AMHERST — Patrons at the North Amherst Library, as well as library and town officials, have long recognized that the municipally owned building doesn’t have a public restroom.
But with the neighboring auto repair shop having closed earlier this year — following the town’s purchase of the 0.81-acre property at 24 Montague Road — and the Amherst Survival Center moving from an adjacent former school building nearly five years ago, finding a bathroom in a nearby building has become increasingly difficult.
It’s that concern that is prompting Terry Johnson, a retired Mark’s Meadow Elementary School teacher, to offer to pay for the installation, maintenance and removal of an accessible port-a-potty that would be placed on the library site from July 1 through Aug. 31.
“I’m doing this to make a point that the situation at the North Amherst Library has been going on for decades,” said Johnson, who presented the idea to the trustees for the Jones Library on Thursday.
An opponent of the project to expand and renovate the main branch of the Jones Library, Johnson said she is particularly concerned about the situation in North Amherst because of the summer reading programs that add to the activity at the small, 800-square-foot building.
“This donation will allow families needing a restroom to avoid crossing a dangerous intersection in order to find a store willing to accommodate their needs in the Riverside Park shopping mall,” Johnson said.
She anticipates it will cost between $500 and $650 for putting the port-a-potty on site and keeping it cleaned.
Trustees President Austin Sarat said the temporary bathroom would be welcome, though there is a process to allow it to happen, including involvement of the town manager.
“This is a very generous offer, but it needs to be looked at by people in town,” Sarat said.
Library Director Sharon Sharry said the main complication of installing a permanent bathroom for patrons is that Village Auto Service, just north of the library and bought by the town for $675,000, is being considered for a reconfiguration of Montague and Sunderland roads and is slated for demolition.
Making the North Amherst Library building accessible, adding a bathroom and creating dedicated parking are all part of a plan that can be developed now that the town controls the land around the library, Sharry said.
She cautioned, though, that this has to fit in with the new road layout.
“The town and library trustees need to do that methodically,” Sharry said.
Assistant Town Manager David Ziomek said the current plan, called the “civic core” option and unveiled at a meeting in 2015, would relocate Sunderland Road behind the library, allowing the library, the former North Amherst school and a ballfield to all be connected on one piece of land.
“The idea is to take that planning effort and community input and translate that into a formal intersection plan that can be brought to the Transportation Advisory Committee,” Ziomek said.
That would ensure there is more space for a library expansion and modest improvements.
Tamson Ely, a member of the trustees, said the lack of a public bathroom has been a well-known issue.
While no money has been set aside for rehabilitation, the project is a line item on the five-year capital plan approved by trustees in late 2016 and revised in January.
Johnson, though, said it is frustrating that the project is not included for funding in the town’s five-year capital plan, approved by the Joint Capital Planning Committee and brought to Town Meeting.
Discussions about adding a bathroom, and making the building accessible for wheelchairs and people with mobility issues, date back many years.
In 2001, an addition for the North Amherst Library was designed, but was never pursued as the Department of Public Works at that time was also studying ways to realign Montague and Sunderland roads.
But Ziomek said the nearly $700,000 for land acquisition shows a commitment that didn’t exist at that time.
Before a port-a-potty is installed, Ziomek said the DPW, inspectors and other town officials will determine the best location for it.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
