New library design, budget pass at Town MeetingFrom Newburyport Daily News, May 18, 2010
By Angeljean Chiaramida
Staff writer
—
SALISBURY
— Town Meeting last night approved a design for a larger library, a
right-to-farm bylaw with a new agricultural commission, two new zones
allowing solar and wind energy-generating activity and a budget for the
coming year.
It took longer for moderator Ron Ray to read the
article that requested approval for an $18,467,332 budget for the
coming year than it took for Town Meeting to approve it, a stamp of
approval that Town Manager Neil Harrington found gratifying.
But
the 251 voters who packed Salisbury Elementary School cafeteria chewed
over the 17,000-square-foot proposed design to enlarge the town's
current 3,000-square-foot library for half an hour before
overwhelmingly giving it the nod of approval.
Some took the
floor to advise not to approve the new design, which will build a new,
two-story library at its present location on Salisbury Square to meet
the needs of the community for the next two decades.
A few
didn't want to tear down the present library but wanted to incorporate
the building into the new one, something officials said wasn't possible.
Others
thought the design too big, and that no matter how much money in grants
the town received to build it, running such a large facility would be
beyond the town's means once it's built. Others suggested Salisbury
residents should simply continue to use the larger, more modern
libraries in other communities to meet its library needs.
Selectman
Ed Hunt said technology could soon make libraries obsolete, his reason
for not favoring spending the money to build and staff a larger
building to house new books, programs and more and newer computers.
Although
many others spoke in favor of the proposals, it was two of the youngest
voters at Town Meeting who turned the tide and won the day.
Twenty-one-year-old
Joseph Stucker told Town Meeting the youth of the town need a better
library to enhance their education, a resource required for future
generations.
"I remember going to story hour at that library,"
said Stucker, a Triton graduate and now a student at Boston University
studying mass communication. "I've pretty much lived at that library my
whole life. Twenty-five years ago, we tried to expand it and didn't. To
say we should mooch off another town's (library) is inexcusable."
And
Eric Morris, 19, explained the library needed more and better computers
for residents and for students to use in their school and college work.
Some newer books won't hurt either, he added.
"I'd gotten 'Animal House' out of the library recently," he said. "The book had to be about (60 years old)."
The
approval won last night, in addition to the approval of the article
allowing the solicitation of grant money to build it, isn't the final
word on building the library, Selectman Henry Richenburg said. The
question to allocate town funds to build is yet to come, and Town
Meeting will have the final word at that time, he said.
Town Meeting also indefinitely postponed two articles, both of which were citizen's petitions.
After
Town Counsel Tom McEnaney told voters the attorney general would reject
as unlawful and unenforceable an article proposed by Mitchell
Makarewicz to remove policy-making and fee-setting authority from town
boards and commissions, voters made quick work of dismissing the
question. McEnaney said the article as written was contrary to state
laws and was seriously flawed.
Article 21, which would have
expanded the Beach Commercial Zone, was also indefinitely postponed
when its primary petitioner, Ernest Sofia Jr., failed to make the
motion bringing it up for consideration.
Town Meeting also
approved all 11 articles of the Special Town Meeting Warrant, which
allocated cash transfers from one town account to another to purchase
needed equipment, fund overages in the insurance and veterans benefits
accounts, repair sidewalks and reinstitute raises that were cut from
some town employees last year because of shrinking revenues.
Library Expansion Update:
May
2009 
Ben Laing/Staff photo - The
Salisbury Public Library received a $40,000 grant to look into
expanding. Reprint Permission by The
Newburyport News
In June 2007, the
Salisbury Public Library was awarded a $40,000.00 Planning and Design
Grant from the Mass. Board of Library Commissioners with matching funds
($20,000.00) voted on at Fall 2007 town meeting.
The Library Vision Committee began meeting in January 2008. Their
purpose was three-fold. First, to examine the existing library, its
collections, programs and services-to essentially provide a snapshot of
the Salisbury Public Library as it exists today. Second, to determine
future needs based on a twenty year population projection and
anticipate future holdings, collections and services required, and
finally to prepare a written building program summarizing their
findings and outlining specifics for each area of the new library
building.
The
Executive
Summary is a brief overview of the committee’s
findings. The complete building program is available at the
library for public review.
Click here to view or print the library expansion design
brochure that the Vision Committee released in May 2009.
Some of the central objectives for
the new design:
- Keep the location on the town green as
“the Heart of the Community” and centerpiece of
the Village Historic District and to be architecturally compatible in
style and scale to its
neighbors.
- Minimize the impact on the green in terms
of reduced site coverage, respect for existing
monuments and trees.
- Provide sufficient and safe vehicular,
pedestrian and handicapped access and parking.
- Provide increased capacity and services
for every segment of the population and to provide for
“information/education/recreation” for the whole community.
- To be conscious of the Town’s budget
constraints, both in initial expense and on-going
operational and maintenance costs.
Library
Vision Committee: Co-Chairs
Bill
Carroll, Henry Richenburg; members Maureen Dupray, Erica Hixon, Bobbi
Klima, Terry Kyrios, Karen MacInnis, Brenda O’Connell, Lisa Pearson,
Donna Stucker, Joe Stucker and Nick Sullivan.
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Building Program
Survey!
The Library
Vision Committee is examining options in order to expand or rebuild the
Salisbury Public Library. The survey results will assist us in the
planning process. Thank you to all who took the time to
take survey!
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