“Why the delay in seeking bids for the HVAC system replacement work at the Bedford Free Public Library?” asked longtime trustee Rachel Field at Tuesday night’s board meeting.
Other members agreed that the timetable as outlined by Facilities Manager Ron Scaltreto at the September board meeting was cause for alarm. For the story about Scaltreto’s review, see https://thebedfordcitizen.org/2023/09/scaltreto-outlines-hvac-plan-for-library.
Field and other trustees believe that waiting until February to put the project out to bid was delaying the start of it unnecessarily. Given the tenuous “health” of the HVAC system, every week of delay makes the chance of a breakdown that much more probable, Field noted. She reminded members, “the entire project is slated to take from 13 to 15 months, which will mean disruption of library services for a long period of time.”
Trustee Mike Pulizzi once again expressed his view that the library project has been “put off” entirely too long since the funds were first approved at the March 2020 Annual Town Meeting.
The discussion resulted in a motion, made by Trustee Abby Hafer and seconded by Trustee Padma Choudry, that “the Trustees formally request that Ron Scaltreto and/or Amy Fidalgo [Assistant Town Manager of Operations] attend Trustees’ meetings and provide an update monthly until a contract is in hand.”
The motion passed unanimously.
Loading ...
