PLANS to close the Richmond Room in Ballina have been put on hold, with councillors set to hold a workshop to discuss the issue.

The council had previously voted to close the Richmond Room in order to expand the Ballina library.

Currently the room is used regularly by the Ballina Lighthouse RSL Day Club and the Red Cross. It is also used by church groups, health organisations, artists and for public meetings.

But concerns have been raised that users will not have an alternative location if the Richmond Room is closed.

At this week's facilities committee meeting, councillors voted to hold a briefing to talk about other options.

One of the options presented to councillors by architect Dominic Finlay-Jones was to plan for a north-east expansion of the library, incorporating a new entry, new counter, a children's area and new lounge/tech hub.

Some of the other issues to be discussed include locating a wi-fi hub in the visitor information centre.

Councillors will also consider the staged phasing of the library into the Richmond Room, while working on an overall growth strategy for the library.

The council's general manager, Paul Hickey, said: "We are continuing to investigate other options to try and achieve an outcome that meets the needs of all parties."