Pavilion at the Library

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Excitement on Sohier + Ripley

Sohier + Ripley.  Is it a coincidence the library is located here?  

Next door to the Music Circus, the senior center, the swim center, basketball courts, baseball fields, playgrounds, schools, homes, and businesses?  

We’re located where information meets entertainment, where youth meets experience, where fun meets study, and where dwellings meet commerce.  

And now, we’re excited to share that Sohier + Ripley will become even more engaging with the addition of a new outdoor pavilion. You’ll love this space for various “alfresco” experiences: meet friends for coffee on our cafe tables, participate in re-imagined library programs for kids and adults within our amphitheater, or enjoy some “me” time in our casual seating. The Paul Pratt Memorial Library is proud to be a hub for our community. We’re confident that this space will elevate that experience from sunrise to sunset during New England’s most glorious months of the year.


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Design generously provided by Chris MacFarlane, Elysium Design Landscape Architecture

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Donate

The Cohasset Library Trust is leading a development effort to secure at least $200,000 for the Pavilion -about half the total - for the Pavilion. This is the first time that the CLT has actively fundraised since the library moved to its current location over 20 years ago. Gifts of all sizes are welcome and encouraged. Please give generously to help us create a resource that the entire community may enjoy.

Nobel Prizes $20,000+

Pulitzer Prizes $10,000 - 19,999

Newbery Medals $5,000 - 9,999

National Book Awards $2,500 - 4,999

Mass. Book Awards $1,000 - 2,499

NYT Bestsellers up to $999

Checks may be made out the to the Cohasset Library Trust and mailed to 35 Ripley Road, Cohasset, MA 02025, or please give here. For stock donations, please contact CLT President Barb Wipf at bwipf@comcast.net for instructions.

Identified Need

The residents of Cohasset utilize and appreciate their library. We have one of the Commonwealth's highest per-capita circulation rates, and our program attendance topped 14,000 in FY22. However, the 60-person capacity of our largest meeting room limits the number of people who may attend our most popular programs and has pushed us to look for innovative ways to create more programming space, including using areas in other departments. During COVID, the library began offering programs outdoors under a tent during nice weather. The community responded enthusiastically and prompted us to pursue a more permanent solution.



Funding

The total budget for this project is likely to be about $400,000. This includes property preparation, hardscaping, landscaping, and furniture. Funding is sought from both public and private sources. A Special Town Meeting vote on 12/12 supported an investment of $125,000 from CPC funds. In addition, the South Shore Music Circus provided a $25,000 grant, and the library carefully saved state grants to help fund the project. The Cohasset Library Trust will raise the remainder.

Project Development Committee

Caitlin Appleton, Elaine Breslow, Meghan Brinzey, Stephen Brown, Carolyn Coffey, Brooke Jewell, Catherine Harvey, Marylou Lawrence, Tom Littauer, Catherine O'Callaghan, Jen Ognibene, Sarah Pease, Bret Regan, Joy Schiffmann, Jon Stavis, Mark Toomey, Alex Viteri, Barbara Wipf, and Meaghan James, Library Director