Orakei Local Board seeks views on call for St Heliers Library expansion

Orakei Local Board is keen to hear people’s views on calls to expand St Heliers Library to meet evolving community needs.

Desley Simpson, the local board chair, says she has been made aware of proposals by St Heliers Village Association and others to address growing local demand for library services.

She says the idea comes at a perfect time, as the local board is taking submissions on Orakei’s draft local board plan.

“This proposal is not in our draft local board plan, but if there is support for it in the community then it is exactly the kind of idea we need to hear about,” Ms Simpson says.

“St Heliers Library is one of Auckland’s busiest, and if local people see a need to expand it, without compromising its heritage values, then I encourage them to make submissions to that effect so we can consider this as we finalise our local board plan. But they must act quickly, as submissions close at 4pm on Monday 8 August.”

St Heliers Village Association Manager, Wendy Caspersonn says the library is an anchor in the community that must evolve to meet modern-day expectations. “Many people visit the library regularly to enjoy the facilities. We use it for many of the events and meetings we have for our community,” she says.

“But the expectations of services a library provides are vastly different now from those in the past. The St Heliers Community Library needs to expand to accommodate those expectations and now is the time to look at a more suitable facility that can benefit the community as a whole.”

On a normal week day St Heliers Library has over 1,000 visitors who come in to borrow, browse or participate in programmes such as story times, computer classes, book groups and other learning activities. The library recently hosted St Heliers Day celebrations in conjunction with the St Heliers Business Association, as well as a magician and puppet show as part of school holiday activities.

Auckland Council has recognised the important role libraries play in our communities and has committed funding to a range of refurbishment and expansion projects.