Despite an outpouring of support to reopen the library, the town cannot do so without voter approval of a budget in a referendum vote, said Town Manager Brenda Fox-Howard.
|Emily Bader, Lakes Region Weekly|
NEW GLOUCESTER — Despite the large showing of support for the library at Monday night’s selectboard meeting, Town Manager Brenda Fox-Howard made one thing clear: Until a new budget can be redrafted and put before voters, the library will remain closed and its two staff members no longer town employees.
The town landed in this position after a months-long debate over funding led to two “no” votes in protest of budget cuts led by some supporters of the library.
“Let’s be clear, the rejection of the vote was in support (of the library),” said CeCe Rohrbach, the Library Trustees chairperson, at the Sept. 21 meeting.
After the library and Planning Department budgets were voted down in the July election, the selectboard had 60 days to redraft a new budget to put before voters. But there was no provision built into the Sept. 15 vote to do the same if the budgets were rejected again. Keep reading
