Melrose Moves Forward With Library Project After Cost Increase

MELROSE, MA — Melrose’s long-awaited library renovation project recently took a step forward with the signing of a contract to begin the project’s construction phase, Mayor Paul Brodeur announced on Wednesday.

Following uncertainty over potential cost increases in recent months, Brodeur confirmed that the cost of the city’s contract with the Massachusetts-based Castagna Construction Corporation is roughly 12% higher than estimates available when the City Council approved the project last year.

The city has adjusted, though, with officials saying this week that a combination of state, federal and Library Trustees money has allowed the project to proceed without a need for new city bond funding.

“These additional funds enable the award of the construction contract and provide the funds we need to successfully complete the project,” Planning Director and Library Building Committee Co-Chair Denise Gaffey said on Wednesday.

“We are fortunate to be in this position to lock in the construction costs with a lump sum contract, so we don’t lose momentum, jeopardize over $8,000,000 in grant funds from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners, and waste all of the valuable effort expended over the past year to get where we are today,” Gaffey continued.

Melrose officials initially envisioned the library project as a $21 million package, combining $8.2 million in state Board of Library Commissioners funding with $2 million from the Melrose library’s Board of Trustees and a $10.8 million bond from the city itself.

Inflation, supply chain issues and staffing challenges dogging the construction industry have impacted the library project in recent months, though.

Gaffey addressed the topic in a letter in August following questions from city councilors. Officials were worried about cost increases, Gaffey said. As a result, she continued, they had already identified areas where they could trim elements of the project’s scope.

In September, officials also extended a deadline for contractors to submit bids in hopes of allowing contractors to ask more questions as they refined their own cost estimates.

Two months after Gaffey’s update and a month after bids were due, Melrose officials this week celebrated progress on the library project with their contract now finalized.

“The library renovations have been anticipated by the community for years and to finally arrive at this moment is extremely gratifying,” Brodeur said. “I am thankful to the community for their ongoing support, and truly grateful that, despite the volatile economic climate, we have a financially viable project and a strong team in place to deliver this project by the spring of 2024."

“This community really loves its library, and Melrosians deserve a building that meets their 21st- century needs,” Melrose Library Director Linda Gardener added.

New money for the library includes a $500,000 state Green Communities grant, $500,000 in ARPA funding, and $200,000 in extra Library Board of Trustees contributions.

Originally set to break ground in October, the Melrose Library project is currently scheduled for a November groundbreaking.

The library is operating, in the meantime, in temporary quarters at Melrose’s Beebe School.