GuelphToday received the following letter to the editor from reader Dorothy Grasett, who says she thinks the new library is worth the cost:
Too big, too expensive – I seem to have heard that over and over again – not just with the library, but with most anything else that is a benefit to us, the ordinary taxpayer. The actual cost should be divided by the total number of people in Guelph – No so large, now, is it? When you consider the benefits? Ah, but the taxpayers have to be protected by the politicians. Horsepucky.
The longer the 'costing' and "planning' go on, the more is paid for "costing" and "planning" and nothing paid on the new library. - If we insist that we are a city, we MUST have a decent library. It isn't just the books – 'though fewer people read for pleasure every year. It's for the future – it's a place to go out of the weather, it's a place for small groups to meet (without costing an arm and a leg) it's a place to check your email, update your resume, pay your bills, figure out if that bump is lethal or not. Information in libraries is available to everyone. All people in Guelph are welcome, even if, like myself, I would rather own the book I want, than borrow it. That doesn't mean I don't approve of libraries – it just means I want mine at home (so I don't have to give the books back).
In this world you get what you pay for - If you want a car that lasts, you don't buy a Kia or a Chevy - you go for the Volvo or Subaru. The extra time of usage is what makes the cost less. We have been getting by, but the maintenance is getting costly. Let's do it right! Apologies, I get a little wound up.
Dorothy Grasett
Guelph, Ontario
