is a community advocate and member of Make Poverty History Manitoba.