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-A A +A Learn About Us
Here’s where you can learn all the facts about how the Library works, what we’re working on and a little bit about our history.
Employment Opportunities
The Library is a great place to work. Job opportunities arise from time to time and when they do we’ll post them on our homepage and in the Library. We sometimes post jobs in The Powell River Peak or on professional library job sites, but the best place to look to see if we have any jobs is on our homepage.
The New Library!
Crowded, musty space? We're finished with that. Impossibly hot premises on summer days? Gone. Too small collections bursting at the seams? The end. Inadequate program spaces? Nevermore. Is this really all there is to the kids’ section? No reason to ask that anymore. Line-ups for computers? Historical. Looking around for a comfortable, quiet place to just read a book? Found one, no problem. OK, so I got my wheelchair in the door but where do I go now? Anywhere you want!
That's right, Powell River. It's time for a new Library!
Board Meeting Minutes
Meeting minutes are posted only after they are approved by the Board. The minutes are posted here so that everyone can easily follow the discussions and decisions being made about your Library.
Board of Trustees
Our Library is governed by a Board of Trustees, who are appointed either by the City of Powell River or by the Powell River Regional District. Board meetings are held monthly on the second Monday of each month. For more information consult our Events Calendar on our home page. Want to read the portions of Library Policy that are about the Board? Just click here.
Collections
Something for everyone. That’s really the goal for us when it comes to managing the Library collection. A lot of one thing is only good for the person who prefers that thing. So we try to create a balance. A good rule of thumb for a small collection is that, on average, it is replaced completely every 8 years. This doesn’t mean that every book is replaced; some may be replaced more than once during the 8 years. We try to maintain the right mix of new and old and we try to preserve the portions of our collections that are about our local heritage and culture.
We make mistakes. Be sure to tell us when you think that happened. Also, you may use our Suggest A Purchase Form to encourage us to buy something for the collection.
Employee Wages
Employee wages are contractual between the Board of Trustees and its employees. Pursuant to the BC Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, Library wage information is public. In the interest of transparency you may view employee wage information by clicking here. To respect privacy, we do not publish this information by employee name but only by title. Some positions are vacant, some are casual and the entire list of titles represents a mix of full and part-time employees.
History
Our Library began in 1926 as a subscription library, The Powell River Company Library, housed in Dwight Hall. This Library was turned over to the new municipality in 1957 and operated by a Board of Directors as the Powell River Library Association. The Westview Library Association began in 1942 and by 1962 had moved its library to the current location of the Powell River Public Library on the ground floor of the MacGregor Building that also houses City Hall.
Library Fees and Charges
Most every service we offer you at the Library is free of charge. There are just a few things that you do have to pay for, all at quite modest charges. Remember, if you return your materials on time and in good condition, it won’t cost you anything to use the Library. See a complete list of all our fees and charges here.
Location and Hours
Hours of Operation
You’re most welcome to visit us—no Library card is required.
Our Partners
We work closely with several organizations to make our services to Powell River even better!
Staff
Our staff thinks it's great that they get to work in the Library! Being part of the Library staff is something that we all love (most of the time) because it’s just so much fun providing all these important and useful services to our community. From time to time we have some great jobs available. Just click here to find out more.
A list of Library staff including full time, part time and casual employees appears below.
Statement of Policies
We are a municipal library according to the Library Act of British Columbia. We also provide service to residents of the Powell River Regional District who live outside the City of Powell River, except for Lasqueti Island, through a Service Agreement with the Regional District. The Board of Trustees for the Library establish the policies that govern its operation. The Chief Librarian carries out these policies by creating the procedures that Staff implement to provide services to you, the public. Our Statement of Policies appears below.
Strategic Planning
Our aim is to use strategic planning to drive the development and delivery of Library services to Powell River. Toward that end, the Board has created a strategic plan that is the basis for most of what we do at the Library. We use it to allocate our budget, develop our policies, set priorities for our services and programs, and to organize our staff and determine the content of our collections. Our plan changes as the Library evolves, but you can read our current plan here.
Vision, Mission and Values
It describes what we’re trying to do for Powell River, how we see that developing and what we think is important to consider as we serve you. Every organization uses these statements as a basis for operating. We’d be honoured if you would read ours.
Who Pays for the Library?
We often tell you that the services of the Library are free to everyone. In most senses, this is true. You can walk into the Library, get a card and use all of our services without charge. Of course, someone, somewhere paid for that to be possible. Our 2011 operating budget before depreciation expense was $899,075. The chart shows who provided that funding in 2011.
