By Dakota Antelman – [email protected]
The town’s latest budget plan sparked immediate pushback last week over its proposed closure of the Concord Free Public Library on Sundays in the 2026 fiscal year.
The library closures were a major topic of discussion at a Finance Committee meeting on February 13. In an interview the next day, Friends of the Concord Free Public Library co-treasurer Stephan Bader said he hoped the town would change course.
“In the scope of the payroll for the library, there probably is another way to cut $44,000 from the budget and still keep the library open on Sundays,” Bader told The Concord Bridge, referencing the projected cost savings.
Anthony Ansaldi, Concord’s chief financial officer, unveiled the new plan to the Select Board on February 10. The library reduction was one of several cuts across town government. At FinCom, Ansaldi said the budget is a draft and won’t be finalized until February 24. He planned to meet with department heads and said he is open to adjustments.
A contract issue
Library staff get paid overtime to work Sunday shifts under their union contract. The proposed budget would eliminate overtime across town departments — except for police, fire, and public works — beginning July 1.
Ansaldi said he and Town Manager Kerry Lafleur would be “tickled pink” if someone could find a way to keep the library open seven days a week.
FinCom member Karlen Reed floated the prospect of The Friends stepping in.
“If there’s somebody that wants to put money up, we’ll figure out a way to make the magic happen,” Ansaldi said.
He said the town is still in a difficult process, though, and said a budget that follows FinCom’s recommended 2.85% spending increase between Fiscal ’25 and Fiscal ’26 “doesn’t come without pain.”
Bader told The Bridge that The Friends had a “passing discussion” about bankrolling Sunday hours. But he said the measure had not been approved as of February 14 “and it was not terribly popular with the board.”
Bader said having The Friends fund staff costs would not be a long-term solution.
The Bridge attempted to set up an interview with library director Emily Smith but was told to “circle back next week” — or after this edition of The Bridge went to press.
Though the library is open for just four hours on Sundays, Bader said, those hours afford time for students to study for exams. Programs like a recurring Poetry at the Library Series benefit from running on a day with less competition from other events in town, Bader said.
Firefighter overtime
Though spared from an outright overtime ban, the fire department would have a smaller overtime budget than chief Thomas Judge had requested.
Speaking with The Bridge, Judge said he hadn’t reviewed all the details. But he said the reduction could force CFD to lower its minimum shift staffing from 10 firefighters to nine. Judge said a nine-person shift would involve taking incident commanders out of their dedicated oversight role when responding to emergencies.
Judge remembers when Concord last ran nine-person shifts. He also remembers the time before CFD transitioned to its current command model.
“Having somebody in a fixed position who can manage and direct the incident [just] makes the scene safer,” Judge said.
He said the alternative situation, in which a commander might direct a fire response while working inside a burning building, is more difficult.
Though he has concerns, Judge said he and his firefighters will overcome budget hurdles.
“That’s what we do every day in different circumstances,” he said.
Lafleur said, “We’re looking at a different staffing model to save funding.
“But we certainly wouldn’t be proposing anything that would put people at risk,” she said.
‘In this together’
The looming cuts are meant to shore up Concord’s financial position as it approaches the state limit on annual tax increases. If the town were to need a tax override but voters rejected it, officials warn they would have to enact more severe reductions.
Regardless of any changes between his February 13 presentation and the final budget, Ansaldi said Fiscal ’26 will be a “lean” year for departments. He said people in town government are “probably going to hear ‘no’ more,” and he said departments will have to monitor spending more closely.
“We’re all in this together,” he said, “so I just think everybody has to understand that.”
