NORTHFIELD — The Northfield tool-lending library will be opening for the year on Saturday.
The library, located at the town’s transfer station at 31 Cadwell Road, has a variety of tools available for Northfield residents to borrow free of charge. It will be open every Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon and are also seeking volunteers to help. Experience is not necessary, but is preferred.
The 150 tools can be borrowed for a week at a time and include saws, push mowers, rototillers, hydraulic jacks and other equipment for light construction and automotive work. Open to Northfield residents only, those wanting to use tools are given library cards to track the borrowed tools. Tools are lent out for a week at a time, but can be renewed multiple times — as long as it isn’t a tool that is too popular and highly requested.
“A lot of people are new here and are working on houses,” Julia Blyth, volunteer and Northfield Selectboard nominee, said.
She said that the tool lending library allows those who are new to the area and that are without regular access to tools a chance to repair and renovate their homes with nothing more than ability.
The library runs exclusively on a volunteer group, and the project is sponsored by Transition Northfield.
“There are six regular volunteers,” Blyth said. “We are open to many schedules and welcome more volunteers.”
Blyth added that the group will work with schedules and will help to teach volunteers, or those who just want to learn how to work with their hands more.