NEWS RELEASE
COLLINGWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY
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The Collingwood Public Library Board is seeking community feedback to help prepare a strategic plan to guide the library’s progress in the coming years.
According to Acting CEO Ashley Kulchycki, the library is a vital space and resource for the Collingwood community.
“There is no question that the pandemic has impacted the way we offer programs and services,” she says. “But our staff has persevered to maintain the level of excellence our community has come to expect.”
The last strategic plan for the library was published in 2016. In the five years since then, the library has continued to establish itself as a dynamic community space offering yoga, coding and robotics, escape rooms, book club kits, and a dedicated older adult area.
Last year, staff pivoted to meet other needs in the community by modifying their food pantry to include hygiene and basic household items and adapting their program delivery model to a virtual format.
Annie Schiefer, a member of the Collingwood Public Library Board, knows times have changed since the last strategic plan was implemented.
“From expanding communities to shrinking resources, then COVID-19 struck. Our way of looking at resources and the needs of the community became filtered by this lens. Our library adapted to these needs, and we listened to our patrons. It is stated that ‘a goal without a plan is just a wish,’ and our vision for the next four years is more than a wish; its foundation is based on yesterday as well as tomorrow.”
The board wants to hear from both library users and non-users about what they consider to be necessary programs and services over the next few years.
“We know the pandemic has changed the way people interact with each other and the library,” says Kulchycki. “We want to know how we can help and support the community in their work, recreation, and lives.”
Community surveys are available in-person at the front desk of the library at 55 Ste. Marie Street, online at www.collingwoodpubliclibrary.ca, or via phone at 705-445-1571 ext. 6234.
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