PEMBROKE — Nov. 4, 2026 — The Pembroke Select Board on Wednesday accepted a $945,000 check from the Pembroke Public Library Foundation toward a children’s wing expansion, and heard neighbors object to a proposal to use a town-owned lot on Chapel Street for affordable homeownership. The board asked housing advocates for a written proposal and took no action on the land.
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Library donation. Foundation President Bob DeMarzo said the group is close to making the children’s wing addition a reality and hopes to break ground in the spring. The foundation’s presentation said the expansion would add about 2,700 square feet, with a larger children’s room, more young adult space and better access to historical records, and that about $2.3 million has been raised toward a $2.6 million goal.
The foundation’s treasurer said it had already handed over $400,000, noted the town’s earlier $300,000 contribution, and presented the $945,000 check, with more to come. The board voted to accept it. The donation is not a construction contract, and the foundation is still raising money.
Chapel Street. Judy Parks of the Affordable Housing Committee, also a member of the Affordable Housing Trust, asked the board to support a Town Meeting article giving the town’s Chapel Street lot to the trust, which would seek a nonprofit developer for one or two affordable owner-occupied homes. She said most developments in town are rentals, which do not let families build wealth.
Board member Steve Ciciotti suggested the trust use Community Preservation affordable housing money to buy the lot rather than receive it as a gift, freeing that value for other town projects. Town Manager William Chenard said counsel has advised the town cannot simply gift the property and that he is still working with counsel on the process.
