GREENFIELD — With a positive vote on a new public library hanging in the balance, and a few votes on the City Council still leaning toward “no,” At-large Councilor and Vice President Penny Ricketts is proposing to let the people of Greenfield decide in a special election.
Ricketts is calling for a special election in March or early April to let a ballot question on the library decide whether the people of Greenfield do in fact want a $19.5 million library, which will cost taxpayers $10.1 million because of a matching grant from the state.
The $9.4 million from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners is only good until April 30, when a final decision has to be made on the library before Greenfield loses its chance at this grant money and would likely kill the current talk of a new library.
“Am I taking a huge leap of faith? Perhaps,” Ricketts said in an email. “I’m seeing Greenfield turning the corner on low voter turnout. At the end of the day, the most important thing is that people were heard.”
On Saturday morning, Ricketts sent an email to Mayor William Martin, City Council President Karen “Rudy” Renaud and Greenfield Clerk Kathy Scott calling for this special election.
“I know the clerk’s office will have to work long and hard to pull this off for March or early enough in April to not miss library deadline. Council can and will streamline any and all other business so we are not overburdening clerk’s office,” Ricketts said in the email to city officials.
Earlier in the day, Ricketts discussed the idea of a special election on Facebook with former selectman and school committee chairman Tim Farrell, who has pledged $25,000 for the new library with his business, Precinct 6 Councilor Sheila Gilmour and members of the public.
On Friday, Ricketts told the Recorder in an email when asked where she stands on the library following the release of a financial analysis from the Mayor’s Office: “As of today I AM A YES. I have and continue to listen to everyone.”
A special election is far from happening yet, but this is the first step in potentially pursuing this course of action over the divisive topic. Supporters hope for a new, fully accessible public library, with more meeting space, while critics have questioned the worth of investing in such a library, whether it will cost the taxpayer too much — which the mayor and his finance team has said it will not — and if it is a smart idea considering building a new library will force the fire station to have to move, as well.
The 26,800 square foot proposed library would be built adjacent to the current 15,300-square-foot library, in the historic landmark known as the Leavitt-Hovey House, which was built in 1797 and incorporated as the town’s library in 1908.
A vote on the library was tabled by the council in December, after it had become clear there was not the needed nine “yes” votes on the council to approve it. While some in town thought the library would come back to be voted on in January, Renaud said she wanted to hold it off until the vacant Precinct 2 seat is filled, which is not expected to be until at least February. A majority of the sitting council would have to vote to take the library vote off the table and bring it back up for discussion.
Renaud said, when reached about the potential of a special election, that it’s a “good idea.” She said the city will need to consult the city’s attorney on whether the ballot question will be binding or non-binding based on the current timeline. If it is non-binding and the public votes in favor of the library, councilors still have the right to vote against a new library.
The council president did add that “it would have to be binding in order for it to be worth it.”
As far as Renaud is concerned, the special election would pertain to the library and not a plastic bag ban ordinance, which is slated to be voted on at Wednesday’s council meeting.
For Ricketts, she said her reason for proposing a special election is so that “this way everyone gets their say in the voting booth.”
Part of her issue, she said, is with the idea that the library supporters need to raise an unknown amount of money to convince councilors to change their vote.
“There is far too much effort going toward fundraisers for the library without a promise from some councilors what amount will make them vote ‘yes,’” Ricketts said. “It’s not fair for other organizations who fundraise annually.”
Precinct 1 Councilor Verne Sund has repeatedly said he is a “no” until more money is raised in the efforts to support the library. When the number came in around $500,000 last week, toward a $2 million fundraising goal by the mayor and the Greenfield Public Library Foundation, he said that had not changed his vote, yet.
Most recently, Sund said he’s a more firm “no” on the library, following the “nasty people that are calling for the yes.” He said even if $2 million was raised, building a new library is “still going to hurt the taxpayer because we have sewer lines and water lines that we got to replace before that library.”
On fundraising, Ricketts also said, “We cannot conduct city business by whatever group of people are willing to donate the most money.”
Due to family health issues, Precinct 9 Councilor Dan Leonovich was unavailable for comment Friday for an article in the weekend edition of the Recorder on the current stance of city councilors on the library. He said he’s leaning toward a “no” vote, although he’s not positive, yet.
“I know the mayor says this is not going to affect the tax rate and that may be the case, but that was never a reason for voting against it,” Leonovich said, referring to the mayor’s announcement that the building the library should have “no impact” on the tax rate.
Leonovich has been relatively quiet on the council for where he stands on the library. He did vote to not table the library vote in December, which was along the same lines as his fellow councilors who have said they are either a “no,” leaning toward a negative vote, or are not commenting on their view on it to this point, because it is an ongoing matter with the council.
“I am uncomfortable with building a library this big, which needs to be staffed, maintained, heated, cooled, electrified, filled and furnished for the next 50 to 100 years,” Leonovich said. “All in a time when technology is moving us in the direction of smaller and smaller needs. My phone and iPad are my sources for reading materials and information, and our library provides us with access to a vast number of ebooks and other resources.”
“That being said, I know the current location is an ADA nightmare, and access is poor and unacceptable. I just fear that we are interested in taking this state grant and submitting to their requirements over our city’s needs. In a perfect world, we could have a library that was more suited to our needs — that was accessible to all. Even if it cost as much as we are going to spend currently, it would make more sense in the long run.”
You can reach Joshua Solomon at:
jsolomon@recorder.com
413-772-0261, ext. 264