AMHERST — Jones Library trustees are rescinding a recent pledge in which the entire Jones Inc. endowment would ensure the continuation of the planned expansion and renovation project, but the elected board pledges to cover all associated costs to the competition for the project next summer.

While the project’s estimated cost has fallen from $36.3 million to $46.4 million, with the latest estimate coming after the Jones Library Building Committee recently made cuts of $1.9 million , the administrators’ decision on Monday pledges to cover some $1.4 million. this will ensure that Finegold Alexander Architects and the project manager of the owners Colliers International will prepare the tender documents over the next few months.

Trustee Chairman Austin Sarat told the finance committee on Tuesday that his board was still “involved” in the project, although the use of the $8.2 million endowment to support the full project expenses does not make sense at this time.

“Given this other motion that we passed, we wanted to draw the city’s attention to what lies ahead, which gets us through the bidding phase for construction,” Sarat said.

City manager Paul Bockelman said he plans to sign a revised memorandum of understanding with the administrators. This arrangement, which takes into account the revised costs and the plan to cover these costs, is subject to the approval of the municipal council. The protocol aims to protect the city’s investment in expanding the building from 48,000 to 63,000 square feet, modernizing it and making it energy efficient.

The city council approved the city’s spending of $15.8 million on the project in April 2021 through a local property tax revenue borrowing authority, matching a $13.00 grant. $9 million from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners, and $5.6 million in fundraising, and a $1 million grant from the city’s Community Preservation Act account.

With significantly higher cost projections, stepping up fundraising is currently the way to make up the difference. Trustees and their fundraising team presented a chart showing they can raise $14.1 million by the end of 2026 from the community, foundations and corporations, state and federal grants, and historical tax credits.

“This fundraiser is scary, but I’m more comfortable with it than I ever thought,” council chair Lynn Griesemer said when presenting the plan on Tuesday.

General Counsel Mandi Jo Hanneke said Amherst officials need to know the true costs of the project, and that can only happen if bids are out and contractors respond. Hanneke said it would be fiscally irresponsible not to know what the deals are next year, also noting that the city has not yet been asked to contribute.

“We have to give this project a chance to show that it will only cost the city $16 million,” Hanneke said.

Repair estimates for the library alone, provided by Western Builders of Granby in 2017 and later revised by Kuhn Riddle Architects of Amherst in 2020, indicate costs between $14.4 million and $16.8 million.

With inflation, however, the costs to repair the atrium roof and upgrade the mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems could reach $19.5 million, with no state subsidy or building expansion. Hanneke said Amherst could be looking at a much higher expense for an inferior product.

District 5 Councilor Shalini Bahl-Milne said she was disappointed with the state’s process due to the delay between the award of the grant and the launch of the project. But to say no would be to return more than a million dollars already paid to the city by the state.

Moreover, the city would end up with a building that is ecologically inferior to the new one and does not provide the necessary space for programming and community building, or as Bahl-Milne put it, “we will end up paying more than we expected us to pay now and be stuck with the old building.

District 2 Councilwoman Pat DeAngelis, however, said she fears the path being taken will lock the city into a “grandiose” library, and the project could distract from paying attention to other building needs, including a new headquarters for the Department of Public Works and a fire. station for South Amherst.

Likewise, General Councilor Ellisha Walker said she was concerned about these municipal needs.

“My concerns are not just about the costs of this project in the void, but also the other projects that need to be done,” Walker said.

The decision not to jeopardize the endowment at this time seemed to satisfy District 1 Councilwoman Cathy Schoen, who said while it’s a decision of the trustees if they draw from it, the endowment contributes about 12% operating budget each year.

“If that goes away, we’ll have a hole in the operating budget of at least $300,000,” Schoen said.

Administrator Alex Lefebvre said decisions about how much to draw from the endowment for the annual budget depend on many factors, including the city’s contribution and fundraising by Friends of the Jones Library.

Scott Merzbach can be contacted at [email protected]