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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-18-17 BPL Minutes FinalBozeman Public Library Board of Trustees Regular Meeting Bozeman Public Library—Board Room Wednesday, April 19th, 2017 Minutes Attendance Board Chair Judy Mathre; Vice Chair John Gallagher; Trustees Jennifer Pawlak, Ken Spencer; Bozeman Public Library (BPL) Director Susan Gregory; BPL Department Heads Lois Dissly, Mary Jo Stanislao, Jason Greenwald, Kit Stephenson; Administrative Assistant Lauranna Cossins; Bozeman Public Library Foundation Director Janay Johnson; Friends of the Library President Pam Henley; City Commissioner I-Ho Pomeroy; Assistant City Manager Chuck Winn; Bozeman resident David Kingman. Call to Order The meeting was called to order by Board Chair Judy Mathre at 4:00pm. Labyrinth Project David Kingman gave the Board an update on the labyrinth that he is working to build on the triangle area south of the Library parking lot. He said that he began fundraising last week in Minnesota among his friends, and has raised about $10,000 toward the goal of $80,000. He wants to start building this summer and looked for contractors in Bozeman but wants to work with someone who has a lot of experience building labyrinths, so he is going with a labyrinth builder in Illinois. He has made a webpage where people can contribute to the project. I-Ho Pomeroy asked if the labyrinth will need maintenance once it is built. Kingman replied that the labyrinth will need to be sealed every few years, and Chuck Winn said that the City already has a maintenance contract that keeps up the triangle. Pomeroy asked if anxiety reduction is the purpose of the labyrinth and Kingman replied that labyrinths can be used for meditation, healing, introspection, and as an area for children to play. Jason Greenwald asked if there will be signage about how to use the labyrinth. Kingman said that he has seen some other labyrinths with instructions but it might not be necessary to tell people how to use it. Janay Johnson asked if there would be any issues with using an out of state contractor for a project on City property, and Winn pointed out that the City is not financing the project, nor is it a permanent structure, so it should not be an issue. Approval of the Minutes Trustee Pawlak moved to approve the minutes from the February 15th, 2017 Board meeting. Trustee Gallagher seconded. The Board voted unanimously to approve the February minutes. Board Chair Mathre moved to approve the minutes from the March 15th, 2017 meeting. Trustee Gallagher seconded. The Board voted unanimously to approve the March minutes. Parking Lot Update Chuck Winn said that he will meet with City engineering to see if they have the time and capacity to work on the Library parking lot project, which could save the Library $11,000-$15,000. With the money from the TIF board, the Library has $90,000 set aside for the parking lot. Winn said that the City plans to work on drainage at the same time as the parking lot construction, though the City has budgeted for that project. He plans to get bids out this spring. Winn noted that the City could work with parking enforcement to ticket people using the parking lot for non-Library purposes. Winn spoke about the change of leadership at the City, which has hired an interim City Manager. He said that the City Commission is holding a Budget policy discussion on May 15th. Winn also touched on the City’s plans to improve traffic conditions in the west end of town. Meeting Room Policy Trustee Pawlak pointed out that for the downstairs meeting rooms, the number of reservations a patron can have at one time is specified, whereas for the study rooms upstairs it is not. Kit Stephenson explained that patrons may have one reservation per day for the study rooms. Action Trustee Gallagher moved to approve the amended meeting room policy. Trustee Spencer seconded. The Board voted unanimously to approve the amended meeting room policy. Bookmobile Circulation Policy Susan Gregory said that she and the Department Heads have met to discuss making changes to the Library’s Circulation Policy that pertain to the bookmobile. Trustee Pawlak asked if patrons can return Bozeman Public Library items at other libraries in the county. Kit Stephenson and Mary Jo Stanislao replied that the courier system between libraries is limited, so returning items to the library where they were checked out is strongly encouraged. Trustee Pawlak asked about items checked out on the bookmobile, and Stephenson replied that those items can be returned to the bookmobile or to BPL. One of the proposed Circulation exceptions for the bookmobile is to not have late fines on items checked out on the bookmobile. Trustee Pawlak asked if this policy might eventually apply to the Library as well, and Stephenson said that that may happen in the future, but that there were more pressing reasons to institute this policy for the bookmobile at this time. Action Trustee Pawlak moved to approve the amended Circulation Policy. Trustee Gallagher seconded. The Board voted unanimously to approve the amended policy. Correspondence Susan Gregory shared correspondence from the community. A patron commented that quick parking is impossible, and another patron said that disabled parking is too far from the building. Gregory noted that Facilities is planning to make all the spaces along the SW corner of the building ADA spaces. A patron said the Library has an unpleasant smell. Someone requested that the Library lower the heat inside the building. There was a request for online signup for study rooms. A patron complimented someone working at the Computer Services desk. A patron thanked Corey Fifles for looking up a poem. A patron asked why the Library is closed on a religious holiday (Easter). Director and Staff Reports Susan Gregory reported that the Library received two awards recently: the ELSA award for Excellence in Library Service at the Montana Library Association Annual Conference and the Bozeman Magazine award for readers’ choice for public art for the Library’s sculpture garden. She said that all City departments have made a first round of budget cuts, with the Library cutting $20,000 (including $10,000 for strategic planning, which could be covered by the Foundation, Friends, and/or state aid, and a reversal of a 3% increase from last year for many line items). She said that the budget is still 16% higher than last year, due in part to increased costs for materials and a large increase for access to MotaanaLibrary2Go, the Library’s eBook provider. June 4th is the presentation of the City Manager’s recommended budget to the City Commission, and the final FY18 Budget adoption is at the June 26th Commission meeting. Kit Stephenson reported that the bookmobile is slated to arrive during the first week of June from the vendor in Ohio. There will be a rollout celebration on June 21st. The party will begin at Ale Works in the afternoon with a reception for donors and people who supported the project in other ways, then a Bozeman Police Department motorcycle escort will bring the bookmobile back to the Library where there will be an ice cream social for the public. Bozeman artist and children’s book illustrator Sharon Glick has created the artwork for the bookmobile wrap. Stephenson said that the City has offered one of their garages for bookmobile parking. Stephenson also said that the Library is starting a seed library where people will be able to check out seeds. The Library will offer classes on gardening and how to save seeds. Jason Greenwald reported that on Monday there will be a kickoff meeting for the Library website redesign, which will include a committee of five people, including Trustee Ken Spencer, who will work directly with the same company that designed the City of Bozeman website. Friends of the Library Report Pam Henley reported that the Friends Board conducted a self- evaluation. One finding was that the Friends Board would like to work more closely with the Library Foundation. They are having a get-together soon to discuss this. The Friends contributed funds for the annual Volunteer Brunch in June. The Friends are acquiring a DipJar – an electronic device that donors can use to quickly swipe their credit cards and donate to the Friends. They will put it out at book sales. The Friends have been discussing marketing options. They plan to work with the Bozeman Daily Chronicle to run ads for the Friends leading up to book sales. Friends’ Assistant Erin Mock is working on marketing book plates for the bookmobile’s collection as a fundraising tool. May 20th will be a book drop off day where people can easily drop off books in the Library parking lot. The Friends will not be meeting in July. Foundation Report Janay Johnson reported that the Foundation is collaborating with the Friends of the Library for online community fundraiser Give Big Gallatin Valley this year. The Friends will be raising money for the bookmobile collection, while the Foundation will be raising money for children’s programs. They will have a donor lounge in the Library lobby on May 5th from 10am-2pm. The Foundation’s newest board member is Kelly Ramirez. Johnson said that the Foundation is putting together a more formal corporate giving program, including a brochure that shows businesses opportunities, such as displaying corporate logos on the back of the bookmobile. Adjournment There being no further business, Board Chair Mathre adjourned the meeting at 5:30pm.