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Date: 2/22/2022
AMHERST – The town of Amherst spoke last fall when they voted to approve the renovation and expansion of the Jones Library and as 2022 begins, the early stages of the project are now in motion.
The $35.3 million expansion and renovation of the library was approved with fund already secured by the town, leaving the bill for Amherst residents at $15.8 million. The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners have awarded Amherst a grant of approximately $13.8 million, while about $5.7 million will be provided through private donations as set forth in an agreement with the Jones Library Board of Trustees. $1 million from the Community Preservation Act funds was is also going towards the project.
Now in the early stages of the project, a library building committee has been formed tasked with organizing and guiding the completion of the project.
All major decisions will be brought to the Jones Library Building Committee (JLBC) for review approval, and formal submission to the Library Board of Trustees and town manager for final approval.
At their Jan. 27 meeting, the JLBC established through a vote that Jones Library Trustee Austin Sarat would chair the committee while Christine Gray-Mullen, a resident and former member of the Amherst Planning Board, would serve as the vice chair. This meeting was primarily to go over different aspects of the project at this very early stage.
Joining the JLBC in this meeting was Ken Guyette, project manager from Colliers Project Leaders, who is working directly with the JLBC and Amherst as an overseer of operations in this project. Along with Guyette was Senior Project Manager Ken Romeo who mentioned he was excited to work on such a historic project.
Guyette opened his time by saying he had been in contact with Finegold Alexander Architects, the design firm that has been chosen for this project. Guyette said he is anticipating their negotiations to complete by the time the JLBC next meets on Feb. 15. Finegold Alexander would work on the project and assist in designing the library how they want it based on needs and community feedback.
He then took a look ahead and spoke on the project schedule and some of the check mark goals along the way for the project to be timely and under budget.
One conversation that was brought up in this meeting was the temporary space for the Jones Library and their resources during the construction of the project. Guyette said they need to look at what spaces are available and see if they meet the needs of a temporary library, as well as public access to that location and transportation.
Library director Sharon Sharry expressed that she was currently working with staff to prepare a list of requirements in order for them to properly still run the library in temporary locations. Sharry said she was not “looking for a pie in the sky” in terms of the library staffs requests but that programming spaces would not be a high priority.
She also mentioned the two other branches of the Jones would be open still and would most likely be adding open hours to the two locations. She also requested that any temporary location would be in Amherst.
Another important aspect of this temporary move is moving the fine arts and furniture the Jones collects and essentially finding storage space for things like this. For their collections however, they will still be available by law at the temporary location. It seems as though the Jones may be split into a few different temporary locations in order to maintain their resources and still be able to operate.
The JLBC then coordinated three sub committees focused on design of the project, outreach, and sustainability for the building. While still in such early stages of this project, groundwork is being established for the project and the upcoming year.
On outreach, Town Manager Paul Bockelman was asked about his own experience from working on outreach committees to which he advised the JLBC to be conscious of public input, something the Jones Trustees have been advertising since the election season.
“Success of this project will be measured in how we can engage community in any way,” Bockelman said. “Make sure a lot of voices have opinions and ample opportunity to express those opinions. Early focus on outreach is important.”
Goals for the renovation and expansion of the Jones focus on meeting needs of the community, including a HVAC systems repair, additional space, new teen and children focused areas and becoming the first Massachusetts Library to become net zero following expansion and renovation. Lifetime emissions of the building will be decreased by 40 percent in comparison to keeping the building as is, according to the Board of Trustees.
“We realized the earth is crumbling at our feet, we’ve got to do something about it,” Sharry said last fall. “The trustees created a sustainability subcommittee and its four experts in the area of sustainability. We were able to interview folks and over the course of a year the subcommittee, made of experts in the field, was able to give recommendations which would ultimately lead to a net-zero ready building.”
The reason the building will be net-zero ready and not net-zero when completed is due to the classic structure of the Jones. To cover for the small problem, the option of purchasing renewable energy through either the town or a local supplier will lead to the eventual net-zero building, according to Sharry.
The expansion of the library will provide more space for a central community gathering spot in the library, an expanded children’s room that would be more accessible for families and give children a while area for their different activities. This would provide a nice foundational spot for children at the library with so many programs and events being aimed at children.
The library trustees as well as the Amherst Historical Commission received a lengthy and informative historical structure report during their Jan. 12 joint meeting and were given information on the building and its history.
Eric Gradoia, a consultant in the field of architectural history and building conservation and currently the director of Historic Preservation at Historic Deerfield, led the charge in preparing this project and shared it during the meeting.
Gradoia says the architect of Putnam and Cox, a Boston architect firm that started in 1901, was the group behind the creation of the Jones. Gradoia said the Jones takes on a unique and impressive look of colonial revival structure heavily inspired and deeply rooted in Connecticut River Valley architecture, a unique style with high detail that became popular in the region. His report was able to detail what makes the Jones a unique and historic building.
Jane Wald, chair of the Historic Commission said it best during that meeting in how the report and the buildings history directly show its importance to the community.
“What you described is the inheritance of the unique Connecticut River Valley architecture and tradition has really struck a chord and driven home the essential features of this library and its inheritance from domestic architecture at the same time,” Wald said. “It’s illuminating to have this perspective and what you have brought to our understanding of this building.”
Still so early on in this project, the town of Amherst can feel confident that the care given to the historic library will be translated through the expansion and renovation and the final product will be what the community wants out of it and something everyone can continue to be proud of for years to come.