Beaumont needs a bigger library for 2021 and beyond.
The building that currently houses the Bibliothèque de Beaumont Library first opened its doors in 2004, when Beaumont had a population of 7,807. It was built to serve the library needs of a town with a population growing to 10,000 plus. But In 2020 Beaumont's population had risen to 21,385 and continues to grow at about 4% per year. Consequently, the library needs to be expanded in order to cater for the massively increased and continually growing demand for library services. The expansion would ensure that the library remains a destination for families, entrepreneurs, students, and everyone in Beaumont looking to explore, connect and learn. The new space will would include a vibrant children's area with increased collections, engaging invitations to play, and quiet reading nooks for the whole family. It would also include a new maker-space to stimulate the creative exploration of new technology, as well as expanded programming, meeting and quiet study places.

Design concept rendering of one possible option for library expansion
Currently, the library holds a physical collection of 22,703 items. Back in 2004 that was very nearly enough to achieve an "excellent" rating for our population size, based on the Government of Alberta Public Library Services Branch’s Best Practices for Public Libraries in Alberta. But to achieve the same standard in 2021 we would need to expand the collection to around 60,000 items! Even to achieve the lowest rating of "essential" the collection would need to be 40,000 items. But the estimated maximum sized collection that could be housed in our current library building is only about 30,000 items, to which size the Library Board does hope to have increased the collection within the next five years.

Source: Best Practices for Public Libraries in Alberta