Decision details

By Councillor Phelps

It is resolved that Council:

(A)      note the cultural significance of the Waterloo Town Hall building, which opened in 1882 and became a library in 1972;

(B)      recognise the importance of a neutral, public space in the unique Waterloo community;

(C)      note plans to close the Waterloo Library without community consultation;

(D)      congratulate the work of the Women of Waterloo in gathering hundreds of signatures in a petition to prevent the closure of the Waterloo Library;

(E)      note the variety of services that the library offers, including:

(i)         literary fiction, non-fiction works, research materials and multi-media items to use and borrow;

(ii)        a quiet place to read;

(iii)      study desks;

(iv)      free newspapers in multiple languages;

(v)       spaces for tutoring;

(vi)      free Wi-Fi;

(vii)     printing and photocopying facilities; and

(viii)    rooms for community meetings;

(F)      congratulate library staff for curating specific Koori, Mandarin and Russian collections at the Waterloo Library;

(G)      note the unique demographics of the Waterloo area, including long-term elderly residents, young families, school children, job-seekers, university students, Mandarin speakers, a Russian community and a strong Aboriginal community;

(H)      note that the population in Green Square is expected to swell to 60,000 by 2030;

(I)        note that 700 new units are proposed to be built in the nearby Waterloo Metro Quarter by 2022;

(J)       note that the Waterloo-Zetland area has a predicted population growth of a further 124% by 2036, with over 10,000 people coming to live in the area between 2011-2016;

(K)      recognise the importance of maintaining and developing existing library services in Waterloo and across the local government area to provide services for existing and incoming residents; and

(L)       stop plans to close Waterloo Library.

Note – at the meeting of Council, Councillor Phelps withdrew her Notice of Motion, the matters raised in it having been dealt with at an earlier stage of the meeting in Item 6.2.

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