NEWS RELEASE

On March 27, 2019 residents of Weymouth gathered with local and state officials to celebrate the groundbreaking of the new Tufts Library. “It’s clear that Weymouth cares about education for the entire community,” said Les Ball, Commissioner from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC). “This library will serve all ages and abilities for generations to come.”

Opened in 1965, Tufts Library is the main library of the Weymouth Public Libraries, which also includes three neighborhood branch libraries: Fogg Library, North Library, and Pratt Library. “Rather than do patchwork fixes, we chose to build a new main library and bring state dollars to Weymouth to help us do it,” said Weymouth Mayor Robert Hedlund, referring to the MBLC’s Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program (MPLCP). In July 2017, Weymouth received a MPLCP grant from the MBLC totaling $12,085,184 in support of this $33 million project.

Library Director Robert Maclean highlighted some of the features of the new library project including an expanded Children’s Services Department that meets the need of all patrons ages 0-12; a suite of five meeting rooms that have capacities ranging from 12 to 196 and are designed for after-hours use; a local history center that provides secure storage for a nationally significant collection and space for its use by historians and genealogists; programming spaces for all ages to match vibrant and growing library offerings; and a technology infrastructure and hardware designed for flexibility and expansion.

The MPLCP was first funded by a state bond authorization in 1987. Since then, it has helped hundreds of communities build, renovate and/or expand their public libraries. MPLCP projects are currently underway in Erving, Monterey, North Dartmouth, Norwell, Leicester, Medford, Marlborough, Sherborn, Springfield, and Weymouth.

The MBLC is currently seeking a new $250 million bond authorization to continue this successful program. The new bond will fund the 18 projects that are currently on the MPLCP waitlist, a Planning and Design Grant Round and a new Construction Grant Round. For more information about the program please visit the MBLC’s website.