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Date: 9/13/2022
AMHERST – Jones Library’s restoration and expansion project continues as the Jones Library Building Committee (JLBC) discussed matters of funding, design and timeline during its Sept. 8 meeting.
The project is currently still in the schematic design phase, meaning the JLBC’s needs and wants are still being converted into an efficient design ready for construction. After approving some invoices, the committee discussed the project’s schedule. The project is still awaiting approval to move into the design development phase, a milestone which would signify greater certainty that the project will see completion. However, this phase requires approval from the Town Council and several contracts to be signed, and even then, another decision point is required to go to the bidding phase. Several committee members seemed to be growing impatient and anxious that the project may not reach fruition.
“I want to know what happens. Do we go through this whole one month, two month delay again? Who’s making that decision? I want some certainty. I want to know what the rules of the game are,” said Library Trustee Alexandra Lefebvre.
Sharon Sharry, director of the Jones Library, spoke on another initiative that had just begun, saying that earlier that day she had met with Amherst Town Council President Lynn Greisemer, state Sen. Jo Comerford and state Rep. Mindy Domb, who are “looking to join forces with the other 13 libraries across the state experiencing escalation issues like we are.” The prospective coalition of library board members, municipal leaders and state representatives would have greater leverage to ask the state to fund these escalation costs. The initiatives will be presented to the library board for comment once they have been mapped out further.
Finance Director Sean Mangano pointed out that there was a Town Council meeting on Sept. 12 followed by a Finance Committee meeting on Sept 13, where the Jones Library Project was discussed extensively, possibly bringing about a decision as to the future of the project.
While both meetings were after press time, coverage will appear in the Sept. 22 edition of The Reminder.
The design subcommittee report featured a cost analysis of various design features and material choices, some of which have been approved, others not. After some deliberation, the JLBC voted to amend two items on the report. Synthetic slate was chosen to replace real slate, and the sawtooth roof design was scrapped in favor of a flat roof. These changes were made based on cost effectiveness and amounted to roughly $1.9 million in savings.
Potential changes to the furniture and equipment budget were also mentioned by Project Manager Craig DiCarlo which would bring the cost from $2.5 million to approximately $1.5 million; the changes would see the recycling and reuse of existing library furniture where possible. The decision to make these changes would have to be made “in the next few weeks” according to DiCarlo, as the project moves into design development. However, Jones Library Trustee Austin Sarat felt that the JLBC must be presented with a more detailed breakdown of what these changes look like on a practical level before signing off on their approval. The rest of the committee agreed with his sentiment, and it was agreed that the issue would be further discussed at the next meeting. DiCarlo estimated the total coast of the project would fall somewhere between $43.5 million and $49.8 million, most likely hovering around $46.5 million as a midpoint estimate (without accounting for the savings from the use of synthetic slate).
Town Manager Paul Bockelman explained that the Town Council must meet and have a concrete understanding of the funding plan before it can vote to sign the contracts which would move the project forward.