At the October 20 Middletown Town Council meeting, Council President Rodrigues stated that last year’s decision to buy and renovate a 37-year-old building for the Middletown Library (instead of building-new) was because, “We [the Council] were told we can save … somewhere between $11 to $14 million dollars.” This statement was based on a Library Financial Analysis published in November 2024.
Council had been informed a month ago, that a closer look at that year-old Analysis revealed errors in the New Construction numbers, errors that included: 1. overstated Square Footage, 2. inclusion of Fields, and 3. understated Reimbursements. At the October meeting, Council was provided with a comparison between the 2024 Analysis numbers and more recent numbers, compiled by a group of residents from Council’s meetings and news releases. It was clear that the 2024 Analysis was flawed from the start, and results of the comparison show the recent numbers project a much lower cost to build-new, and savings at a fraction of the $11 to $14 million dollars.
It is surprising that the 2024 Library Financial Analysis was not only prepared with a number of errors, but was also the basis of impactful decisions for Middletown without proper scrutiny and re-review. In both September and October, Council was asked to update that Analysis with actual current numbers and, for comparison, on the same form used for the November 2024 Analysis. The Town Administrator stated he “would be happy to re-work the Schedule,” and we look forward to that, as financial analysis updates are crucial steps to assuring that the Purchase/Renovate decision provides the $11-$14 million dollar savings.
Terri Flynn for Middletown Concerned Neighbors
Middletown, RI