Check out Ottawa's blue-sky library planning — it's worth your time
Joanne Chianello, Ottawa Citizen
Published on: April 1, 2015, Last Updated: April 1, 2015 4:58 PM EDT
If you were at Ottawa City Hall on Monday night, you would have witnessed a somewhat familiar scene at 110 Laurier Ave. — hundreds of folks milling about Jean Pigott Hall, squinting at placards set up around the edges of the atrium for an hour or so, then filing into the council chambers to listen to a formal presentation and ask questions.
But if you returned to city hall the following evening — because where else would you want to spend most of your weeknights? — you would have been treated to a very different public meeting. About 23 round tables covered in white cloths were set up in that same space. And while there was a short presentation at the start of the evening, most of the time was spent in facilitated group discussions around the tables. The 160 participants — plus another 570 online — were encouraged to voice their hopes and dreams for a new city project, without thought to budget, location or any other constraint.
The two evenings couldn’t have been more different.
Monday’s meeting was about the latest version of western LRT route, which has been all but settled upon by the city and the National Capital Commission. The route would have trains run above ground for about 250 metres west of Dominion Station before plunging under a newly aligned Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway.
Many folks at Monday’s meeting felt the so-called Hundred Day Solution was a good compromise reached by the city and the NCC, which have been butting heads on this for years. (Folks with the Unitarian House were not among them as the route will cross the church’s property and create construction chaos for years.)
Thus Monday’s meeting went as many do at city hall, with the public showing up to hear about a decision that’s been already made. They might lob criticisms or make demands. Usually, though, the most folks can do is hope that details get tweaked to improve any negative impacts. That’s not necessarily a criticism of Monday’s event given where we’re at in the planning of Phase 2 of LRT, but the proceedings were indicative of the way public meetings usually go at City Hall.
Tuesday night was a different ball game. The very first public consultation in what’s sure to be a long process to build a central public library was a rare blue-sky exercise for a city project. People were asked to dream about what they wanted in a new building.
And they did. Folks asked for more communal space for both small and larger group meetings and projects, “hanging out” areas, natural light, access to technology, a kitchen for cooking classes, children’s reading and activity areas, a better auditorium. They’re looking for an iconic building, something with a “wow” factor both inside and out. (It’s interesting that in many cities contemplating new libraries, the public often goes for the more unconventional design.)
What people weren’t supposed to talk about was how the project is to be financed, or where the library might go, or how large it should be.
Of course, these are hugely important issues and, listening in to the conversation at a number of tables, it was clear that most people weren’t following the instructions to the letter. That’s understandable. One woman, who favours a location close to where the current central library is at Laurier and Metcalfe, worried that the city might use the fact that people want so many uses for the library as an “excuse” to build it farther from the downtown core.
That’s a good point. And location and budget and size are definitely issues we need to discuss if and when the idea of a new central library actually becomes a real project.
(It certainly seemed real at Tuesday’s meeting. Mayor Jim Watson, who promised a new library in his 2014 re-election campaign, was in attendance. And Marco Manconi, fresh from overseeing the redevelopment of Lansdowne, was there, too. When the city’s construction chief shows up at an imagination session for a new library, there’s a sense we might actually build this thing.)
But before we start arguing over the details, let’s take this rare opportunity to think big. If you missed the Tuesday session, you can watch it online at ottawacentrallibrary.ca and make comments — as well as “like” other people’s ideas — until April 6.
For once we’re being asked what we think ahead of any decision being made. Our city leaders have asked that we bring our wildest, coolest, pie-in-the-sky ideas to the table.
Let’s do it while we still have the chance.
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http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/0402-col-chianello
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