Gray voters will decide on Nov. 6 whether to borrow $1.5 million to design, construct and equip an expansion and renovation of the town’s library.

They will also be asked, along with residents of New Gloucester, whether to spend $94,000 to purchase land adjacent to the high school and conduct a facilities study.

The proposed 3,000-square-foot expansion of the Gray Public Library would create two meeting rooms and additional staff space. It would also allow for more space between book stacks and a larger children’s area.

Other planned work includes replacing the heating system and upgrading insulation, lighting and windows to improve energy efficiency.

The concept for the project “came about from people who use the library a lot,” said Ray Clark, chairman of the library’s board of trustees.

“It wasn’t something the librarian asked for,” he said.

According to Clark, there’s a “rule of thumb” about the size a library should be: 1 square foot per resident.

With 7,500 residents and a 4,000-square-foot library, Clark said, “we’re pretty far short of that and have been for a long time.”

SAD 15 is also proposing an expansion — but the district doesn’t know the purpose of it yet.

Superintendent Bruce Beasley said the district has an opportunity to purchase 28.5 acres on Shaker Road, adjacent to Gray-New Gloucester High School.

It is asking residents to use money from its capital reserve fund — $79,000 to buy the land and $15,000 to conduct a study on the facilities needs of the district.

“The reality is that the schools are crowded,” especially the James Russell Elementary School in Gray, said Beasley.

More than 50 percent of voters from the district, which comprises Gray and New Gloucester, would need to approve the purchase.

Staff Writer Leslie Bridgers can be contacted at: 791-6364 or at:

lbridgers@pressherald.com