Trustees of the Hadley Public Library met with the Select Board last week to share the findings of a report prepared by Gale Associates about the library’s roof. The report is based on a visual inspection of the roof, and it identifies several potential issues that could affect its expected useful life. It is important to note that this examination was limited to a review of the “as built” construction documents, an on-site physical inspection of the roof, and photographic and infra-red images of the roof taken by drone-mounted cameras.

In planning the new library, the trustees’ goal was always to design and construct a building that incorporated as many energy-saving and sustainability features as the approved funding would allow. Solar panels, preferably installed on a metal roof, were always a priority and funds were raised specifically to purchase them. Preliminary cost estimates indicated, however, that a metal roof would push the building’s total cost beyond what the town had allocated.

Having been assured that the relative disadvantages of an asphalt rather than a metal roof need not hinder a solar array installation, the library building committee chose to have asphalt shingles used. A metal roof was, nevertheless, one of several items to be restored to the plan if construction bids allowed. They did not.

Not long after the building opened, and as the trustees were beginning to consider a solar panel and installation bid document, town employees alerted the library director to roofing conditions they thought needed attention before taking steps to purchase solar panels. Since then, the library director and trustees have followed multiple paths they believed were necessary to maintain the town’s investment in its new library building, and to honor the intention of those who generously contributed to the cost of a solar installation.

Toward the end of 2023, it became clear to the board that a professional, independent, and technical assessment of the roof’s condition was required. Several proposals were solicited and the one submitted by Gale Associates was chosen. Their report was received in July and the trustees met with the professional engineer who served as project manager on Aug. 13.

Immediately following the board’s meeting, the trustees shared the report with town officials and the Select Board. As a result, the library roof was added to their Aug. 21 meeting agenda, when the Gale Associates report was summarized and Select Board members’ questions were answered by the same Gale representative.

It is evident to members of the board of trustees and the Select Board that additional information is needed to have a complete picture of the roof’s current condition. Until that exploratory work is completed, it is not possible to know, or to anticipate with any degree of certainty, what our next steps should be or how much they could cost.

Lynne M. Latham is chairperson of the Hadley Public Library board of trustees.