A rise in illegal activity and disruptive behavior has led to the call for further security at the Sarnia Public Library.
In 2019, before the pandemic, the Christina Street facility was experiencing an average of one to two incidents a week violating the library's rules of conduct. Since reopening after COVID restrictions were lifted, that has increased to three or four incidents a week.
About 20 per cent of the incidents involved illegal activity, including theft and/or assault.
Sarnia City/County Councillor Mike Stark during Thursday's county committee meeting, said it's a much bigger issue.
"As much as I hate to admit the fact that our homeless situation has now found itself in the neighbourhood of the library, the reality is that in fact, our homeless are finding shelter in and around the library," said Stark. "I don't have a solution to that, I don't think any of us have a solution to that. But the reality is that our staff are in a situation where they're being compromised in terms of their safety."
It is recommended the libraries department be authorized to purchase contracted security services for the Sarnia Library, with costs to be funded from the department's projected 2022 surplus.
The recommendation will go to Lambton County Council for approval.
