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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-22-18 BPL Minutes FinalBozeman Public Library Board of Trustees Regular Meeting Bozeman Public Library—Board Room Wednesday, August 22nd, 2018 Minutes Attendance Board Chair John Gallagher; Vice Chair Ron Price; Trustees Ken Spencer, Jennifer Pawlak, Kelly Dowdell; Bozeman Public Library (BPL) Director Susan Gregory; BPL Department Heads Mary Jo Stanislao, Lois Dissly; City Commissioner Terry Cunningham; Friends of the Library Secretary Pam Henley. Call to Order The meeting was called to order by Board Chair Gallagher at 4:00pm. Election of Board Officers Trustee Pawlak moved to nominate John Gallagher as Board Chair and Ron Price as Vice Chair. Trustee Spencer seconded. The Board voted unanimously to elect the officers. Approval of the Minutes Trustee Spencer moved to approve the minutes from the July 18th, 2018 meeting. Board Chair Gallagher seconded. The Board voted unanimously to approve the minutes. Fine Free Library Discussion Susan Gregory said that public libraries across the nation are eliminating late fines. She quoted some favorable statistics from articles about libraries that have gone fine free, such as increased circulation and increased numbers of card holders. She said that the Library needs to make a decision about purchasing new self-checkout machines, and will need to decide whether to purchase machines with the attachments to collect fines. She said that an initial response from Assistant City Manager Anna Rosenberry indicated that the Library would probably need to cut the amount budgeted for fines revenue in its FY19 Budget. Gregory said she wants to discuss this with the City Administration further, and that someone from City Administration will attend the September Library Board meeting so that the Board can get more information on what is involved to make this change. The Library would continue to use a collection service for lost materials. Vice Chair Price asked if the FY19 Budget figure of $50,000 is reflective of just fines, or fines and lost items. Mary Jo Stanislao explained that for FY2018, the Library collected $46,661 in fines, $10,000 in lost materials, $13,000 in copies (the last of which basically pays for paper and toner, which comes out of the Library budget), $2,700 for out of county fees, $400 for interlibrary loans, and $300 for sales of merchandise. Stanislao reported that of about 28,000 registered patrons, 17,531 have fines, and of these, 1,177 have fines over $10, which means that their accounts are blocked. The total amount of outstanding fines for BPL patrons is $89,667.20 (which includes fines going back several years). Trustee Pawlak asked whether money that the Library contributes to the City’s general fund is earmarked to go back into the Library budget. Terry Cunningham said that such funds are considered a contribution of revenue, and that commissioners will need to determine if a budget amendment is appropriate for the general fund. He said he would find out from the City whether going fine free would need to be delayed until it can be incorporated into next year’s budget. Gregory suggested this might be an area where the Library could ask the Friends of the Library for a one-time donation to cover the cost of not charging fines for a year. Friends of the Library Secretary Pam Henley suggested that there might be a savings in choosing self-checkout machines that do not take money, and that this could make up some of the lost revenue. Lois Dissly suggested that the Friends of the Library could purchase $50,000 worth of items in the Library’s budget, rather than paying the City. Pam Henley agreed to run this idea by the Friends. Raises for Non-MPEA Staff Susan Gregory introduced Jamie Norby from City Human Resources. Norby explained that part-time non-union staff at the Library are usually given a raise that correlates to the like position within the union. These four staff members were given a raise on July 1st. She added that effective August 1st, all positions within the Library are paid at least $13/hour. Action Vice Chair Price moved to approve pay raises for non-represented staff for FY2019. Trustee Pawlak seconded. The Board voted unanimously to approve the raises. Correspondence Susan Gregory shared correspondence from the community. There were some complaints about lack of parking during the Sweet Pea Festival. Gregory noted that there were signs up this year prohibiting people from parking on both sides of the drive into the Library from Wallace, and it seemed to deter illegal parking. A patron would like children in the computer area to use library voices. A patron was not happy about the selection in the free paperback area. Mary Jo Stanislao noted that virtually all donated mass market paperbacks go directly to the free paperback section. She said that people are donating fewer paperbacks to the Library so the selection is smaller. There were three compliments to the Library for its beauty and friendly staff from out-of-state visitors. Someone requested a Grand Canyon day (perhaps in response to the marketing for the Yellowstone Month event) and someone else requested that the Library coffee shop carry gluten- free snacks. A public relations staffer from the Pentagon called Gregory to say that a photographer would be in the area in late August to film the Travis Atkins memorial at the Library for the Pentagon’s upcoming “Hometown Heroes” film. Atkins was the first soldier from Bozeman who was killed in the Iraq War and the memorial was created by his family with help from the Library Foundation. City Facilities cleaned up the area in advance of filming, and the footage will be released in mid-September, and will be heavily promoted around Veterans Day. “Hometown Heroes” will be available as a link on the Pentagon website. Director and Staff Report Susan Gregory reported that she is working with City Facilities and Engineering to move the parking lot project along, but both departments are having trouble finding people who are available to do the work because of the construction boom in Bozeman. She said the lobby door project is moving forward, and the City’s legal department has signed off on a contract with the architect to put bids out. There was an article in the Bozeman Chronicle about the labyrinth that is about to be constructed at the Library. The door count was 40,452 for July. Cindy Christin reported that she hired two temporary staff people to work in the Children’s department for the summer. One is a school librarian and the other is a 4th grade teacher. She said it has been a huge relief to have the extra help. Her department is finishing up the summer reading program, and things will start to quiet down on Monday with the first day of school. Lois Dissly reported that the Library is reorganizing, which includes merging service desks and shuffling staff members to different offices. She said she attended a Montana Shared Catalog meeting recently and discussed issues and improvements members want to make. City Report Commissioner Terry Cunningham reported that the City is focusing efforts on publicizing the proposed Bozeman Public Safety Center. An organization called Bozeman Citizens for Safety has been formed to support that effort. Susan Gregory noted that she and various Library staff spoke to the public at a booth at Sweet Pea to get the word out about this issue. Friends of the Library Report Friends of the Library Secretary Pam Henley said that the coffee shop seems to be doing well under its new owner. She said she is submitting a proposal to present on the Friends of the Library at the American Library Association conference in Washington D.C. next summer. Adjournment There being no further business, adjourned the meeting at 5:06pm.