HomeMy WebLinkAboutLibrary Board - Minutes - 10/13/2005LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES
REGULAR MEETING — OCTOBER 13, 2005
6:00 P.M.
Council Liaison: Ben Manvel I Staff Liaison:
221
Chairperson: Ralph Olson -1I
(Phone: 898-0863)
A regular meeting of the Library Board was held on October 13, 2005 in the Ben Delatour Room
of the Main Library at 201 Peterson Street. The following Library Board members were present:
Bob Burns, Don Oehlerts, Ralph Olson, and Molly Thompson.
Library Board Members Absent:
City Staff Members Present:
Friends of the Library Liaison:
Visitor:
Nina Bodenhamer, Melissa Pattison, and
Mary Robertson
Brenda Cams, Marty Heffernan, and
Marjorie Teklits
Absent
Jean Blaylock, League of Women Voters
The meeting was called to order at 6:00 p.m. by Chairperson Ralph Olson. Don Oehlerts moved
to approve the minutes of the September 8, 2005 meeting; Bob Burns seconded the motion, and
it was unanimously approved.
Correspondence:
Copies of the Board's latest Quarterly Newsletter were distributed. All agreed that, once again,
Molly Thompson did a great job with it.
Brenda said the Library has received nice coverage in recent newspaper articles, and copies of
them were shared.
Reports/Presentations:
a. Director's Report - Brenda Cams
Brenda mentioned that the Board's 2006 Work Plan is due by November 30, 2005 and
the Annual Report by January 31, 2006. Copies of the 2005 Work Plan and 2004 Annual
Report were distributed to use as a guide.
Brenda commended Don Oehlerts for the work he did with the Library's Local History
department in pursuing the digitization project and encouraged the Board to check out the
web site: www.cdpheritage_or_g, then click on "newspaper," to seethe great job that was
done.
The annual Colorado Association of Libraries convention this year is at the Denver Tech
Center, November 10-13, and Brenda said there will be sessions on topics of interest for
Trustees. Marge can provide their website if anyone is interested in further details.
b. Friends of the Library —
Brenda reported that even though the Friends had to pay Foothills Mall $1,500 for use of
space for their Fall Used Book Sale, they took in approximately $37,000 after expenses.
C. Emerging Trends — Bob Burns
Bob said that library -related issues continue to appear in both national and local press.
Highlights of his report tonight:
. "What They're Reading at the Kitchen Table" (Wall St. Journal, 9/2/05). This article
mentions some old-fashioned books that are popular with homeschoolers. Popular
authors include Elsie Dinsmore, C.S. Lewis, Laura Ingalls Wilder and G.A. Henty. Bob
asked about our Library's relationship with homeschoolers, and Brenda said we do quite
a business with them and suggested a staff presentation about homeschoolers for a future
meeting. Ralph said the Board has always enjoyed the staff presentations and agreed it is
a good suggestion.
. "Google Library Database is Delayed" (www.nytimes.com/ 8/13/05). Google is
temporarily halting its program to make digital copies of the contents of three university
libraries to give publishers and other copyright holders the chance to opt out of having
their protected works copied.
. "Yahoo, Partners Plan Web Database" (Wall St. Journal, 10/3/05). The Open Content
Alliance will scan and make available free online the contents of books out of copyright
or licensed under a looser copyright.
. "Library of Congress opens digital doors to Colorado" (Denver Post, 6/5/05).
Colorado students how have access to 10 million digital artifacts from the Library of
Congress.
. "Sponsors Needed for Katrina Relief Bill for Gulf Libraries" (ALA Washington Office
Newsline 6/22/05). ALA has drafted a bill authorizing appropriation of $100 million to
provide grants to Gulf -state libraries impacted by Katrina.
. "Librarians Can Be Patriotic, Too" (Christian Science Monitor, 6/23/05). The
Monitor's View: "reworking the Patriot Act with more rights will help define democracy
in an age of terror."
. "Last Chance for Patriot Action!" (ALA Newsline, 9/29/05). ALA supports the Senate
version of the Patriot Act reauthorization bill because it would place safeguards on the
search of records of suspected terrorists and require public disclosure of the number of
bookstore and library searches made.
ALA released a full report of its survey measuring law enforcement activity in America's
libraries. At least 137 legally executed requests by federal and state/local law
enforcement in both academic and public libraries have taken place since October 2001
(63 public libraries, 74 academic libraries).
. "Bilingual Material in Libraries Draws Some Criticism" (www.nvtimes.com, 9/5/05).
In Denver, the public library system is considering reorganizing some of its branches to
emphasize bilingual services and material to meet the needs of the people in the area,
drawing criticism by Rep. Tom Tancredo and others. Bob said censorship bubbles all
around us and is something that needs to be paid attention to.
. "Where Filth and Freedom Collide" (Denver Post, 8/12/05); Denver Public Library
removed 6,000 fotonovelas from its collection after a complaint from the Colorado
Alliance for Immigration Reform pending a review of the items.
. "You're Reading... What?" (Wall St. Journal, 6/24/05). Publishers are rolling out
volumes for teens that are full of mature themes, from binge drinking to incest. The
author talks about a parents' guide to new young -adult books.
. "Read this, then go get a good book" (Christian Science Monitor, 8/11/05). An article
about author of "Book Lust" and "More Book Lust," Nancy Pearl along with some
reading favorites.
Marge will keep the above articles on file in the event anyone would like to see them
Old Business
a. Alternative Library Funding —
The date for City Council's Work Session on Alternate Library Funding Options was
moved up to November 81h. Brenda showed a draft slide presentation that is planned
which outlines the "What, Why, and How" of the Library District and Library Authority
options, and Board members requested copies of it after all the information and statistics
are completed.
Even though public comments are not allowed at Work Sessions, Ralph said that he will
be joining Marty and Brenda at the meeting to help answer questions posed by Council,
and Board members are encouraged to show their support by being present in the
audience.
Ralph suggested adding a slide to the presentation that deals with the need for a southeast
branch from a marketing standpoint, showing the relationship between distances
necessary to travel to the library and increases in usage, perhaps using Harmony Library
as an example. Although circulation statistics decreased at the Main Library immediately
after Harmony Library opened and continued to thrive, the decrease only lasted a short
time. A southeast branch would increase library usage in the community, making library
services easily accessible to an untapped area of the community.
Marty said that the City Manager wants Council members to be very informed about the
alternative funding issues and options. They are looking for information about the
amounts of funding needed, boundaries, and staff position to help them provide direction.
The City Manager will ask Council to put the alternative library funding options in the
context of overall city funding, being aware of other issues to consider as well.
Marty mentioned that at their last meeting, the Board talked about making a
recommendation of their position. Ralph suggested that, given the uncertainty of the
approval of the sales tax issues, perhaps the Board should wait until after the November
election. He said the Board feels the library needs an alternate source of funding rather
than sales tax revenue; it is their charge to ensure library services are a viable service into
the future. The goal is to not have less money each year. A guarantee is needed for the
base to stay the same.
Marty said that the current funding source that is available isn't stable. A District or
Authority creates an independent, dedicated source of library funding.
Bob asked about the role and responsibility of a Library District Board. Brenda said it
would be a governing board and Ralph added that the present Board would cease to exist
in its present capacity. Marty said the new Board would have to have equal or
geographic representation from the District. Ralph said it could contract with the City for
services, such as Human Resources. Bob said he sees the Board with a great deal more
responsibility and decision making than it has now. Brenda said they would be a
governing rather than an advisory board.
New Business
Other:
In the event the Library has to reduce open hours next year due to budget reductions, the
Board agreed that their monthly meetings could be changed from the second Thursday of
each month to the second Wednesday of each month. Thursday evenings have
traditionally been the least busiest and, therefore, closing that night at 6 p.m. rather than 9
p.m. will have the least impact on customers.
Bob asked about the land at the former Creamery site that was designated for a new main
library. Marty said that in the event it was decided there is no longer a need to use this
site for a library, the money could be applied to expansion at the present site, should this
be a desirable option.
Don Oehlerts, author of Books and Blueprints, which is about the design and operation of
American public libraries from the mid 19`h century to the 1990s, said his book gives the
perspective of how important libraries were even to small communities and how
architects made a living designing for smaller towns and cities. Libraries were expanded
as populations grew.
Although Mary Robertson was not able to attend tonight's meeting, Ralph said she has
asked for Board support of Initiative 2A (Building on Basics); Don Oehlerts moved to
support 2A; Bob Burns seconded the motion, and it was unanimously approved. Ralph
volunteered to write a memo to Council reflecting the Board's support.
Bob expressed interest in finding out how the library's collection development team
selects books, and Brenda suggested having a staff member give a presentation on this
and also the topic of banned books at a future Board meeting.
Bob expressed regret that three board members were not present to participate in the
District/Authority discussion and concern about the prospects facing the library in 2006
and on. Ralph indicated an interest in contacting absent Board members to encourage
their attendance at the November 8`h Study Session.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:15 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
MarjorieC(lJTeklits
Administrative Secretary