The New City Library Board discussed facility related issues at Thursday’s meeting. The trustees talked about the unexpected costly boiler repair and what to do about it, a mold inspection and possible assessment of the building's facilities.
The board had approved a $6,250 boiler repair however more work was needed and wound up being done at an additional cost of $9,000 because of a miscommunication. The library’s Business Manager James Collins thought the total repair was costing $9,000 not that it was an additional fee. He contacted Building & Grounds Committee Chair Anthony Feliciano who called Board President Tom Ninan who told Collins an emergency repair of up to $10,000 could be approved.
The $15,000 repair bill is more than half the cost of a new boiler, which would be $22,000. Trustees asked Collins to find out if the library had a service contract with Blend-Air. Feliciano said the library had been dealing with the firm since at 2001 and he was displeased with what happened during the past few weeks.
“If we can break that contract, the committee recommends that we break that contract,” he said.
The $9,000 bill, which was not itemized, has not been paid and no mention was made of any contact from Blend Air.
Board members thought a suggestion to have an engineer assess all the building’s facilities was a good idea. Collins recommended a facility condition assessment and had received three proposals from engineers who evaluated the air conditioning units, roof and the entire building. The proposals ranged from $3,000 to $7,000 for the assessment.
Feliciano favored the idea, noting that certain brick sections were in poor condition and windows had leaks.
“I think a professional opinion would be a good idea,” he said.
Collins said another consultant had examined the library to check for mold and reported water was coming in through the roof causing different humidity levels on the various floors and leaking into a closet in the children’s section. The consultant prepared a report of the findings.
“I think we owe it to our staff to have a really comprehensive look at it,” said Collins.
The library’s newly hired interim director Mitch Freedman will review the proposals and Collins said he would meet with the contractors next week.
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