April 28: National Day of Mourning

Monday, April 28 is the National Day of Mourning to remember and honour those who have died, been injured or suffered illness in the workplace. All HPL Branches will observe a minute of silence at 11am to honour their memories.

All Branches and Bookmobile Stops
Published:
Friday, April 25, 2025 - 9:00am
Westdale Branch: Polling Station

Monday, April 28 is Election Day in Canada. Westdale Branch is open 9:30am-9:30pm as a polling station. Please bring one piece of ID to vote. Please note there will be a minute of silence at 11am in honour of the National Day of Mourning.

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Published:
Friday, April 25, 2025 - 9:00am
City of Hamilton IT Maintenance

Due to City IT maintenance, HPL's catalogue and digital resources will not be available on Sunday, April 27 between midnight and 1am. We apologize for the inconvenience.

All Branches and Bookmobile Stops
Published:
Friday, April 25, 2025 - 9:00am
Extended Access at Freelton Branch Unavailable

Extended Access at Freelton Branch is not working. We aim to fix it quickly. Apologies for the inconvenience.

Published:
Thursday, April 24, 2025 - 12:00pm
Ancaster Branch - Temporary Closure, May 5-31

From Monday, May 5 to Saturday, May 31, the Ancaster Branch will be temporarily closed due to a roof and HVAC replacement. During this time, service hours will be available at the Ancaster Rotary Centre, 385 Jerseyville Road West, Ancaster. The last day to pick up your Holds is Thursday, May 1st. Thank you for your understanding.

www.hpl.ca/ancaster

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Published:
Wednesday, April 16, 2025 - 11:00am
Central Library - Microfilm Machine

The digital microfilm machines at Central Library are not working. A single analog machine is available, but it doesn't print. We aim to have the digital devices repaired as soon as possible. We apologize for the inconvenience.

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Affected Branch: Central Library
Published:
Thursday, April 10, 2025 - 3:30pm
Barton Branch - Roof Repair

Due to the ongoing roof repair project, noise and parking disruptions will continue until April 25. Thank you for your patience.

Published:
Tuesday, April 8, 2025 - 3:30pm
Sherwood Branch - Basement Renovation

The first phase of renovations will begin at the Sherwood Branch from April 10 to May 2. During this time, noise disruptions may occur throughout the branch due to a basement renovation. Parking, access to the building, and collections will not be affected. Thank you for your patience. www.hpl.ca/sherwood

Published:
Monday, April 7, 2025 - 8:30am
Phishing Scheme

Please be aware of online phishing attempts impersonating Hamilton Public Library and Library Staff. HPL does not solicit paid freelance opportunities through social media or other messaging applications. HPL does not request personal or banking information through social media or require financial compensation when reviewing job applications. Please report phishing schemes to communications@hpl.ca. If you think you are a victim of fraud, please call the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501.

All Branches and Bookmobile Stops
Published:
Thursday, April 3, 2025 - 10:30am

Accessibility for Individuals with a Disability

Assistive Devices

Persons with a disability may provide their own assistive device for the purpose of obtaining or using library services and may have free access to assistive devices available in the Library designed to help a person with a disability to carry out activities or to gain access to library services.

Exceptions may occur in situations where the Library has determined that the assistive device may pose a risk to the health and safety of the person with a disability or to the health and safety of others on Library premises. In these situations, the Library may offer a person with a disability other reasonable measures to assist them in obtaining and using library services, where the Library has such other measures available. It is the responsibility of the person with a disability to ensure that their assistive device is operated in a safe and controlled manner at all times.

Service Animals

Persons entering Library facilities may be accompanied by a service animal. If it is not readily apparent that the animal is a service animal, Library employees may ask if an animal is a service animal and whether documentation of the animal’s status is available. If documentation is not immediately available, the person and the animal, normally, will be allowed access to the Library for the current visit and asked to bring documentation for future visits.

Service animals are generally dogs but do include other animals. It is the responsibility of the person with a disability to ensure that their service animal is always kept under control.

Support Persons

Persons with a disability may enter Library premises with a support person to assist with communication, mobility or medical needs or with access to Library Services and may have access to the support person while on the premises.

A support person, when assisting a person with a disability to obtain or use Library services, will be permitted to attend at no charge where an admission fee is applicable. Persons with disabilities may provide their library card or its duplicate fob to a support person for use by the support person on their behalf.

The Library may require a person with a disability to be accompanied by a support person when on the premises. Before making a decision to require a support person, the Library will consult with the person with a disability to understand their needs, consider health or safety reasons based on available evidence and determine if there is any other reasonable way to protect the health or safety of the person or others on the premises.

Information and Communication

The Library will provide access to or arrange for access to accessible materials where they exist and will provide library publicity and reports in alternate formats upon request. The Library complies with the Clear, Accessible and Large Print Guidelines developed by the City of Hamilton in conjunction with the City of Hamilton Advisory Committee for Persons with Disabilities. The Library will work to ensure the website and web content is accessible according to the appropriate Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0.