Library Trustees to Reduce Size of Building Project

Board of Trustee Laurie Hogan announced today that the board got approval from the state to reduce the size of the proposed 42,767 by 10 percent and still be eligible for the $8 million state grant.

"We heard from voters that the library project was still a little too big, so we asked the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners if we could reduce the size to 38,490, and they agreed," Hogan said. "We've also scheduled a public forum on March 12 for people to come and tell us their thoughts and then we will submit the suggestions to the selectmen."

Since , the Library Building Committee had been disbanded, but the trustees have been discussing how to fix the current library that needs renovations.

"We did an air quality study in October and found that the work area for the staff off of the children's room has high levels of mold spores and bacteria, so the staff can no longer work near the failing air handler," Hogan said. "So that mitigation system would have to be fixed and the staff will be moved out of that room and into the current children's room public space."

"The bottom line is that it's a municipal building that we knew needed to be renovated and when the town got the $8 million grant, we were hoping to make the necessary renovations and increase the size of the building at the same time," Hogan said. "But since the vote failed, the town is still faced with renovating a building that does not meet the needs of a town of our size."

Hogan said everything is back on the table for discussion. "The money will most likely be available to the town in 2014 or even sooner," she said. "And now the town owns the Shrewsbury Federal Credit Union property, so we are open to hearing what people like and don't like about the project."

The public forum is scheduled for Monday, March 12, at 7 p.m. at the town hall.