School survey finds support for restricted free internet access at library

April 7th, 2011
[by David Armstrong]

The Motueka High School Year 10 community issues class yesterday presented the findings of its Term 1 investigation, which shows that Motueka people would prefer that the free internet access provided by the Motueka Library be restricted to card-holding residents and discourage tourists from using the resource so freely.

The timing of the presentation was fortuitous because the issue of conflict between the library and the private internet service Cyberworld cafe is to be discussed by Tasman District Council today. It is expected that the survey results will be part of the Council's deliberations.

The problem with tourists using the library's free internet access service and the effect this is having on the commercial viability of Cyberworld has been simmering for a couple of years now, and has been reported by Motueka Online here. The community issues class decided that this was worth surveying residents on.

The two presenters, Mackenzie Lightwood and Brittany Shee, did well to provide an assured presentation. Although personal opinions overlaid many of their comments, hypotheses and conclusions, the statistics gathered were nevertheless statistically sound. Other class students such as Beau Lyttle later put forward cogent arguments and suggestions during discussion time.

Invited guests for the presentation included Community Board chairman David Ogilvie, Cyberworld co-owner Julia Wilson-Howarth, District Counciller Barry Dowler (who has led discussion on the issue in Council this year) and TDC libraries manager Glennis Coote.

The main finding of the survey of 424 people in the Motueka shopping area during March was that about two-thirds like the availability of free internet access at the library but felt it should be restricted to library card holders, saying it was not fair to internet cafe owners as it stands.

Before the survey, the class invited Julia Wilson-Howarth to speak and explain her concerns on the matter. "She spoke emotionally on how the free internet access at the library was affecting her business and costing her one-third of her turnover," the report said in its conclusion. "She felt it was unfair to all internet businesses in Motueka as they're all losing money because of the free internet service available at the library to anyone."

Of the 424 people surveyed, 74% were residents of the Motueka district and 63% held a Motueka Library card. Twenty-nine percent said they never used the library, and 72% had never used the free internet service at the library.

One-quarter thought the free internet service had worsened their experience at the library, citing mainly extra noise and crowded conditions with too many tourists. Sixty percent supported the availability of free internet access at the Motueka Library, but 65% felt that it should be restricted to library card holders and 62% agreed that the free internet access wasn't fair to internet café owners.

The free internet service contract between the Council and the National Library of New Zealand comes up for renewal in mid-2011, and the survey indicated that while the community supports free internet access at the Motueka library, most people want free internet access to be restricted to library card holders.

In general discussion following the presentation, Julia said she was concerned that, if Cyberworld is forced to close, the library would not be able to accommodate the roughly 2000 extra customers that Cyberworld normally serves each month. The library would be even more crowded and stretched.

What was distressing her was the lack of consultation and compromise between the Council, library and her business. "Together, we could come up with a good solution which would satisfy us all," she said.

Glennis Coote said that according to the APNK contract the library cannot restrict access to anyone, but it would allow the library to put in place management systems that could give priority to card holders. She noted that tourists could buy a library card for $10 a month.

The key question asked in summary was whether this school survey could help in Council discussions to lead to a compromise solution. Glennis said cautiously that this appeared unlikely, but the survey could help in some negotiations. She said Motueka was not the only community facing this problem.

"I'm not holding my breath, but negotiations are possible," she said, adding that she would take the survey to contribute to the ongoing discussions.

[Editor's note: The Council later today decided to renew the contract without change. Details here.]

Click here to view the survey questions »
Click here to view the survey results »

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