By james art The Hamilton Public Library’s updated 10-year capital budget forecast now includes a new budget line to renovate the West Harbor Discovery Center into a new library branch with a focus on serving the local Hamilton community.
The library estimates the renovation and conversion costs will be approximately $15 million.
The branch will redevelop the Marine Discovery Centre, originally built in 2004 by Parks Canada, closed in 2010 and transferred to the city of Hamilton in 2015. The city ordered its Hamilton Waterfront Trust department to lease the space to a controversial nightclub. The Sarcoa Club closed in 2017. The building has been vacant since then.
(The city of Hamilton settled a $15 million lawsuit brought by Sarcoa, the terms remain undisclosed.)
A new concept for a library branch
As TPR reported in September, the new library branch will include Indigenous-focused spaces and displays about Hamilton’s heritage. It will serve the planned population growth in the redevelopment of North End Piers 7 and 8 and provide space for some of the library’s citywide programs.
The library board is planning consultations to plan the branch’s programming and design in the coming months.
The library hopes to derive funds from development fees
The $15 million budget line includes a note that HPL hopes to charge as much of the project cost as possible to the city’s development fee reserves.
Production Details v. 1.0.0 Published: October 20, 2024 Last updated: October 20, 2024 Author: Joey Coleman Update Record v. 1.0.0 original version