Town Meeting Presentation October 29, 2012
Randall Library Building Committee
Randall Library Building Committee• Committee Members:• Steve Dungan• Steve Jelinek• Tom Lam• Peter McManus
• Administrative Assistant:• Susan McLaughin
• Consultants:• Johnson and Roberts
Associates• Stewart Roberts• Phil O’Brien
• Tim Reed, Chairman• Jim Salvie• Barbara Wolfenden
Why Change?
• Water leaks into building during heavy rains.• Water damage to the structure requires
repairing corroded metal braces holding up the patio and rotted 2x4’s holding up the brick walls.
• Handicap access is dangerous.• Very crowded conditions on the first floor.• Only one small workroom for storage and
materials preparation.
Why Not A New Library?
• Cost would be in the 7 to 12 million dollar range.
• No available site near the center of town.• Feedback from residents indicates a very
strong desire to keep library in its current location.
• Would leave vacant existing library building.
Why Not Move to Pompo
• Move to Pompo was extensively explored.• Space requirements to receive state library
construction grant would take too much space.• Time to acquire construction grant would leave
a large section of Pompo vacant for 5 to 10 years.
• Residents want library to stay where it is.
Randall Library Needs
• Water leak remediation• Better handicap access• Additional storage and work spaces• Separate adult section with area for reading and
working• Separate young adult section with areas for
studying and tutoring• Separate children's section• Restoration of original building• Additional parking
Design Study Results
• Structural analysis of the building found the original 1892 building in pretty good shape but in need of some restoration and repair.
• Structural analysis of the 1975 addition found that that it was the kind of construction that had a useful life of about 20 to 30 years.
• The 1975 addition is in need of structural repairs.• No second floor area of the current library is
structurally capable of supporting full library book stacks.
Why Not Renovate the 1975 Addition?
• Even with a renovation, the building will eventually start leaking again.
• The quality of the construction being as it is, there will be ongoing maintenance costs.
• The 1975 addition will have to be replaced eventually.
• All library book stacks will have to remain on the first floor.
• Patrons with access issues will still have to use the street to go from the handicap parking space to the handicap entrance.
Proposed Renovation/Addition Designs
1975 addition Proposed Addition
First Floor SchemeYoung Adult
Section
Main Entrance
Director’s Office
Work Room
Librarian’s Desk
ElevatorChildren’s
Desk
Children’sSection
Second Floor Scheme Adult Book Stacks
Computer Stations
Librarian Station
Elevator
Periodicals
Meeting Room
Parking Scheme
How Does Stow Compare with Other Communities?
Boxborough12,000 sq ft
Maynard24,300 sq ft
Bolton16,945 sq ft (up from 3,100 sq ft)
Harvard
Annual municipal appropriation: Carlisle $511,586Harvard $511,238Sherborn $384,844Bolton $373,094Boxborough $298,377Stow $200,601
FTEs: Harvard 9Carlisle 7.7 Bolton 6.2Sherborn 4.8 Boxborough 4.5Stow 3.3
Stow Comparisons with Other Towns
FY11
Age 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030
00-04 421 510 473 515 556
05-09 378 470 330 303 320
10-14 380 442 599 582 616
15-19 367 335 493 482 472
20-24 310 156 171 162 146
25-29 284 200 163 186 170
30-34 437 375 233 272 269
35-39 547 615 334 302 339
40-44 579 615 591 462 544
45-49 485 534 749 608 586
50-54 355 505 855 874 760
55-59 268 393 533 660 573
60-64 150 267 446 612 634
65-69 117 188 200 308 388
70-74 85 99 113 191 243
75-79 70 88 89 119 175
80-85 42 62 73 73 124
85+ 53 48 60 62 74
TOTAL 5,328 5,902 6,507 6,775 6,990
Population Projection by Age Group – Prepared by MAPC
Stow Population Projections
Renovation and Addition Proposal• Project Cost is 3.7 million dollars.• Project cost does not cover new furniture or
computers.• Over $700,000 qualifies for possible CPA
funds.• Estimated annual cost for the average
household is $75.• Tonight you are voting on just the
construction design phase of the project. The cost for this phase is $300,000.
Why Support Proposal Now?
• The 1975 addition will have to be replaced. It is just a matter of time. If it isn’t replaced there will be yearly maintenance costs which will depend on what part of the addition fails in a give year.
• The $75 per average household per year will only increase if the project is delayed. Interest rates will not get lower and construction costs will get higher.
• A four year delay will push the project costs to 4.3 million dollars.
• Allows for safe handicap access.• Eliminates water leaks.• Increases the number of computer stations.• Creates a separate adult section.• Reduces annual maintenance costs.
Restores and renovates a town icon.
Project Summary
Please Vote to Support Your Library