Library budget: With a larger space comes higher operating costs. That’s the message Powell River Public Library interim chief librarian Terry Noreault presented in an overview of the library’s operating budget for next year.
Noreault said the library’s budget for next year will go from just under $1 million to close to $1.2 million, an increase of 28.4 per cent.
“It’s a fairly significant rise from previous years,” said Noreault. “We’ve added over three times the space and it brings additional costs with it.”
A large amount of the increase, over $200,000, will pay for the new library space. Noreault explained the library will have to lease the space at going commercial rate of $12 per square foot. The additional space means higher costs for maintaining its collection, heating and janitorial services.
As costs increase, so does funding. City of Powell River and Powell River Regional District have a 70/30 funding agreement, which Noreault said is an equitable split. The city grant is $752,650, while the regional grant is $319,298.
The library also receives just under $90,000 per year from the BC government.
MRI access
A new strategy launched by BC Ministry of Heath could see shorter wait times for MRI scans.
In order to make scans available during evening and nighttime hours, the ministry’s four-year strategy provides a $20-million budget increase to BC health authorities, including Vancouver Coastal Health.
According to a ministry media release issued Wednesday, November 18, the strategy aims to reduce waitlists by hiring more staff and increasing scan clinic hours.
“This is really exciting for patients,” said Vancouver Coastal Health’s executive director of medical imaging, Sue Avery. “Improved access to MRI scans will see quicker diagnoses and get patients on the road to recovery.”
Avery said although there are no plans for an MRI scanner in Powell River, the funds will increase patient access to existing scanners in BC.
Currently, residents of the Powell River area needing MRI scans have to travel to Vancouver Island or the Lower Mainland.
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