Keep library in Heath Center

Published: 2/15/2022 6:35:30 PM
Modified: 2/15/2022 6:33:41 PM
​Reading the article about the Heath Library last Thursday one might think that moving the library to 18 Jacobs Road is a good idea. In fact, the majority of citizens of Heath want to keep the library in Sawyer Hall in Heath Center. Our current library is perfectly adequate for our small town of 700 souls. The primary excuse being used to promote the move is that the space is not ADA compliant. Sawyer Hall is ADA compliant and there is a plan in place to further improve the current library space, and the money to implement this plan.
The Library Trustees have prematurely voted to recommend this move without consulting the Friends of the Heath Library, the patrons of the library, nor the citizens of our town. A small group of people who hold power are promoting this imprudent move. At the last annual Town Meeting we voted to keep the town offices and library in Heath Center and the Select Board is ignoring this fact. The Select Board has refused to do any surveys of the desires of the community because they know the results will not confirm their agenda. It’s past time for them to listen to the community. The citizens of Heath deserve to have a say in this hugely impactful decision.
Heath Center is the heart of our community. Heath Center is a meeting place, centrally located, where we see our neighbors on a daily basis. 18 Jacobs Road is far removed from the heart of our community in so many ways. The lack of responsiveness by the Select Board to our concerns has split our beloved community. The move of the town offices and now possibly the library will only serve to deepen this division.
Bob Dane
Heath