Photo by Lester Smith
Viewed through the northeast window in early March, clean-out preparations for the planned PCB remediation work have made the easternmost rooms of the old library building almost unrecognizable. The start of the up and down ramps can be seen at the far right.
This report will be brief, as Town officials have chosen to provide a monthly update on the library project. Readers will find the update on the followng page of this issue.
During some months recently, there seemed to be little happening at the old library on Main Street, the place that Library Director Jackie Hemond likes to call “the Big House.” But important planning was going on in offices elsewhere. There was a spurt of activity at the start of February when a quantity of books exposed to PCB contamination were removed. Then in the first few weeks of March, Suffield carpenter Brian Doyon removed attached wooden shelving, exposing the walls to allow the planned PCB remediation. Many other furnishing and equipment items are being removed, to leave a clear field for the work. As a side-note, the clean-out work has even included the two large wooden sculptures: “Amaryllis” and “Crossroads,” which have been accepted back by their carver. Some of us will miss them, but not the complaints, puzzled inquiries and slightly off-color comments.
A sample of the new auditorium seating has been on exhibit in trial use at the temporary library on Ffyler Place, and a set of new seats has been ordered. Seating capacity will be reduced, but there will be adequate aisles and space for wheelchairs. Details for remodeling the historical room are not yet complete.
The rest I will leave to Facilities Manager Julie Oakes.