RESIDENTS determined to challenge proposals by Aberdeenshire Council to relocate the town’s library to Viewmount have launched a petition.
The move has been backed by Stonehaven and District Community Council, who last month held a stormy session with Aberdeenshire Council’s area manager Tim Stephen. At that meeting those present shared their anger and disappointment at Aberdeenshire Council’s engagement on the proposed move – and heard there was no ‘done deal’ as the final decision will be taken by the Communities Committee.
Now, Community Council member Andy McArdle has joined forces with library-users to start the petition. They are looking for as much support as possible to ensure councillors sitting on the Communties Committee are left in no doubt of the strength of feeling about the prospect of the library’s move.
Andy McArdle said: ”The proposal to relocate the library to a less visible, harder-to-reach site raises serious questions about access and consultation.
”As residents saw with the Invercarron Resource Centre, decisions can be presented as settled before meaningful public engagement has taken place.”
He added: ”A petition is necessary to ensure that community voices are heard before irreversible changes are made.”
Is Viewmount a suitable location?
The Council’s base in South Aberdeenshire had a £3.3 million refit during 2019/20. A customer service point was opened in 2022 – but closed again in early 2024, leaving the reception area unused.
Career librarian Kirby Porter says the small amount of free space in the building is just one of the reasons a move to the Council office building is not acceptable.
”Viewmount is an unsuitable location for a library on so many levels. The likely space allocated will be too small to enable adequate access to resources for reading, information and learning for the diverse community living in Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire’s fifth largest town.
”Access will be severely restricted for those who need and use it most: families with small children, the elderly, those with mobility issues and those who use the library as a safe space to meet friends and engage in community activities.”
And Mr Porter said the removal of the library from its current site close to Stonehaven’s town centre could have a detrimental impact on the vitality of the town.
He said: ”The last thing Stonehaven needs is another shuttered building so close to the town centre. A vibrant community needs a library at its very heart.”
If you would like to sign the petition then please use this link to reach it