MORE than 500 residents of Beeston Spring, Westmoreland are expected to benefit from the $1-million construction of a new library in the community.

The facility was constructed through the effort of the Beeston Spring/Canada Association and the local business community.

According to project manager, Astil Gage, the idea to build the facility was spawned after a group of residents from Beeston Spring, who are now living in Canada, paid a visit to the community and saw the need for a library in the district. Area residents then started to pool resources with their Canadian counterparts and the library was constructed on lands donated by the late Dennis Dwyer.

Gage also added that area residents voluntarily did all the work on the project, and he lauded the social clubs in the community who, he said, were instrumental in providing labour for the project.

Meanwhile, the Beeston Spring/Canada Association has already donated some 50 barrels of books to the library.

And Gage told the Observer that there are plans to expand the facility and the range of services it offers to include a computer laboratory, a training centre for computer technicians and Internet access. It has also been proposed that the library may be used to play a major role in a community tourism programme, which is being mooted for the area.