CORNWALL, Ontario – North Stormont Councillor Bill McGimpsey has announced that he will be stepping down as chair of the United Counties Library Board.
McGimpsey made the announcement at the last meeting of United Counties Council on Monday, Dec. 19.
McGimpsey joked that his announcement might come as an early Christmas present for some.
As Board Chair, McGimpsey was the centre of controversy this summer and fall over the board’s decision to close three branches of the SD&G Library in three rural communities.
Under McGimpsey the Board decided that the library branches in Morewood, St. Andrew’s West and Dalkeith should close despite strenuous protests from those communities.
McGimpsey was criticized for the way the Board went about these closures with protesters from the Save our SD&G Libraries group saying that they were done without notice, without consideration for the impact on those communities and without consultation.
While relinquishing his position as Chair, McGimpsey will remain on the Library Board for another two years.