The ribbon is finally cut on the Grafton Public Library

December 20, 2021 lordpaluzzi

If there was a lesson to be learned at Friday’s official opening of the Grafton Public Library, it’s this: don’t think you can ignore Library Director Beth Gallaway.

“Beth in the nicest way bugged the heck out of Sen. (Michael) Moore and me,” state Rep. David Muradian said.

“Maybe you can just tone down the calls and emails?” asked Town Administrator Evan Brassard.

Don’t count on it. After all, Gallaway has a $16.6 million building to run, a library bursting with community spaces, teen hangouts, children’s programming, multiple media formats, Grafton history, baking pans and assorted garden implements for loan, and, of course, books.

And Gallaway’s voice is far from the only one that was heard in the two decades it’s taken for the library to traverse from beloved but cramped historic building to state-of-the-art facility. The 22,700 square foot addition not only brings quite a bit more elbow room, but also adds accessibility while maintaining the Grafton Common-facing original 1927 exterior and light-filled reading room.

A $465,000 Capital Campaign added additional features: an outdoor “auditorium” for children’s programming, a teen patio, a green roof filled with plants.

Karen Traub, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners, praised the new building and said it would be a model for future projects.

“A library is not just a warehouse for dusty old books,” she said.