AMHERST — Four residents are running for two, three-year positions as trustees for the Jones Library at the March 27 town election.
The main point of contention centers around the proposal to expand and renovate the 80-year-old building in town center. The project would cost $35.6 million, with $13.87 million of that cost paid by a state grant from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners.
Incumbents Tamson Ely and Austin Sarat support the idea, while challengers Cathy “Kitty” Axelson-Berry and Sigurd Nilsen are against it.
Here are profiles of each candidate.
Failure to maintain the main branch of the Jones Library while pursuing a project to demolish the 1990s addition concerns Axelson-Berry, who is seeking election as a trustee after falling short when she ran in 2017.
“The library needs to make sure services, such as computers, are available for low-income residents, and trustees don’t need to put focus on a huge addition,” Axelson-Berry said.
Axelson-Berry, 68, of 89 Stony Hill Road, is a private publisher and former editor of the Valley Advocate.
She observes that there is no guarantee the project will ever be funded by the state.
“They continue to focus obsessively on the vague hope that the library demolition and expansion project will be funded in the near future,” Axelson-Berry said.
She said her biggest concern about the current board is not heeding public input.
“I really want public participation in setting priorities and planning for the future,” Axelson-Berry said. “Paying lip service and saying you’re listening is not the same as actual listening.”
She makes the argument that even if renovations are pegged at $10 million, that would be less cost to taxpayers than taking on long-term borrowing for a major expansion.
She also believes that a space-use study would have found significant room in the current building for expansion, with space currently being used for storage instead of services.
Axelson-Berry said she would like to see better benefits for part-time library employees, but worries that raising the “draw” from the Jones Inc. endowment for the budget is “ill advised.” The “draw” is the percentage of the endowment that is used annually to supplement town support and state aid.
One example of how trustees are not responsive to library patrons occurred last fall, when wasn’t until Town Meeting that making improvements to the North Amherst branch was set in motion.
“It’s surprising to me it took a citizen petition to get a public bathroom in the North Amherst branch,” Axelson-Berry said.
New immigrants learning to speak English, scholars doing research and teens looking for a place to study may find the Jones Library building isn’t fully equipped to meet their needs, says Ely.
It’s a reason she supports the continued evolution of the library, including the expansion and renovation project.
“I understand libraries and their challenges,” said Ely, who has been a trustee since 2012. “I believe in the future of libraries, not just their past.”
Ely, 72, of 26 Middle St., was the director of library services at Springfield Technical Community College for over 30 years.
“We have these demands and we need to work hard to figure out how to meet them,” Ely said. “The library doesn’t work for many, many groups in town, and they’re the ones who need the services.”
It’s also critical to recognize the library has a lot of deferred maintenance, more than $10 million, that would be fixed when the project takes place.
“I know it’s difficult for people to contemplate change, but we can do it with sensitivity to the historic past of the library,” Ely said.
Ely said trustees are not ignoring the branches, noting that Munson has been closest to her home, and that both it and the North Amherst serve as community hubs. “They are vitally important,” Ely said.
Trustees have worked to protect the endowment by reducing the “draw” to 4 percent, while understanding that adjustments may be needed to maintain staff and programs.
“We are working hard to increase fundraising so that we can meet the deficits,” Ely said. “We have been very prudent and not cavalier with these funds.”
Ely said she hopes the current board can remain intact.
“It’s important to have a board that works well together and has a basic understanding of the future and well-being of the library, and the community it serves,” Ely said.
Addressing funding shortfalls, maintenance of the library buildings and doing better long-term planning are three areas that Nilsen will focus on if elected as a trustee.
Nilsen, 68, of 27 Teaberry Lane, is a nine-year resident of Amherst who previously worked as a research economist and director at the Government Accountability Office in Washington, D.C.
“We need to make sure that there is a secure funding future for the library,” Nilsen said.
In his concern over finances, he points to at least a $40,000 shortfall in this year’s budget, which could grow to $100,000 next year.
Decisions on spending made in the next few years will be crucial, he said, yet trustees have proposed increasing the draw on the Jones Inc. endowment as a way to supplement the budget.
“That draw could eat away at the value of the endowment,” Nilsen said.
He said that trustees should improve the investment strategy and economize, including cutting expenses through beefing up the energy efficiency of the historic building, and at the same time create a campaign to grow the endowment.
The condition of the main branch is deteriorating, Nilsen said, but he opposes the project to expand and renovate the building. “We don’t need a $50 million expansion,” Nilsen said.
Instead, he said trustees should look how space is used in the Jones and the possibility of reorganizing the interior.
Nilsen said it is unfortunate that it took a citizen petition from the Friends of the North Amherst Library to bring forward the issue of having an accessible bathroom at the North Amherst branch.
“I commend that group for its efforts,” Nilsen said.
Both North Amherst and the Munson branches need to be considered in all decisions trustees make.
“Our library planning needs to be systemwide to reflect this important community value,” Nilsen said.
A library system that is accessible for people of all backgrounds and ages, and part of the vibrant cultural life of the community, is essential to Sarat, the president of the trustees.
“I think it’s really an important time for the Amherst library system and I want to continue to play a role in helping the library system to thrive and develop,” said Sarat, who is seeking re-election to the board on which he has served since being appointed to a vacancy in 2011.
Sarat, 70, of 76 Snell St., is a professor of jurisprudence and political science at Amherst College.
Sarat said the project to renovate and expand the library is critical if the Jones is to remain at the crossroads of Amherst’s civic life.
“It’s the vision of a library that is able to serve the needs of its citizens now and in the future,” Sarat said.
While there is deferred maintenance at the Jones, Sarat said the project is an opportunity to get state money to take care of the issues, as well as create dedicated space for teenagers, adult reading rooms, more storage for special collections and classrooms for the English as a second language program.
Sarat said the Munson and North Amherst branches are not being ignored and a comprehensive plan for their future is being developed.
There are no simplistic solutions for the budget. Trustees, he said, have wrestled with difficult decisions, such as to increase the draw rate on the Jones Inc. endowment after stabilizing it in recent years. He appreciates that the board works in a collegial way.
“Maintaining a cooperative atmosphere on the board, a board that works together well with the director and staff, is a really critical part,” Sarat said.
He is proud of the work done in recent years.
“The library has to continue to be a place that is welcoming for people who love books, and provide a place for children,” Sarat said.
This article was updated March 22 to correct the estimated cost of the project to renovate and expand the main branch. The project would cost $35.6 million, with $13.87 million of that cost paid by a state grant from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.