$23.7M request for new library tops Montague Town Meeting warrant

MONTAGUE — In their return to a weekend Annual Town Meeting format on Saturday, Town Meeting members will consider a $23.7 million proposal to construct a new library.

The meeting will commence at 9 a.m. on Saturday, May 2, in the Turners Falls High School auditorium, 222 Turnpike Road.

Breaking down the 33-article warrant in an information session on Tuesday, Town Administrator Walter Ramsey and other town staff members explained that Articles 2 through 9 are for operating budgets, Articles 10 through 25 are for departmental purchases and projects, Article 26 involves annual reserve transfers, and Articles 27 through 33 involve non-monetary articles.

Library construction

The big-ticket item on the warrant, Article 22, seeks to raise and appropriate $23.7 million for the construction of a new 21,000-square-foot library at 38 Avenue A. If the article passes at Annual Town Meeting by at least a two-thirds majority, a debt-exclusion vote would take place on Wednesday, June 24.

Although the article seeks to appropriate the full project amount, $11.3 million of the sum will be covered by the state through the Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program. Montague will be responsible for $12.4 million of the total cost. Pending approval, the project would be expected to break ground in the summer of 2027 and the new library would open in early 2029.

A new building was one of two options considered by the library trustees and the Library Building Steering Committee, with the other option being to renovate the existing Carnegie Public Library at 201 Avenue A. In public meetings to gather feedback, accessibility, a design that complements the surrounding downtown and community space were some of the main areas of focus.

At Tuesday’s information session, Town Meeting members questioned the feasibility of the project and its cost relative to other building projects down the line.

“This is sort of an early warning that I think that you’ll get a lot of questions at Town Meeting, and perhaps beyond that, on this issue,” Town Meeting member John Hanold of Precinct 5 said after pointing out the size of the project. “I would encourage you to sharpen your pencils and get yourself put together.”

Town Meeting member Kaia Jackson of Precinct 6 shared their support for the project, but also asked if there’s enough resistance to it, if there might be a way to negotiate the size. Montague Public Libraries Director Caitlin Kelley jumped in to explain that the design, as it’s presented now, is what the state has agreed to provide reimbursement for, meaning the size cannot be changed.

“There’s some flexibility in how the interior is designed,” Kelley noted, “but not in the size of the spaces.”

The companion article to Article 22 is Article 23, which asks voters to accept a land donation from the Montague Economic Development and Industrial Corporation as part of the library project scope that includes the Second Street parking lot, which would be used for parking for library patrons.

In other library-related requests, Article 21 seeks approval to use $16,500 to repair a portion of the existing Carnegie Public Library’s roof. Ramsey explained the roof’s deterioration has led to bats coming into the library. The goal is to fix the roof of a building that is still being used, regardless of whether the town supports constructing a new library.

Operating budget

To start Tuesday’s information session, Ramsey shared fiscal year 2026 highlights and provided an update on the town’s financial health heading into fiscal year 2027.

“We’re retaining almost $1 million in excess taxation capacity that we are not levying. That is a good place to be in,” Ramsey said, noting that Montague is one of the towns in the state that is not facing an override this year. “Montague is fortunate to not be there right now.”

The operating budget for FY27 sits at $13.8 million, and will be voted on in Article 4. This represents a level-service budget, minus a 2% reduction for departments’ discretionary spending. Ramsey clarified that a level-service budget is not the same as a level-funded budget, as a level-service budget will increase with inflation and contractual obligations, but will maintain the same level of service as the previous fiscal year.

The operating budget is up 6.3% from FY26, with the main drivers being employee contractual increases, a 16% increase in health insurance costs, an 11.5% increase for the Montague Police Department now that it’s fully staffed and a 13.5% increase for the town’s clerk budget to cover the cost of three elections in FY27.

The $238,890 Police Department increase comes from recent hiring and the need to update equipment. Ramsey explained that costs are up from the new contract agreements with Police Chief Jason Haskins and the police unions, along with equipment costs.

Capital spending is covered in Article 12. The Police Department is asking for $211,300 for two new cruisers, along with an evidence refrigerator and radio equipment.

“It’s really an effort to bring the department up to speed under new leadership there,” Ramsey said.

None of the Town Meeting members spoke against this article, but Hanold asked about incentive pay for officers under the Police Career Incentive Pay Program, and if there is an indication that these incentives could be a one-time payment compared to a “forever-after adder.” Ramsey said it’s been considered, but would need to be discussed in negotiations.

School assessments

Articles 8, 9 and 10 are dedicated to spending for Franklin County Technical School and the Gill-Montague Regional School District.

Article 8 seeks to allocate $1.13 million for the Franklin Tech assessment, representing a 34.4% increase from FY26. The increase comes from an additional 14 students from Montague attending the school. To help cover this cost, $231,907 will be pulled from the Franklin County Technical School Stabilization Account.

Articles 9 and 10 deal with the Gill-Montague Regional School District, with Article 9 seeking to appropriate $13.12 million for its assessment, marking a 3.61% increase.

This year, the district is seeking additional support for one-time expenses in Article 10 that would benefit Montague students and residents specifically, including $70,000 for the Sheffield Elementary School after-school program. The two other requests are for $80,000 in instructional items for Turners Falls High School and Great Falls Middle School, and $13,717 for instructional items at Hillcrest Elementary School. All of this funding would be covered by Cannabis Impact Fees.