The Honourable Pat Binns, Premier of Prince Edward Island, today announced the opening of the province's second Access PEI site in the Morell Public Library.
The opening fulfills the pledge made by the government in the November, 1998 Throne Speech to extend Access PEI sites across the province.
Commenting on the opening, Premier Binns indicated, "The Province of Prince Edward Island is committed to provide Islanders with fast, efficient, responsive service. This second Access PEI site will improve service delivery by co-locating a number of Provincial Government services and is part of our government's overall strategy to strengthen communities."
The Honourable Don MacKinnon, Minister of Development, emphasized the Access PEI concept will provide value-added, one-stop shopping in communities. "The establishment of a multi-level, single window service delivery in a community creates a number of benefits. People in the Morell area can now access a wider range of services in their home town. The unique Access PEI model is practical and has the potential to build new capacity and development in communities.
The Honourable Chester Gillan, Minister of Education says, "The Morell Public Library is a spacious, attractive building housing a large inventory of government volumes. It is also serves as the home of the Archives and Libraries Division of the Department of Education. With the integration of Access PEI into this site, the library hours will be extended to 40 hours per week, beyond the current 12 hours per week, thereby extending the facility's services."
The Honourable Kevin MacAdam, Minister of Fisheries and Tourism, emphasized that, "The Access PEI site is a welcome addition to the Morell community and will allow residents to obtain government services within their own area. Through the collaborative efforts of my colleagues, Ministers MacKinnon and Gillan, the Morell Library will continue to serve as a knowledge centre and provide new government services through extended hours of operation."
Premier Binns concluded, "In our November 1998 Throne Speech, my Government committed to establishing Access sites throughout PEI. Access Morell is the first of a number of sites that will be located on PEI."
Access PEI provides a range of one-stop shopping services for the public, including: motor vehicle registration; payment of property taxes; and driver's licenses. The first Access PEI site opened in Summerside in March, 1998. The province is continuing its plan to assess and evaluate the Access PEI concept and identify potential new service centre sites.