Voters reject tax hike in Gloucester

Gloucester voters Tuesday dealt a possibly crippling blow to a proposed $15 million library project when they rejected a Proposition 2 ½ tax increase to fund it.

By a vote of 2,735 to 1,607, residents decided against allowing the city to raise $7 million outside Proposition 2½ limits to repay debt for the project, an expansion and overhaul of the Sawyer Free Library.

"There definitely is a sense of confusion about Gloucester’s fiscal situation, and I’m sure that played a part," said library board of directors president Mary Jane McGlennon.

McGlennon said it is too early to tell if the project is dead, though, "We certainly do not have the resources at the moment to consider going forward." She said the board will meet next week to weigh its next steps.

The debt exclusion would have added $52 in the first year to the tax bill of a median single-family home valued at just under $400,000. Over 20 years, the annual cost would have declined gradually to $27.
Gloucester voters last approved a Proposition 2½ tax increase in 1998, when they authorized a debt exclusion to pay for an open space purchase. In 2004, they turned down an override to pay for operating budget costs.

In addition to the $7 million raised from the debt exclusion, the library planned to cover the project cost with a $4 million state grant, and $4 million in private donations. Passage of the debt exclusion was required to receive the state grant.

The Sawyer Free Library is run by a nonprofit but serves as a public facility.

-- John Laidler