Four Saskatoon libraries to reduce hours after ‘very upsetting incident’

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After a “very upsetting incident” at Saskatoon’s Carlyle King Library, four of the city’s libraries will be reduce the hours they’re open to the public.

On Monday night, “intoxicated patrons” at the Carlyle King Library “resulted in an employee being struck and a security guard being physically assaulted,” Saskatoon Public Library spokesperson Kirk Sibbald wrote in a statement.

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The branch is located at Cosmo Civic Centre on the west side of the city.

SPL says this is part of a pattern, reflecting “a growing number of concerning incidents.”

Because of this, starting next week, the downtown Frances Morrison Central Library, Dr. Freda Ahenakew Library at the Station 20 West Centre, Mayfair Library on 33rd Street West and Carlyle King Library will close no later than 6 p.m. every day.

Until now, each of those libraries have had some days each week with later opening hours, where members of the public could access the space until 9 p.m.

The decision was “not taken lightly,” and was based on what library employees have experienced at work during those evening hours “when many support services have closed,” SPL said in a news release.

“Saskatoon Public Library has worked hard to respond to the rapidly changing needs of the community,” it said. “Sadly, the needs are beyond our ability to respond right now.”

SPL wants to be “a welcoming place for everyone who calls Saskatoon home,” but libraries can’t be everything at once, the release added.

“We … strive to provide many essential services such as providing computer and washroom access for those who are in need and being a safe, comfortable judgement-free place where you don’t have to buy anything.

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“However, we can’t fulfill our mandate to inspire lifelong learning and support the development of literacy skills by sharing collections, spaces, programs, and services while also being the place for people with nowhere else to go.”

The release said the city’s libraries were never meant to be a stopgap measure for crumbling social safety nets — but, more and more, people have been relying on them to fill that increasingly dangerous gap.

“Over the last few years and months, we have witnessed a reduction in community services available to Saskatoon’s most vulnerable people,” the release added.

“At the same time, we are seeing the number of people living in difficult situations increase. We cannot fill the gaps caused by our community’s lack of critical social and health infrastructure. We can’t be a place to sleep, to store large amounts of personal belongings or to use drugs and alcohol. We can’t be the primary access to washrooms or climate-controlled environments during evening hours.

“People come to the library to find information about support services in times of need, but our employees cannot refer people to community services that are unavailable or over capacity due to a lack of resources.”

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