Hey folks, just wanted to start a thread to flag the upcoming single-item vote on the Williston Library expansion plan on May 19th.
Now you might be thinking, didn’t we just vote on this last month and it passed? You’d be right. Back in March, the measure passed 1262–1215. So why are we doing this again?
Well… some folks decided one vote wasn’t enough. There’s still a group in Williston that isn’t happy with the current budget and plan, and they’ve petitioned for another vote to overturn the result of the last election. It’s worth noting this is governed by town bylaw and not something the Select Board just decided on its own.
Here’s the tricky part about this upcoming vote: it’s about overturning the plan. So you need to be really clear on what your vote means.
A YES vote = you want to overturn the expansion plan
A NO vote = you want to keep the plan as is
It’s a bit counterintuitive, so just keep that straight when you head to the polls.
I also wanted to clear up a few things I’ve been hearing about the vote and the expansion:
- “They’re going to tear up the town green and remove the gazebo.” - Nope. The town green is getting a facelift, the gazebo is staying, and the town band was included in the planning process. Some trees in the back will be removed, but more trees will be added in the front — for a net gain of three trees.
- “We just want a lower budget.” - Totally fair, everyone can have their own opinion on cost. But that’s not what this vote does. If the overturn passes, the expansion plan is denied. The town and library could come back later with a new proposal, but it could be the same price or even higher. There’s nothing in this vote that guarantees a cheaper version, it just resets the whole process. Also, this special vote itself is costing the town about $4K… so there’s that.
- “I don’t want a big, imposing building ruining the town center.” - The planning committee worked closely with the architect to design something that fits the space. They’re using the natural slope of the land to keep the building’s height relatively modest for the amount of space it adds. It’s not going to dominate the area or block out the school.
- “Why do we even need more space?” - The last expansion was about 30 years ago, and the town’s population has grown roughly 50% since then. There isn’t enough meeting space for the number of groups that want to use it, and shelf space is tight meaning the library can’t both add new materials and keep important staples. This expansion adds both meeting space and shelving so the library can actually meet the needs of a much larger community.