Town Council Views Presentation On Proposed Jones Library Expansion

Report From The Town Council Meeting Of February 22,  2021

The meeting was held as a Zoom webinar.  A recording of the meeting can be found here. 

Participating: all Town Councilors, all  Jones Library Trustees, and 52 members of the public.

Over 90 minutes of this Town Council meeting was devoted to a presentation organized by the Jones Library Board of Trustees in order to increase public and Council support for their proposal to demolish part of the library, redo the interior of the oldest section, and expand the building’s size by 30 percent. Councilors had said they needed more information before they could consider approving a request from the library for funding, in advance of a state grant, of the proposed expansion project. The Council’s questions and the Trustees’ responses are here. The presentation to the Council is at the end of this document, on about page 40.

The design and interior space, as presented by architect Tony Hsaio of Finegold Alexander Architects, Inc. would be designed in a style that is open, modern, and well-lit with a children’s area, a teen area, and meeting rooms of various sizes. Compared to the current unrenovated Jones, the new Jones would be three times as energy efficient.

In order to make the project seem financially feasible, the Trustees made several claims based on assumptions that might or might not be accurate. A study requested by the Town Council done by Kuhn Riddle Architects last year that estimated the cost to repair the existing building and make it accessible. Kuhn Riddle had been directed by the Trustees to develop two plans, neither of them including how to make the current space more efficient. The results were a plan that would cost about $16.8 million and would be phased in over 108 weeks and a plan that would cost $14.3 million and would be done in 78 weeks.

It seems very unlikely that the Town would choose the plan that takes longer and costs more, but Finance Director Sean Mangano used the longer plan to show that repairing the Jones building would cost $3 million more than to demolish and expand it, mainly because bonds would be borrowed over five years instead of three at increasing interest rates.

The Trustees say they will raise over $6 million for the project, and that they have pledges and grants for almost 30 percent of their goal. However, of that amount, $1 million is in Community Preservation Act (CPA) funding; these funds are paid by local property taxes and can only be used for historic preservation, not new construction. Presumably they could be used for repair of the existing structure. Another $1.6 million would be raised from selling Historical Tax Credits. Historical Tax Credits are bonds that people buy to counteract their tax liabilities, and, like CPA funds, they cannot be used for new construction. Presumably money from selling Historic Tax Credits could also be used for repair of the existing building.

According to the report, however, the group that is responsible for fundraising for the library, the non-profit Friends of the Jones Library, has “no interest in supporting fundraising for a repair only.”

Increased energy efficiency would be achieved through solar panels on the new addition as well as new energy-efficient heating and cooling systems. Trustee Alex Lefebvre asserted that net zero energy consumption could be obtained by purchasing off-site renewable energy. The carbon footprint of the new addition would be reduced by using timber beams, rather than steel. (The 1993 addition that would be demolished and disposed of uses materials with the highest embodied carbon, e.g. steel, concrete, brick, and slate.) Unfortunately, neither of the repair options presented addressed increasing energy efficiency through energy-efficient heating and cooling systems and renewable sources. Instead they proposed simply replacing the existing boiler.

Councilors were allowed to ask two questions each. Steve Schreiber (District 4) wanted assurance that the new construction would not need to be replaced in 20 or 30 years, like the 1993 addition slated to be torn down. Hsaio said that the current plan includes durable materials and attention to detail that will withstand many decades of use.

Andy Steinberg (At-large) asked what would happen if there are no bids for the construction at the projected cost. Ken Guyette, Senior Director of Project Management Services at Colliers International, which is a Canada-based diversified professional services and investment management company, according to its website, said the projected costs will be adjusted as plans are refined, in order to reflect an accurate cost for the project.

Several councilors asked about the effects of the proposed new building on both the library’s operating budget and the branch libraries. Library Director Sharon Sharry responded that she thinks the new building would only need one additional maintenance person. As for the branch libraries, she said the staff at the Munson and North Amherst libraries would not be affected, then added that the Jones Library cannot afford to be responsible for staffing the new space that would open up when the North Amherst library is renovated.

Trustee Treasurer Bob Pam said he thinks the Jones could weather a short-term withdrawal of $2 million from its $9 million endowment, which provides most of the library’s contribution to its operating costs. The $2 million withdrawal would be necessary if the fundraising effort does not reach its goals by the time of construction. The endowment would be repaid as more donations are received. 

In public comment prior to the discussion, resident Marcie Muehlke told about how she had been “on the fence” about the library renovation until taking one of the library’s tours before it shut down for Covid. She noted that there is only one bathroom near the the children’s area and that some popular programs can be so crowded that participants have to stand in the hall. Also, the atrium leaks and the basement teen area is gloomy. She now supports the project.

Resident Isabel Ramirez pointed out that she and her ESL tutor have sometimes found it difficult to locate a quiet space to work together.

But resident Toni Cunningham expressed concerns that the figures presented by the Trustees for the project are inaccurate, and the actual costs would cripple other capital projects, as well as the Town operating budget, well into the future. She questioned the stated numbers of library users and the figures used for fundraising. For example, some of the stated donations have already been used for design updates. She also noted the adverse effect on property taxes, the operating budgets of the schools, Public Works, and various Town Hall departments if all of the capital projects are undertaken. In addition, she said she wishes the Trustees would update their estimates for renovation and repairs so that they can be comparable in terms of interest rates for money borrowed and the increase in cost if construction does not begin for several years.

Public listening sessions on the Jones Library proposal will be held on March 3 at 6 p.m. and March 6 at 2 p.m. By a unanimous vote, further discussion of the Town’s financial contributions to the proposed project was referred to the Finance Committee.