Recount affirms Walpole vote for library tax increase

By Chris Legere
Globe Correspondent

It was definitely a cliff-hanger, but a hand tally of over 5,000 election ballots on Monday night essentially supported the result of a machine count done on the June 6 election day: A $6.2 million override to build a new public library had passed.

The hand count results were 2,775 in favor and 2,765 opposed: The margin of victory was eight votes. During the June 6 election, the override proposal had passed by 10 votes. A team of 10 election workers spent four hours counting the ballots, said Town Clerk Ron Fucile, while library trustees and recount petitioners, along with a lawyer for the town and one for the trustees, witnessed the process. A sprinkling of interested townspeople had turned out as well.

“It was a fantastic amount of work, but democracy reigned,” Fucile said. While he had originally estimated the recount’s cost at about $3,000, Fucile now expects it will be higher when all bills are in. Paul Cesary, chairman of the Board of Library Trustees, said, now that the override’s victory has been confirmed, selectmen may sign a contract with the Mass. Board of Library Commissioners for $3.9 million in promised grant money. “We should get the first payment of about $1.3 million within a month,” Cesary said. “Then we’ll have money in hand to hire a project manager and get detailed construction plans drawn.”

The new library’s projected cost is $11.2 million. Fundraising has provided more than $1 million for the cause, with the rest coming from the state grant and the $6.2 million tax increase. Cesary termed the recount “a lot of aggravation,” adding “it reaffirmed what everybody knew in the first place.” Cesary predicts ribbon-cutting on the new building is about two years away.