Confused about the old library? Then you’re paying attention. The selectmen have been imperious and impetuous, changing plans, proposing to sell it for $1, then saying the town should pay to bring it up to code. I agree; we must preserve our historic municipal properties to maintain Harvard’s character and secure assets for the future.
The old library opened in 1887; a 1902 bequest enabled an addition; the 1982 Annual Town Meeting approved a $438,000 renovation. It served as our library until the new library opened in April 2007 in the original home of the Bromfield School.
For at least 20 years, several official groups have worked on town center planning, the Master Plan, and plans for our historic municipal properties, especially the old library, Town Hall, and Hildreth House. All agreed that a vital town center is crucial to preserving the town’s character, that historic buildings are precious resources, and that decades of deferred maintenance have degraded them structurally, functionally, and economically.
An obligation to renovate, revitalize
The Municipal Buildings Committee (MBC) concluded in 2010 that those three historic buildings should remain in municipal use and that we have an obligation to renovate and thus revitalize them. In 2010, the Old Library Pilot Project formed as a subcommittee of the MBC “to test whether there is the desire for, and the resources to create, a self-sustaining center for community and arts programming.” It was deemed successful, and the Pilot Project Working Group presented a proposal at the June 19, 2012, selectmen’s meeting “for the continuation of the Pilot Project and its use of the Old Library,” called the Center on the Common. The selectmen voted unanimously to negotiate a rental agreement. At their Sept. 19, 2012, meeting, they approved it.
The Center opened on Jan. 1, 2013, and held activities—art shows, classes, tag sales, musical performances, dances—for almost two years. It abruptly closed on Dec. 18, 2014, due to lapsed insurance coverage as of April 23, 2014. The Center had not paid utility reimbursements to the town since the summer of 2013. Despite an alert to Selectman Stu Sklar, the selectmen seemed shocked to discover there was no coverage, occasioning the sudden shutdown, although they had known about unpaid rent and utility reimbursements for at least a year. Town Hall renovation began, and town offices were moved into the old library on April 21, 2015.
A group consisting of both new faces and Pilot Project participants began thinking about reestablishing a similar organization as soon as the Center closed. The School Committee needed new offices and was also eyeing the old library. Either would require that accessibility be addressed, and perhaps other changes. The School Committee decided against using the old library, although some selectmen have not abandoned the idea.
A new collaborative
The Harvard Cultural Collaborative presented a business plan at the Oct. 20, 2015, selectmen’s meeting. The board voted unanimously to appoint a member to work with the town administrator to meet with the architectural access board (AAB, the state agency charged with interpreting and applying accessibility requirements) to determine needs. They also prepared a list of questions for the HCC. On Nov. 11, 2015, the HCC submitted its detailed responses.
At the Dec. 1, 2015, selectmen’s meeting, the HCC asked for approval of a five-year lease, but, according to the minutes of that meeting, “most of the discussion revolved around accessibility… How much will it cost to make necessary improvements and who will be responsible to pay … ?” No mention was made of the extensive professional analysis of compliance in the MBC’s final report, detailed in appendix B and summarized on pages 26–27. Several selectmen did not appear to have read the HCC’s responses.
Then Selectman Leo Blair raised the idea of selling the building to the HCC for $1, which would, of course, remove it from town control, transferring all associated obligations. This surprised his fellow selectmen and the HCC. On Dec. 11, the Press reported that Blair had amended his offer to include a $300,000 alternative, with contingencies to make the offers less different than they appeared.
At the Dec. 15 selectmen’s meeting, the town administrator said that the HCC must submit a proposal in response to an RFP, as the Center had. However, no RFP is mentioned in any meeting minutes, nor has town administration provided a copy, despite repeated requests. The board also voted to hire an architect to determine what is needed to comply with accessibility requirements and to deal with the AAB.
At its Jan. 5 meeting, the board voted to establish a working group of two selectmen, a representative of the HCC, and a local architect to work with the selectmen’s architect to determine what work is required to make the old library accessible, whether leased or converted to offices. Selectmen Blair and Ken Swanton both stated clearly that the town has an obligation to make the building accessible. The board said that an architect from LLB would present an accessibility report at its Feb. 2 meeting.
What the record tells us
I draw several conclusions. First, decades of deferred maintenance have allowed our historic assets to degrade, imposing costs that could have been reduced by timely attention.
Second, unfortunately, we cannot rely on town administration for the facts. There was no RFP for the Center on the Common. The old library has been out of compliance with accessibility requirements since 1983, despite the town administrator’s assurances that noncompliance had been “grandfathered.” The executive director of the AAB could find no variances issued for it. (See the Dec. 11 Harvard Press article “Fixing the Old Library: What Would it Take?”)
Finally, the old library (and, for that matter, Bromfield House) are crucial town assets. Financing $100,000 for 20 years at 4.25 percent would cost $7,428 per year. With about 2,200 households in Harvard, the average homeowner’s tax bill would go up by $3.75 per year. Thus, an upgrade costing, say, $300,000 would raise the average household’s bill by $11.15, under a buck a month.
Is it worth it? We must decide once costs are known, but keeping this building, and making it compliant, will give us more flexibility in the future and preserve our historic rural character, whatever happens with HCC.
Billy Salter has lived in town center for 27 years; he has served on various committees and task forces concerned with various town center issues for much of that time.
