The annual Te Anau Book Sale is taking place this weekend, raising funds to support the town’s library with equipment and programmes – just as it has done since the formation of the Te Anau Friends of the Library group in the 1980s.

But this year a battle is going on regarding the future use of the Te Anau library.

Despite being considered a Te Anau community asset, particularly by the volunteer group Friends of the Library, part of the building is planned to be converted to a business hub by Southland District Council to conduct council business and as a customer contact agency.

Friends of the Library spokeswoman, Marilyn Hunter, said the group was originally formed to raise funds to build a library in the centre of Te Anau and handed over $200,000 to the council, as its contribution to the building fund after a series of fundraising events in the district.

Since then, Mrs Hunter said, they had contributed a further $160,000 raised mainly through their annual book sale.

Usually held over Queen’s Birthday weekend, this year’s book sale began last night and continues between 9am and 4pm today and tomorrow in the Real Journeys Event Centre in Te Anau.

She said that, collectively, the group was very unhappy with the proposed hub and the method the council has taken to progress the plan to permanently operate other council functions from the library building.

“The community has clearly said ‘no’ to the plan,” she said, referring to more than 70 submissions at the time of the council calling submissions on the district’s long-term plan in 2018.

Mrs Hunter said they were upset at the council’s lack of consultation regarding the service hub plan and the lack of council acknowledgment of the effort given by the group in terms of money raised to fund events at the library like enabling authors to visit the area, and also for countless volunteer hours invested in the library.

“We are just trying to protect the future of the library, its environment and ambiance,” she said.

Southland District Council Chief Executive, Steve Ruru, said the council had requested that staff find ways to reduce district council costs.

He said the COVID-19 crisis had forced the council to relook at the amount of rates being spent.

“Life has changed, the council expects different and better ways (of delivering the council services),” he said, adding that the library hub plan made sense in terms of cost cutting and better utilisation of staff.

He believed the council had consulted widely and an open day was planned for residents to inspect the plan on site at the library on August 16.

Mr Ruru said there was concern regarding the loss of workforce in the Fiordland region due to the closed borders prohibiting international tourists from visiting the area, which in turn would potentially lead to a loss in the number of ratepayers contributing to the district’s economy.