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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02-17-10 Library Board of Trustees MinutesATTENDANCE CALL TO ORDER APPROVAL OF MINUTES CORRESPONDENCE FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY REPORT Bozeman Public Library Board of Trustees Regular Meeting Library Board /Staff Conference Room Bozeman Public Library Wednesday, February 17, 2010 4:00 P.M. Trustees: Ron Farmer, Chair; Holly Brown; Jacki McGuire; Judy Mathre; Donna Swarthout; Paula Beswick, Foundation; Sean Becker, Deputy Mayor; Chris Kukulski, City Manager; Lois Dissly and Terri Dood, Staff; and Alice Meister, Director. The meeting was called to order at 4:03 p.m. by Chair Fanner. Mathre moved to approve the January 20, 2010 Library Board minutes; McGuire seconded, and the motion passed 4 -0. Meister read public comments which included someone requesting a back door for patrons. There was a request for a DVD addition to the collection. Two people recommended that the parking lot be increased, as it is not easy to get a parking space in the Library's lot. Meister said that recently people were ticketed as all the spaces were full, and people were parking in inappropriate spaces. There is a problem that snow is occupying some spaces, and possibly the snow could be trucked away. An individual recommended that "no smoking" signs be posted outside the building, as this person is tired of walking through cigarette smoke when entering or exiling the Library. There are signs on the outer doors prohibiting smoking, but there is no staff to enforce this prohibition. Someone requested that the person who has parked his bicycle inside the building for the last two years be asked to remove it, as this person "who pays for this library and its upkeep" resents the "continued damage on a daily basis." Meister has talked to the bicycle owner, who has agreed not to bring in his bicycle, but he has continued to do so. She will talk to him again. A patron noted that a floor lamp is broken; staff checked and it is not broken but the lampshade is crooked. A patron recommended books on the Azores. Another patron suggested that headphones be required for the movies, TVs, and computers, as the Library is supposed to be quiet but it conducts sound too well. The patron said, "You guys are awesome!" Brad Benne from Sky Federal Credit Union sent a thank you for being allowed to present lunchtime credit programs. He said, "We did have small groups, however. 1 feel if we can help just one person, it is all worth the effort." Ken McCulloch, who taught braille classes through the Library, sent a note of thanks for allowing him to have these quite successful classes, which are a "real service to the community." The Montana Center for International Visitors (MCIV) thanked the children's librarians for allowing the Brazil Youth Ambassadors to volunteer at the Library. A patron who was upset about the e- mailed overdue notices e- mailed to say thanks for calling him but he still believes that sending out the notices two to three days in advance, rather than the day before the material is due, allowed for better planning and response. Meister reported that the Friends met on February 9 and are planning for their March 26 -28 book sale. The panic button will be inserted at Lindley Perk Coffee Shop for employee safety. They asked FOUNDATION REPORT DIRECTOR'S REPORT Pooperman Dog Waste Removal to draw up a contract for caring for the clog stations, as the price has increased from the original quote. The next meeting is Tuesday, March 9 at 6:15 p.m. in the Board Room. Beswick reported that she had spoken to the new evening Rotary Club on February I1, a small but intimate group. She also said that the 2009 budget has been reconciled. and the 2010 budget went to the Finance Committee for recommendation to the full board. New employee Kim Center did a great job cleaning up the 2008 and 2009 budgets and creating a comparison with the 2010 budget. Bethany Cordell is the MSU Marketing Intern for the spring semester and has been an asset, working on bulletin boards and evaluation questionnaires. Jane Quinn has her quilt show at Sala Cafe through March and chose to give 20% of the proceeds to the Foundation. She also donated a nice gift for the Cornerstone Celebration's silent auction. Scheduled for April 17, the Cornerstone Celebration will give a second annual award to an honoree; the Foundation is now promoting the event. Beswick was asked to join the planning committee for MSU's Rural Community Conference, which will be held at the end of August. She spoke at it last year and will help find speakers for this year's conference, who might also give a free presentation at the Library. She gave two tours to MSU international students (18 total), after which they got library cards. Beswick had a good meeting with the executive director of MOSS about collaborating on some children's science programs at the Library. The February "Exploring the Arts" series featured tap dancing legend Katherine Kramer, who helped to celebrate Black History Month with the history, meaning and a demonstration of tap dancing. One Book One Bozeman 2010 met and decided to keep the name but choose three books —one fiction, one non fiction, and one children's book. The selections will be finalized in March with a joint announcement made with MSU after spring break. The next meeting is March 3 to start to plan programs for September. Beswick will submit a grant to Humanities Montana for the Jazz More summer series, as well as one to the Montana Arts Council. She has received fairly positive responses from the businesses she is soliciting to sponsor the series. SAT classes have been scheduled, and the popular Mom Babies Yoga needs to find a replacement as Karen Averitt is leaving in mid March. Margaret Emerson's art show comes down at the end of this month; seventeen collages have been sold. The next show is photography and wood cuttings with a March 5 opening reception. Author Reif Larsen, who wrote the best- selling book The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet. will speak on March 8 at MSU; the program is partially sponsored by the Foundation. The Foundation is sponsoring a spelling team for the March 6 Bozeman School Foundation's annual Spelling Bee, and Beswick is looking for volunteers. She will be on vacation March 11 -19, and Laura Prindiville will be gone March 11- 12. The next Foundation Board meeting is Thursday, February 25 at 1:30 p.m. in the Board Room. Meister noted that the January statistics showed a 3.59% increase in circulation, a 61% increase in interlibrary loan transactions, and nearly a 79% increase in website visits. Door traffic increased nearly 2 At 54.16% of the year completed, there is 48.26% Ieft in the budget. Meister welcomed Deputy Mayor Sean Becker, who is now the City Commission liaison to the Library Board. The Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) project started February 1 with 15 ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION OR ACTION: LIBRARY RETREAT; FY2011 GOALS AND BUDGET people tagging items. To date all of the books in the Library have been tagged, and returned materials are tagged upon check -in. Self- check machines will arrive once the fines and fees information is returned, which Mary Jo Stanislao is presently working on. Security gates and audio -video returns will need installing, but the project is going well. On President's Day Tyler Electric finished installing the power outlets for the lights on the second floor. Beswick and Meister discussed some problems they were having with the lighting company, which requested a 50% deposit and then carne back and requested the remaining money when nothing has been received. Meister will keep on top of this concern as lights are supposed to arrive by mid- March. Also new audio -video bins and Lindley Perk Coffee Shop furniture should be arriving by then as well. Registration is now open for the Montana Library Association Conference scheduled for April 7 -10 here in Bozeman. The conference hotels are the Holiday Inn and the Gran Tree Inn. Also the Library plans to close at 5 p.m. on Thursday, April 8, as the Foundation will be hosting the Montana Book Awards. The Friends are sponsoring a welcoming reception on April 7. Beth Boyson attended the Offline Conference held in Billings this past weekend. Meister will be attending the Broad Valleys Federation Retreat on March 5 -6. The Children's Library has started a GO Club for kids, which was featured in the newspaper. The Children's Library Assistant position closed this past Friday, and Cindy Christin, Sandy Brug, and Meister are on the selection committee once the applications are received. Meister is working with MSU on several forthcoming projects; one is with MSU Renne Library on three poetry programs. One is scheduled for March 24 on William Blake, a second one is scheduled for April 15 about poetry and the new technology; and a third one will be in June featuring the state poet laureate Henry Real Bird. Meister is also working with Martha Joh Reeder Kearns on an elephant project coming from South Africa to Bozeman this summer to promote ecology and sustainability. Incidents included an individual who asked a Reference Librarian to consider a book for purchase. The book had already been ordered, and the person had been placed on hold for it. He became impatient and rude, not understanding why the process took so long. The book was rushed through cataloging for him. Another incident occurred when a woman reported that her daughter's iPod had been stolen from her car; she called the police. A staff member reported falling on the ice in the parking lot. Mathre, McGuire, and Swarthout reported that they had attended the Library Retreat on January 29 -30 and learned about the four departments— Circulation Services, Reference and Adult Services, Technical and Automated Services, and Children's Services —from the supervisors. There were more people at the Retreat on Friday than Saturday. Mathre was particularly impressed with the money raised and the work done by the all- volunteer Friends group, and McGuire felt the Friends were moving up to the next level. Swarthout noted that one of the goals was to improve coordination and communication with the City. Conducting a staffing study is one of the Library's goals, and Kukulski said that a staffing study had led to a levy for the police and firemen. Meister questioned whether there could be a possible depreciation fund for the Library since it is spelled BOARD MEMBER'S AND CITY REPRESENTATIVE'S REPORTS ADJOURNMENT Action out in state law; she will check into the possibility. Succession planning will be pursued by Mathre, who will read articles and report back. Swarthout mentioned a quarterly report at Trustee meetings regarding policies, goals, objectives, and accomplishments. Use and management of volunteers is an on -going concern. The Foundation was thanked for underwriting the Retreat, as attendees felt it was worthwhile. Meister distributed two pages of Anticipated Accomplishments for FY2011. She has requested the half -time Library Assistant position that was given up this year in response to the City's need for budget cuts, which would cost $12,710.50. She has also requested an additional 192% in the operating budget, which would be a $8,850 increase in supplies (17.3 a $15,000 increase in materials (131/4); $201 increase in maintenance (10.2%); $450 increase in utilities (1501/4); a $20,907 increase in contracted services, primarily due to the 3M RFID equipment (42.1%); 52,420 in Travel Training (60.4 and 53,400 increase in the Other category, which includes subscriptions, rents and leases, dues, postage, advertising, and internet access (7.7 After discussion, Swarthout moved to accept the FY2011 Proposed Budget, Anticipated Accomplishments, and Personnel Request as presented, McGuire seconded, and the motion passed 4 -0. Kulculski said there had been no annexations this year though there were 182 new homes. He anticipates a 2% increase in next year's budget (this year it was a 1.36% increase), but it will be tougher than last year financially. Becker said he was pleased to be a liaison to the Library Board, and he had been on a whirlwind tour dealing with City matters. The meeting was adjourned at 5:34 p.m. The next regular Library Board meeting is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 17, 2010 in the Library Board Room.