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Intercom system will permit library to reopen for in-person visits

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PRINCE TOWNSHIP — Book lovers will have to wait a little longer to browse the shelves at the Prince Township Public Library in person.

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Library CEO Rita Wagner said the hitch is that the library is in the township’s community centre, which remains closed to the public to curb the spread of COVID-19.

“If we were a stand-alone library, we would have been able to open,” Wagner said. “Other small  libraries are permitting four patrons in at once.”

The library board recently asked council to permit in-person visits, provided that Algoma Public Health’s guidelines on using hand sanitizer, wearing masks, and maintaining physical distancing were followed.  The board also recommended that the building’s washrooms remain off-limits.

Prince CAO Peggy Greco prepared a written response to the board, stating that the library will reopen as soon as the community centre has an intercom system installed, which will enable staff to open the building’s front and rear doors remotely via a phone connection.

The library and the parent-child resource will each receive a portable phone to open the rear door only, Greco said.  The system will enable volunteer librarians to pre-screen patrons before they enter and to make sure no one slips in undetected.

It might also ease the concerns some evening volunteers have voiced about working alone in the building, Greco added.

She also supported the library board’s proposal to keep the washrooms closed to the public.

“The cleaning protocol is stringent, and we don’t have someone here full-time to maintain that protocol,” Greco said.

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The intercom system will be installed by WirelessCom.Ca Inc.  The costs will be covered with a portion of the $59,300 the township received in emergency funding under the federal-provincial Safe Restart Agreement, which helps municipalities deal with the financial pressures resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, library patrons may continue to request books and arrange for curbside pickup by calling the library at 705-779-2992, Ext. 5 and leaving a message, or by e-mailing Wagner at ptpl@twp.prince.on.ca.

Patrons who have registered to use the online public access catalogue (OPAC) may visit https://16052.rmwebopac.com, sign in,  and choose their titles from the library’s holdings “like shopping online,” Wagner said.

She added that all items borrowed from the library are quarantined for three days on their return and sanitized before they can be checked out to other patrons.

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