GRLC, city at odds about proposed closures

THREE libraries are proposed to shut across the municipality of Geelong, and the City of Greater Geelong and the Geelong Regional Library Corporation (GRLC) are pointing fingers at each other about which organisation is ultimately responsible.

Community members do not care about the blame game, however, and are rallying to keep their libraries open.

The city provides 85 per cent of the GRLC’s funding and the GRLC board originally expected to sign off on its 2023-2024 draft budget at its April 27 meeting, but the city’s draft 2023/24 budget, released the day before, did not contain all the money that GRLC wanted.

On Friday last week, GRLC released its budget, which revealed a nearly $1.2 million funding hole that forced it to make “operational changes to service levels” at libraries across Geelong from some point in the new financial year.

These include closing three libraries – Barwon Heads, Geelong West and Highton – switching Chilwell Library to “an unstaffed model” and reducing hours at all other libraries across the municipality.

GRLC chief executive officer Vanessa Schernickau said the last thing the GRLC wanted to do was close libraries or reduce services.

“But with the City of Greater Geelong draft budget as it stands we have been left with no choice.

“A funding shortfall of this size cannot be found by reducing programs or events, or small modifications to our operating models.”

The city pushed back against the proposed closures, with acting chief executive officer Kaarina Phyland saying the GRLC should instead “tighten their belt with our community’s needs front of mind”.

“The GRLC has options that they are choosing not to take up.”

State MPs Darren Cheeseman, Alison Marchant, Christine Couzens and Corangamite federal member Libby Coker have all voiced their support for the libraries staying open.

Library users organised a snap rally on Saturday outside Barwon Heads Library, and rallies will also be held at Geelong West Library tomorrow (Saturday, May 20) and at Highton Library on Sunday, May 21.

Friends of Barwon Heads Community Library president Karen Firth said all three communities had fought to keep their libraries open in 2017.

“We cannot believe we’re here again doing this, particularly post-COVID particularly now when there’s cost of living pressures, when libraries are more needed than ever.”

She said GRLC simply did not have enough funding to run all of the libraries in its system.

“This is not an argument about who deserves a library – everyone deserves a library – and obviously we don’t want ours cut at the expense of another, but basically it all comes back to money.

“We’re not interested who’s fault is what – it’s under-funded, we want it funded.

“That we’re having this debate is completely ridiculous, people are angry about it and we’re sick of it.”

Ms Firth said the city’s council meeting on Tuesday, May 23 would be the next flashpoint, as councillors would not support the GRLC’s budget because of the proposed closures but this would not resolve the under-funding.