In a 7-5 vote, Essex County Councillors have agreed to use $790,000 saved in last year's library strike to upgrade library branches.
Chief Administrative Officer Brian Gregg told council that there's no proper mechanism to give the money back to individual taxpayers or municipalities, so, it will stay in reserves for now.
The Town of Essex, Amherstburg, and Leamington wanted the money back.
Leamington Mayor, John Paterson says his return would have been around $100,000, and he could have used it toward his town's library upgrade to be done soon.
"I think that money should have gone back to the municipalities because it's our taxpayers who pay it. I don't care whether they call it a county assessment or not. It's money that comes from our taxpayers," says Paterson.
The 7.5-month strike cost the county about $140,000 in government grants.
The county has around $120-million in reserves.
Paterson says he's not holding his breath waiting for the money.
"I didn't get a guarantee from anybody that we'll see that $100,000 plus what they would normally give. I think they'll just roll it in," Paterson says.
Paterson says Leamington is tired of paying to fix other libraries and not getting any return on its investment.
"Leamington has been financing everybody else's enhancements, and now we're going to be financing our own enhancements that should have been funded by everybody else," says Paterson.