Town Manager Signs Contract for Jones Library Expansion

Town Manager Paul Bockelman announced at the April 28 Town Council meeting that he had signed a $35 million contract with Fontaine Brothers of Springfield for construction of the renovated and expanded Jones Library. Bockelman said that after the vote to rescind the borrowing for the project failed at the April 14 special Town Council meeting, he signed the contract with the low bidder on the project on April 18. According to Bockelman the project also obtained a building permit, however the Building Department issued a permit only for the demolition portion of the project. The application for the full building permit will follow. Prep work is expected to begin in June, with the erection of protective fencing.

A bid protest filed by Amherst resident Joe Cook a day after the rescission vote was rejected by the state’s attorney general. Bockelman said that most of the subcontractors for the bid submitted in November agreed to hold their prices. With the signing of a construction contract, the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) released the next two installments of its $15.6 million grant. 

Bockelman also stated that the town has signed a lease for a temporary location for the library on University Drive. 

The Memorandum of Understanding signed between the town and the Jones Library Trustees caps the town’s commitment to $15.8 million (plus interest on borrowed money) and obligates the Jones Library Trustees to raise the remaining costs, currently estimated to be $13.7 million. The project has received a $1 million pledge from Amherst College and $1 million in Community Preservation Act funds from the town. Grants provisionally awarded from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Department of Housing and Urban Development for another $2.1 million are in doubt due to cuts in federal funding. Contributions to the library’s capital campaign have been sluggish over the past year.

The construction plans include expanding the library from 48,000 to 61,000 sq. ft. by demolishing the 1993 brick addition and building a large new addition at the rear of the property, replacing the Kinsey Memorial garden, which was removed in preparation for the project. The original 1928 portion of the library will be updated by expanding spaces for the children’s room, teen space, English as a Second Language classes, and circulation. A humanities center in the lower level of the library will have space for the town’s Civil War tablets. Current plans project that 80% of the rare Philippine mahogany  in the historic building can be retained in the renovation. A new HVAC system will be installed. The renovated building will meet accessibility standards, which only the 1993 addition that will be demolished does now.

Cathy Schoen Offers Apology for No Vote on Rescission
Councilor Cathy Schoen (District 1) stated near the end of the council meeting, “I just want to take a moment to apologize for my vote on the Jones Library project on April 14. Some public comments noted that there were only three brave people, despite the fact that I had brought forth a motion to rescind. I don’t really have a good excuse other than being surprised by the format, not enough time to assess material, and total lack of sleep. But this is no excuse, because I voted against myself and against my best judgment. I apologize to the many residents who looked to me to stay calm, rational, and fiscally accountable. I realized my vote did not matter. It required nine councilors to support rescinding, but it mattered, and it matters to me. Thus, my apology.”

Public Comment Calls Signing of Library Contract into Question
An article in the Daily Hampshire Gazette on April 23, regarding a letter sent to the NEH and the Congressional Doge Caucus by Jeff Lee, calling attention to false statements and lack of appropriate process in the library project, referred to Bockelman signing a contract with Fontaine Brothers on April 4, 10 days prior to the special council meeting regarding the rescission. Vincent O’Connor accused the Town Manager of concealing from Town Councilors the fact that a contract had been signed. 

Maria Kopicki asked, “Who else on the council, on the library trustees, in the library capital campaign knew about April 4 and did not share on April 14^th? Was that [meeting] just a farce? I really hope that you as councilors demand answers as to what is going on, what happened? Who knew what  and when, and why was this information not shared with you? The only thing I’m certain about is that three of you did not know what was going on. That was Councilor Pam Rooney (District 4), Councilor Jennifer Taub (District 4), and Councilor Ellisha Walker (at large), the three people who had the courage to say this is a bad idea.”

Arlie Gould also called the process into question. She said, “I found it very interesting that the Town Council had to call a special meeting and make a motion to rescind the borrowing for the library in order for the Town Manager and his staff to do their job and provide the information that the Town Council had been asking for several months. I hope that doesn’t have to keep happening when the Town Council asks for information. It was interesting that Councilors Schoen and Bob Hegner (District 5) voted against their own motion [to rescind the borrowing]. I’m not sure what they heard. What I heard basically was, we won’t go over $46.1 million and we have great fundraisers, so everything will be okay. I hope everything works out, because when that wrecking ball hits that building and we are committed to it, if the money runs out, are you really not going to approve any more money?”