Wilmington Library Receives $100k Grant For Revitalization Project

WILMINGTON, MA — The Wilmington Public Library received a $100k grant from the Cummings Foundation for the revitalization of the library's first floor.

The library will use the money to reuse the first-floor space in more beneficial ways by hiring a professional to redesign and help maximize the space it already has. The award will last for two years, with the library receiving $50k given each year.

The library has been trying to make changes since 2005 but has continuously run into difficulties securing resources for the projects. Most updates since 2005 were staff-driven. In 2018, the town of Wilmington created a facilities master plan listing all the public buildings that needed to be remodeled or rebuilt in the town — the library was last on the list.

" We hope to maximize this grant to make the library as user-friendly as possible," said Wilmington Library Director Tina Stewart.

The grant was written by Wilmington Library Assistant Director Charlotte Wood, who's been involved in all of the library's makeover projects since 2005.

The Cummings $25 Million Grant Program supports Massachusetts nonprofits that are based in and primarily serve Middlesex, Essex, and Suffolk counties. Through this place-based initiative, Cummings Foundation aims to give back to the areas where it owns commercial property. Its buildings are all managed, at no cost to the Foundation, by its affiliate, Cummings Properties. This Woburn-based commercial real estate firm leases and manages 11 million square feet of debt-free space, the majority of which exclusively benefits the Foundation.

The complete list of 140 grant winners, plus more than 900 previous recipients, is available at www.CummingsFoundation.org.