Vision For New Dartmouth Library In Future

About 20 town residents turned out to an August 11 community input session at the North Dartmouth branch library to discuss their future visions for the Dartmouth Public Libraries.

According to South Coast Today.com, that vision includes a new branch library on 10.5 acres of town-owned land off Cross Road, with plans for about 14,000 square feet of new library space nearing completion. Final plans will be submitted to the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) this fall to determine what level of financial aid the town can expect for the project.

The new facility is being planned to replace the facility on Tucker Road, which will be demolished to make way for the relocation of the north end of the road to make a new intersection with Hathaway Road in 2019.

The town building committee is now engaged in the second formal step in a long planning and design process needed for Dartmouth to qualify for construction grant funding from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners. The first step was securing a $50,000 grant from the MBLC in June 2014 to start the planning process.

The town needs to have a final concept plan to submit to the state MBLC by October 1 in hopes of getting a construction grant. If the grant assistance is approved, the town would need to have town meeting approval to supply the balance of the local funding needed for the construction within six months.

With additional reporting by Sal Lopez