Library HVAC system will need repairs

Town Administrator Derek Sullivan opened his report on the Wareham Free Library with some good news, speaking at a Select Board meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 12. 

The library has been re-certified by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners, and the recent work done to repair the damage caused by a burst pipe earlier in the year "looks great," Sullivan said. 

However, "here's kind of the tough news," he said: the library will need a multi-million dollar repair or replacement for its HVAC system. 

The town hired a consultant to make engineering plans to repair the library's HVAC system. It delivered two proposals: a repair, which would cost approximately $1.7 million, or a replacement, which would cost approximately $3.2 million. 

The current system is approximately 25 years old, and the town has been "pouring money" into it trying to keep it working, said Sullivan. 

"It's a tough building," he added. "Certainly it was designed more for attractiveness than function in a New England environment."

The situation with the HVAC system gets tougher when considered alongside Wareham's other financial stressors. 

The town has maxed out its debt service budget with other capital projects, including repairs to the Wareham Middle School roof, and the public schools have asked for an increased budget for the next fiscal year, Sullivan said. 

Sullivan added the town will have to look into the repairs and how it could afford them.