Belfast library roof costs estimated at $300,000

BELFAST – The cost of a new roof for the Belfast Free Library is expected to top $300,000.

City manager Joseph Slocum said a consultant hired to study the roof provided him with the results of his findings last week. Slocum said the City Council will have the final say on hiring a firm to replace the roof and how to fund the project. He said the money could be borrowed but that he expected the city would have to dip into its surplus to pay for the roofing job. The city has about $2 million in reserves.

Slocum said the city had already obtained bids on the project but that they probably would need to be revised to respond to the consultant’s findings. The bids ranged from a low of $235,527 to a high bid of $449,500.

“The library is a long-term important resource for Belfast, everybody understands that,” Slocum said Tuesday. “We have to prevent further damage to the building. … A library has paper and electronic records, both of which don’t do well with moisture.”

The job will entail replacing the entire library roof with a new slate roof. Gutters also will be added to shield patrons from water pouring off the roof.

The problems started shortly after the roof on the original section of the library was opened up seven years ago when the city attached a $2.2 million addition to the library. The roof on the addition experienced problems from the beginning, Slocum said. “The lion’s share of the work will be to remediate the improper work done seven years ago,” he said Tuesday.

The roof developed leaks over time and the library’s board of trustees is engaged in litigation over the quality of the workmanship. There is some doubt whether the library will prevail, Slocum said, because the suit was filed after the six-year statute of limitations for civil claims.

Slocum said he had invited the library’s trustees and their architect to next week’s City Council meeting to outline their plans to the council. He said he wanted the council to discuss the issue in depth to ensure there are no surprises about the extent and expense of the work that needs to be done.