Let’s head back to April of 1986 when a newly relocated Tsawwassen public library branch opened at the Town Centre shopping mall.
Today, it’s still the only one of Delta’s three libraries that is rented and not located in a municipally-owned building.
In 2006, the municipality proposed moving out of the mall location and building an entirely new South Delta library branch at Winskill Park.
The project would have been part of a much bigger plan (costing $8.3 million in total) that also included the construction of a new artificial turf playing field at the park.
The proposed new library would have been 12,000-square-feet, about 4,000-square-feet more than current South Delta branch.
It soon became clear the Winskill project faced substantial resistance from area residents who didn't like the idea of the library being moved from its current location.
Another problem facing the municipality, which saw more than 2,000 residents mail in a "no" vote in a reverse petition, was the fact Tsawwassen residents would have had to pay a special levy to help pay for the project.
That tax would have worked out to an average of about $98 annually for five years.
In the end, Delta backed off building a new library at the park but eventually added the artificial turf field.
The current library had since undergone renovations.
More recently, Century Group president Sean Hodgins unveiled a development vision for the town centre which includes a new 12,000-square-foot library that would be given as an amenity. An application is anticipated in early 2024 for the new urban neighbourhood with hundreds of homes over new retail and anchored by the library.
