Blandford Sets December 9 Library Expansion Vote at October Select Board Meeting

BLANDFORD — October 20, 2025 — Blandford Select Board sets December 9 special town meeting for library expansion grant vote. Library project representative Nicole told the board Monday that design plans will be submitted to the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners on October 21, triggering a chain of events that leads to a resident vote on the expansion project: the MBLC executive board meets November 25, commissioners vote to confirm the grant amount on December 4, and an information session for residents is planned for December 2 before the vote. The town would be responsible for 25 percent of eligible construction costs plus furniture and finishes; a library building stabilization account of approximately $125,000 voted at the June town meeting is intended to buffer the taxpayer impact in the project's first phase. The board also heard from Pioneer Valley Planning Commission Senior Planner Derek Strahan, who presented an update on Blandford's hazard mitigation plan — last adopted in 2016 — and took public input on priorities including beaver dam flooding, senior resident emergency access, and seasonal road wildfire access. Angela Panaccione reported that a 37.5 percent response rate to a dirt-road resident survey found 30 percent of respondents said roads had improved, 30 percent said they had deteriorated, and 40 percent said conditions were unchanged. The board unanimously appointed Trey Joladek, Corinne Chartran, and Richard Mesward to the Energy Projects Committee and adjourned to executive session on non-union personnel negotiations.