Public libraries deliver “much more than information” including a positive economic impact in downtown cores according to a report by the county’s chief librarian.
“When an investment in a downtown library is undertaken many benefits related to economic development are realized,” states Murray McCabe in a report provided to the county’s information, heritage and seniors committee at their January meeting.
McCabe stated benefits include:
– increased pedestrian traffic in the area;
– a stable anchor destination in the downtown;
– improved real estate values; and
– a reflection of community within a business environment.
A downtown library, he noted provides “a destination uniquely separate from retail power centres and assists smaller businesses, and perhaps finally with robust operating hours public libraries in downtown cores increase the public safety of the area by ensuring the area is not deserted in the evening hours,” the report states.
McCabe cited several studies for his conclusions, including on published by the Martin Prosperity Institute in Toronto outlining the return on investment received by that city by investing in Toronto Public Library. That study concluded that for every $1 invested in the Toronto Public Library system the local economy received $5.63 back in economic benefit.
Another 2010 report by the US-based Penn Fels Institute of Government determined residential properties within a quarter-mile of a public library are on average worth $9,630 more than those that are further away, McCabe’s report notes.
