Cape Town: Athlone Library has reopened to the public following two consecutive burglaries that temporarily disrupted the services.
Reportedly, the library has been reopened after nearly two weeks of limited services after two burglaries caused significant damage to the roof of the facility. While network and electrical cables, as well as water pipes were stolen, which resulted in several plugs not working and a minor water leak.
During the closure, the staff also initiated a few changes to improve the overall user experience, specifically for the SmartCape offering.
Stronger Wi-Fi was installed, while the library’s SmartCape computers were distributed for availability in both the children’s and adult areas. The children’s team also took the Digital Reading Den programme into the community. This programme focuses majorly to help in combating illiteracy in schools and local communities.
Considering this, Member of the Mayoral Committee for Community Services and Health – Councillor Francine Higham stated that the City of Cape Town has strongly condemns the acts of burglary and vandalism targeting public facilities. These crimes not only damage infrastructure, but they directly impact residents by disrupting access to essential services, safe community spaces and opportunities for learning and development.
Higham further said that the reopening of Athlone Library is good news for the community and the many patrons, young and old, who make use of it. She thanked the patrons for their patience during the closure.
She added that they asked residents to work with them to protect these facilities and report anything suspicious. Only by working together can they stop the destruction of the public spaces that belong to all of them.
About Athlone Library
Athlone Public Library service extends to the community and residents of Athlone. Here community members can loan books and have access to computers, newspapers and a variety of other resources. The library also runs a range of educational and fun programmes in all of the libraries.
It provides services such as SmartCape, Storytelling, Education and Literacy Programmes, & Library Orientation. It features facilities such as Multimedia Resources, Workstations and Computers, SmartCape Internet Access, & Parking.