The ongoing push to make the Millennium Library safer continues as a new report submitted to City Hall calls for a number of permanent safety and security measures.
“In the opinion of the Public Service, the proposed recommendations will increase staff and customer safety while promoting Library Services’ goal to have free and open access to its resources and spaces,” the report says.
It comes after a homicide in late 2022 shut down the Millennium Library for more than a month, before it reopened with interim security measures.
The recommendations include:
- Putting 10 community safety hosts at the Millennium Library and other branches
- Increasing the number of security officers at Millennium Library from five to 10 during operational hours
- Keeping metal detectors installed in the lobby until an alternative design or metal detection in a lobby redesign
- Reopening the Community Connections space located in the main lobby and hiring more employees to better meet the needs of vulnerable residents living downtown
- Replacing two Winnipeg police officers at the entrance with daily foot patrols of the facility
- Providing enhanced safety and personal security training for employees of the Winnipeg Public Library, including de-escalation strategies
If approved, the changes would cost more than $1.86 million.
The report says violent incidents are increasing in public libraries across North America.
“Both the perception, and reality, of libraries as unsafe spaces has a negative impact on customer use of library services and on the successful recruitment and retention of employees,” reads the report. “The escalation of aggression, threats, and violence from members of the public has created an urgent situation at the Winnipeg Public
Library.”
The report will be tabled at the Standing Policy Committee on Community Services meeting on June 29.