HALIFAX – The Halifax Memorial Library on Spring Garden Road is quieter than usual — the shelves are bare, the patrons are gone and the building’s future is yet to be written.
The library closed in August as part of the transition into the new Halifax Central Library across the street.
The building was first offered to the Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi’kmaq Chiefs, but the assembly declined the offer. Now, it’s up to regional council to decide what to do with the historical building.
“One of the interesting and unique parts of this property is that if it doesn’t remain a park or a library, then it automatically reverts ownership back to the province,” said city spokesman Brendan Elliott.
“So, staff is working on a report that will go before council later this fall but one of the recommendations we will make sure is incorporated in this report is that we do want part of that land to remain parkland.”
The library was built in 1951 as a memorial to those who died in the first and second world wars. The Winston Churchill statue was added in 1979, to further reinforce the facility’s role as a war memorial.
The Nova Scotia Heritage Trust wants to see the building and public space preserved, and considered moving into the building at one point along with other archive and museum groups.
“There’s obviously a need for a very public place that’s very accessible and that’s a wonderful location for this sort of historical material to be stored,” said Linda Forbes, the Heritage Trust’s president.
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The building has also attracted attention from private companies.
“Kicking the tires would be the best way to describe it,” said Elliott.
He confirmed that Volta Labs, an operation that helps start-up companies, had expressed interest but had not submitted a formal application. The company is currently housed a couple doors down at the former TD Bank building.
“Volta is currently searching for a larger space to accommodate the success of our member companies so far,” Jevon MacDonald, co-founder and board member of Volta, said in a statement to Global News.
“We are evaluating the feasibility of acquiring a space as close to our existing facility as possible which can accommodate our needs and the needs of the Nova Scotia Startup Community.”
Meanwhile, the new library is slated to open later this fall, but an exact date has not been announced yet.
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