Future of the Rice Public Library - Planning & Design Phase
In 2017, Town of Kittery voters chose a rehabilitation and addition option of a non-binding referendum question asking what Kittery should do with the Rice Public Library library. Since then, the Town Council established three committees to oversee the project; one charged with handling the library’s transition from a nonprofit to a town department, one as the building committee for the expansion, and a third for the disposition of the Taylor Building.
With the design phase complete, the construction phase is set to begin in March 2021. For more on the construction phase of the project, please click here.
Rice Public Library Renovation and Expansion Project Overview:
Boards, Committees & Groups:
- Library Building Committee
- The Library Building Committee was formed to develop and complete the renovation and expansion of the Rice Public Library Building as a project.
- For more information on the Rice Library Building Committee, please visit the Committee page found here.
- Taylor Building Committee
- For more information on the Taylor Building Committee, please visit the Committee page found here.
- Library Advisory Committee
- For more information on the Library Advisory Committee, please visit the Committee page found here.
- Library Working Group
- The Rice Library Working Group (RLWG) formed out of a belief that broad resident participation was crucial to resolving the debate over Rice Public Library’s future. While representing key stakeholder groups, RLWG has no formal charge from those groups.
- The RLWG members included: Bill Tredwell and George Dow of the Rice Library Board of Directors, Jeffrey Pelletier and Judith Spiller of the Kittery Town Council, Steve Workman of the Kittery Community Center Board of Directors, D. Allan Kerr and Russell White serving as Kittery citizens at-large, Lee Perkins Rice Library Director, Janice Grady, Recreation and Kittery Community Center Director and Kendra Amaral, Town Manager.
Meetings, Events & More
- Town Council Meeting - Library Building Project Update - January 11, 2021
- To view the Agenda/Packet material, please click here.
- To view the meeting video, please click here.
- Town Council Meeting - MOU for the Library Captial Campaign - June 22, 2020
- To view the Agenda/Packet material, please click here.
- To view the meeting video, please click here.
- Town Council Meeting - Ground Breaking Pushed Out to 2021 - April 27, 2020
- To view the Agenda/Packet with the Town Manager's Report Update, please click here.
- To view the meeting video, please click here.
- Town of Kittery Recieves $500,000 Federal Grant for the Rice Public Library Renovation & Expansion - January 27, 2020
- For more on this announcement, please click here.
- Town Council Meeting - Library Committees Update - January 13, 2020
- To view the Agenda/Packet with the Town Manager's Report Update, please click here.
- To view the meeting video, please click here.
- Election - November 5, 2019
- To view the results of Bond Referendum, please click here.
- Rice Public Library Informational Meeting - October 9, 2019
- To view the meeting presentation, please click here.
- To view the meeting video, please click here.
- Town Council Meeting - October 7, 2019
- To view the Agenda/Packet material, please click here.
- To view the Town Council Meeting video, please click here.
- Town Council Meeting - Proposed Binding Bond Referendum for the November Ballot - August 12, 2019
- To view the Library Bond Referendum materials, please click here.
- To view the Town Council Meeting video, please click here.
- Town Council Presentation - July 8, 2019
- To view the Town Manager's Library Presentation to the Town Council, please click here.
- Library Design Presentaion - June 26, 2019
- The Rice Public Library Building project team presented the updated interior and exterior designs. To view the presentation, please click here.
- To view the meeting video, please click here.
- Kittery Block Party - June 15, 2019
- The Rice Public Library Building project team had a table with a preview of the new interior and exterior designs at the Kittery Block Party.
- Library Building Committee Meeting - May 22, 2019
- To view the South Scheme Schematic Design, please click here.
- Community Design Workshop Presentation - April 24, 2019
- To view the Community Design Workshop Presentation, please click here.
- Town Council Meeting - Library MOU - March 25, 2019
- To view the meeting video, please click here.
- Library Building Committee Meeting - March 20, 2019
- To view the Programming Phase Presentation, please click here.
- To view the DRAFT Programming and Existing Conditions Report, please click here.
- Town Council Workshop - Library MOU - March 3, 2019
- To view the meeting video, please click here.
- Town Council Meeting - Library MOU - February 11, 2019
- To view the meeting agenda/packet for the meeting, please click here.
- To view the meeting video, please click here.
- Town Council Meeting - Library Committees Update - January 14, 2019
- To view the meeting agenda/packet, please click here.
- To view the meeting video, please click here.
- Library Working Group Information Session - October 16, 2017
- A Library Working Group Information Session was held on October 16th at the Traip Academy Library.
- The public meeting is available to view in its entireity here.
- The Rice Library Working Group Workshop Results - October 1, 2017
- The Rice Library Working Group has completed a number of workshops and the public survey. An update can be found by clicking here.
- The Rice Library Working Group survey results can be found by clicking here.
- In general, the respondents were supportive of developing a plan for the future of the library. However, no option emerged as the clear preference. The Working Group sought and the Town Council approved a non-binding ballot referendum for the November election that includes both Option 2 and Option 3.
