As you are well aware, Rockport has been considering the future of the Rockport Public Library for several years. In 2015, the Select Board voted to form the Ad Hoc Library Planning Committee and charged that committee to select an architect to provide a concept plan for a new library to be built on the property gifted to the town for that purpose by Mary Curtis Bok Zimbalist, and to use guidelines provided by the Library Committee regarding library programs to help develop the plan.

The committee has worked very hard over the past many months, and has presented the Select Board with a concept plan for a new library to be built on the 1 Limerock Street site. The Select Board has paired this concept plan with a financing proposal which requires at least $2 million of the necessary funds to come from private donations and no more than $2 million to come from a town bond.

We, your Select Board, enthusiastically and unanimously support this plan to provide a new Rockport Public Library, which we believe will serve the town well for at least a couple of generations. We believe that the new library will quickly become part of the fabric of our community, the entirety of which makes Rockport such a wonderful place to live, work, learn and play, and that the public-private financing plan is fiscally prudent.

Through the past couple of years, as would be expected, there have been many varied opinions about how to deal with the library. Regarding size, there were some who thought that the existing library was the right size at approximately 3300 square feet, while others thought that a building of 14,000 square feet would be best. Some thought that a one story building would be best, others thought three stories would better suit the town’s needs. Regarding location, some promoted the old RES site, some insisted that the library should remain exactly where it was, others wanted to look at the entire donated property (including what is known as Memorial Park). Regarding the look of the building, some wanted a very municipal, institutional look to make it clear that the library was an anchor of the community, others wanted a more New England village look. What is most important about all of these opinions is that they all arose from the desire to have the best library to meet Rockport’s needs moving forward. Just because the opinions of fellow citizens may have differed at times through this process, we must realize and respect that all of us want what is best for Rockport.

With all of the varied input and opinions, the process of coming up with and agreeing on the concept plan has required compromise. Regarding size, the concept plan suggests a building of 9350 square feet which includes usable space of approximately 7100 square feet. This is significantly larger than the current library, and also larger than the temporary space the library is now occupying, but not as

large as some would have liked. Regarding design, the Ad Hoc Library planning committee thoughtfully considered two story and three story plans as brought forward by the architects, and decided (with input from the public) that a two story plan was best. There was a great deal of adjustment through the process regarding the arrangement of the interior space in order to meet the Library Committee’s program goals. Regarding location, the architects and the other professionals that worked with them determined that the 1 Limerock Street parcel was the best location for the library when they considered the entire area of the Bok land donation. Toward the end of the process the architects presented a plan with a roof garden, and while some embraced this plan as an iconic building for Rockport Village, a majority of the public and the committee wanted a more traditional look for the building, and that has brought us to the concept plan that is now being considered. We think that this entire process of compromise, while at times a little stressful for some, has resulted in the best possible plan for the Rockport Public Library.

We have heard from many of you that you are concerned about the cost of a new library, and we understand and share this concern. Our proposal of a public-private partnership to fund the project requires that at least $2 million be committed in private funds before any bonds can be issued by the town. In other words, no taxpayer dollars will be spent until the private donations have been secured. There is a calculator on the library website (www.rockport.lib.me.us) that allows each property owner to determine how much of their taxes will be dedicated to making the annual payments on the bond. We urge everyone to use this calculator to make that determination.

Another financial concern is the annual cost of running a new, larger library. Our library director has informed us that, based on the concept plan, an increase in library staffing will not be needed. In addition, a newer building, though larger, will be much more efficient, so the costs for heating, cooling, and electricity are not likely to increase significantly, if at all. The possibility of using solar energy from the roof is being considered.

As you prepare to vote on November 8, we urge all of you to thoughtfully consider the concept plan and the proposed financing as you make your decision. We have come to the conclusion that this plan, achieved through compromise, is the best possible way to move forward with a new Rockport Public Library, and that now is the time to make this commitment. We hope that you will reach the same conclusion and will support this proposal.

Thank you very much for your attention, and for your participation in this process. 

The Rockport Select Board consists of William Chapman, chairman, Kenneth McKinley, vice-chairman; and Geoffrey Parker, Owen Casas and Brendan Riordan