Is the Library Asking for Funds for a New Building?

The following was submitted by The Board of Library Trustees

Contrary to what was reported recently in the Town Crier, the Trustees of the Wayland Free Public Library have not yet made a decision whether to apply for a state construction grant to improve Library space. A committee of residents is deliberating that question right now. Their report is due to the Trustees in September, and we expect to make a decision in the early fall.

Here’s what’s going on:

A Funding Opportunity. Last summer, the Massachusetts Legislature authorized money for public library construction for the first time in many years. This is very good news for Wayland, where we have been exploring opportunities for new Library space for almost a decade. Funds available under the Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program can be used for certain renovations, additions, or new construction, and they can underwrite as much as 45% of construction costs for a town like ours.

A Planning Committee. In light of that development, the Board of Library Trustees formed a town-wide study group in January to help us evaluate the Library’s space needs, to assess our current building at 5 Concord Road, and to make recommendations about whether to apply for a state construction grant. This study group, called the Library Planning Committee, is chaired by former selectman Tom Fay and includes 21 Wayland residents who represent many segments of our community. They have been working hard since early this year studying our Library, visiting other libraries in Massachusetts, reading reports about library space and use, and collecting information to help inform them in their discussions.

A Survey. The Trustees also commissioned a town-wide survey about the Library, which was sent to every household in Wayland this spring. The survey was developed and conducted by the UMass Donahue Institute, which has completed its analysis of the data from the 875 households that responded. We have passed that information on to the Library Planning Committee to assist them in their deliberations.

Next: A Recommendation. The Library Planning Committee will continue its work over the summer and will make recommendations to the Trustees in the fall about whether to propose a Library building project to the state and to the Town. Once the Trustees receive this recommendation, we will deliberate whether or not to accept it. If the Trustees decide it is in the best interests of the Town to apply for a state construction grant, there will be a very short amount of time to put an application together. As part of that application, the Trustees will need to request funding from the Town at a Town Meeting to explore options for an improved library facility whether at our current address or at another location in town.

What Kind of Building Project Could We Be Talking About? We don’t know yet, and we won’t know until after the Library Planning Committee makes its recommendation and the Trustees vote on it this fall. We believe there will be one of four options in front of us:  (1) No building project. (2) A renovation of our current Library building at 5 Concord Road. (3) An expansion of our current Library building at 5 Concord Road. (4) Construction of a new Library building at a different site. The latter two building options would be eligible for state funding at approximately 45% of the construction costs.

What About Our Current Library Building? Our current Library building, which was constructed in 1900, is beautiful and solid. It has stood at the center of our community for 115 years and it has served us well. Many people have related to me and to other Trustees about growing up in Wayland and going to the Children’s Room, then located in the basement directly under the Rotunda, for story time and how as emerging readers they participated in many of the activities there. Many people also remember that we once had branch libraries in Cochituate to supplement our services, one on Main Street and a later one at the fire station where the Art Center is now housed.

In 1988, the Town constructed an addition at the Main Library on Concord Road using Town funds and funds from the same Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program whose support we are now investigating. You can easily see that the addition provided some much needed space. Once you walk past the Circulation Desk on the first floor of the Library, you are standing in the 1988 addition; this is the open area that houses stacks, tables, comfortable seating in the north side of the addition, and a teen corner. 

In the basement area, the 1988 addition gave us an expanded Children’s Room as well as the Raytheon Room, our one public meeting room. Today the Raytheon Room serves a multitude of uses and is booked solid most days for children’s story time and other kids’ activities. It is also used for ESOL tutoring, private study, exhibition space, small group study, Trustees’ meetings, our Great Presenters series and many, many other Library offerings; whoever signs up for it first, gets it. If available, it also serves as a meeting space for public and private groups looking for a public space in which to meet.

Tight Quarters. Twenty-seven years after our 1988 addition was built, we now see different patterns of use and different demands from our residents. People ask for private study space and group work space that we cannot provide. Our Children’s Space is small, the Teen Space is tiny, we are short on computer space, and the Raytheon Room seats only 60. Our offices and technical services are now housed tightly in a warren of rooms in the basement in the original part of the building. In addition to being inefficient and crowded, these basement areas and the Children’s Room are also prone to flooding.

Looking Ahead. For the last eight years, the Board of Library Trustees has been watching the crowding at the Library closely, investigating many different ways to solve the problem so we can offer better Library spaces and improved services for Wayland residents. Libraries are changing, and the Trustees and the Library Planning Committee all feel it is important to stay forward-looking. With new state library construction grants now available, the Trustees feel it is prudent to keep our minds open and explore all our options carefully, and we look forward to hearing the recommendations of the Library Planning Committee.

Will we ask for Town funds to study an improved library facility at Town Meeting? We don’t know yet, but we are excited to find out!

If you have thoughts about the future of the Library, please feel free to share them with me (Aida Gennis, wgs3155@gmail.com) or any of the other Library Trustees. We hope you are as excited about the future of the Wayland Free Public Library as we are.

Thank you for your continued interest and support of our library.

Aida Gennis, Chair
on behalf of the Board of Library Trustees
Wayland Free Public Library

Share:

Leave a Reply (full real name required)

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *