Westborough Library Update Plans to Be Presented at Town Meeting

WESTBOROUGH, MA—For the last two years, the Trustees of the Westborough Public Library and the Library Building Committee have been working on a plan to renovate and expand the library building.

With a planning and design grant from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC), the committees have come up with the best options to provide for the current and future needs of residents based on a 20-year planning horizon. Some of those needs include additional meeting rooms and study space, larger teen and children's spaces, and repairs to the electrical, plumbing and mechanical systems in the aging building, according to an announcement from the trustees.

Architects Lamoureux Pagano Architects considered all the options, needs and desires outlined in community surveys from 2009-2013, and created a preliminary design based on those. This design will be presented in a warrant article at Town Meeting in October for approval.

"It's important to note that this is a very high-level,preliminary design, and there are elements that may (and likely will) change over time," said the press release. "It's also important to note that acceptance of the design does not commit the town to doing a project - it assures the MBLC that the town is aware of the project and understands the concept. There is no funding requested at this time."

The second article that will be presented asks Town Meeting's permission to apply for, accept, and expend grant funds for a construction project. This approval is required in order for the town to submit an application for a construction grant from the MBLC. There is currently funding in place at the state level for library construction grants, and the grant application is due in January 2017. Submitting an application for a construction grant does not commit the town to doing a project. If the application is successful, the committee would come before Town Meeting at a future date to request the matching funds required to move the project forward. At that time, the decision would be made whether to do the project or not. There is no funding requested for this article, or the project as a whole, at this time.

Find out more information on the Library Building Project.