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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLibrary Board - Minutes - (7)LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES Regular Meeting — September 9, 1999 6:00 p.m. Council Liaison: Michael Byrne 11 Staff Liaison: Brenda Cams (Phone 221-6670) Chairperson: Ed Jakubauskas (Phone:223-7428) A regular meeting of the Library Board was held on September 9, 1999 in the Ben Delatour Room at the Main Library. The following Library Board members were present: Kris Folsom, Carolyn Haase, Ed Jakubauskas, Rudy Maes, Mary Robertson, Charles Robles. and M. Madeleine Wawro. City Staff Members Present: Council Liaison: Friends of the Library Liaison: Guest: Brenda Cams, Michael W. Powers, Robert Holzfaster, and Marjorie Teklits Michael Byrne Marian Hershcopf Jack Schanz, Chair, Library Fund Committee The meeting was called to order at 6:00 p.m. by the Chairperson, Ed Jakubauskas. The minutes of the August 12, 1999 Regular Meeting were amended to reflect the correct spelling of Kris Folsom's first name with a "K" instead of a "C." CORRESPONDENCE There was no correspondence to be read at the meeting. REPORTS/PRESENTATIONS A. Library Director - Brenda Cams Brenda thanked Board members who participated in the 1999 Annie Walk & Pet Fest. Specifically, Ed and Ruth Jakubauskas, Charles Robles, Rudy Maes, and Carolyn Haase, for their support in joining in the walk, helping to set up, preparing the Lion's Club pancake breakfast, and for the wonderful photographs. Approximately 100 registrations 0 were received for the walk, and an estimated 300 community members joined in the activities at Library Park on August 28". The second floor of the Main Library will be closed from September 20 to October 1 for recarpeting and rearranging. Adult media items will be moved to the second floor, freeing up space in the lobby, and more electronic resources will be available to the public, providing needed space in the Reference area. In addition, an extensive weeding project to remove duplicate copies of older best selling books has been underway. Board members were invited to do a walk-through, introduce themselves to the staff, and share their comments on the changes. The Latimer County Librarians group met with two facilitators and the Assistant County Manager regarding library funding issues. Red Feather Lakes wants to form a separate Library District, and Berthoud indicated they want to stay a city library. The next meeting is planned from 9 a.m. until I p.m. on September 22 to focus on options for sustainable funding, including exploration of a sales or property tax. B. Friends of the Library — Marian Hershcopf, Acting Liaison A letter was sent from the Friends' Board to their membership urging them to contact their elected officials to urge support of the Library and to express concern about low funding levels. The Friends will be celebrating their 60" anniversary this fall; they are planning to serve cake and Brenda will speak about a Library for the new millennium at their October 13" meeting. Carolyn Haase suggested the Friends invite their past -presidents to the event. The Friends' biggest fundraiser, the annual booksale at Foothills Fashion Mall, will take place October 1-3. They raised over $20,000 at last year's sale and are hoping to do just as well or better this year. Another project the Friends are involved with is a cooperative effort with the Fort Collins Symphony Orchestra. They are co -sponsoring "informances" at the Main and Harmony Libraries. The Friends will provide refreshments at the events and have donated funds to purchase CD's of the musical selections for the library's collection. Brenda thanked the Friends for their volunteer help and support of the 1999 Annie Walk and Pet Fest. Ed Jakubauskas expressed his appreciation of their efforts to have their membership urge political support of the library. C. Library Funding As a result of the informational gathering meeting he had with City Manager Fischback, CLRS Director Mike Powers, Brenda Cams, Ed Jakubauskas and Mary Robertson, Library Board Liaison Mike Byrne summarized the libraries' concerns: sustainable funding, keeping up with growth, and outreach to minorities. Staffing levels at the library will remain at 57.9 FTE in the proposed budget, and funding is proposed to increase from 2 $2.7 million to $3.4 million due to labor market adjustment. He informed the Board that the big three service areas competing for budget dollars are Transportation, Police and CLRS, and CLRS must set priorities within its own area. Ed Jakubauskas asked if the library would be able to get a percent of the sales tax allocated for it; Mike Byrne said it is a question of should rules which have been in place for a long time be changed; he would like to see a new set of rules in the future. Mike Powers said a funding option to create a dedicated revenue source would be to put a tax on the ballot for a special district within the City. Mike Byrne said that he wants to place some focus on library funding at the upcoming budget sessions. Mike Powers said it is up to the library staff to bring ideas for funding options to the Board, and it is their role to react and share their comments with Mike Byrne. C. Committee Reports: County/State/National Committee —Kris Folsom, Chair The Committee met on September 2, identified opportunities and assigned tasks to each member. They are planning to meet at 7 p.m. one week prior to Library Board meetings. In support of County issues, Kris will contact the Friends as well as inform Larry Webber of a possible monetary award from Group Publishing; Rudy will contact schools in Latimer County and former Mayor Azari, and Charles will speak with former County Commissioners. In support of State issues, Rudy will contact Stan Matsunaka and Carolyn shared a letter received from Governor Owens regarding reasons for vetoing Senate Bill 99-093. Brenda explained how the library community in the State worked towards getting the Bill approved and that the Fort Collins Public Library would have received approximately $60,000 if Governor Owens had signed the Bill. The Legislative Committee is planning to present the Bill again, and she will keep the Library Board informed. Concerning National issues, Charles will speak to Bob Schaeffer. He will speak with Peggy Reeves regarding State support for the library. Other ideas discussed included inviting Mike Byrne to attend the September Board meeting, creating a display in the library highlighting County memorabilia and inviting Commissioners to a social event; generating awareness for library events via radio; inviting the Mayor to hold meetings at the library and having press coverage; identifying the number of County cardholders residing outside the City; and publicly recognizing employees for their efforts. City Council Relations Committee, Charles Robles, Chair The committee will report at the October meeting. r] Community/Public Relations Committee, Mary Robertson, Chair The Library currently has a Young Adult Consumer Board in place and the Community/Public Relations Committee continues to urge staff to coordinate consumer boards for Children's services, Local History, Adult Services, Information Technology/Education and Local Business. Other priorities and goals include increasing the library's 2000/1 budget, long-term support for a new Main Library, community outreach to special interest groups, and activities that showcase the library. Regarding long-term support for a new Main Library, the Public Relations Committee is proposing to invite someone to their retreat to help them evaluate suggested speaking points and the best way to present them to the public. The committee requested a review of the library's meeting room policy in order to evaluate how effectively it is being used with regard to outreach to groups in the community. Brenda mentioned that outreach to the Spanish-speaking community is going well and that staff has applied for a grant to purchase more Spanish language materials for the library as well as the Northside Aztlan Center and underwrite the remodel of the Children's area. Activities that showcase the library include fundraising goals of the new Library Trust. Mary said that the community is gaining awareness of the library's needs. OLD BUSINESS A. New Main Library Update — Mike Powers Mike Powers outlined potential sites for a new Main Library for the new members of the Library Board. NEW BUSINESS A. Community Foundation Advisory Committee Appointment Ed thanked Jack Schanz, outgoing Chair of the Library Fund Committee, for the work he has done over the past four years for the Committee and towards the development of a Trust. Jack Schanz explained to the new Library Board members that the Committee originally had five members until the Charter was revised to three members consisting of a representative from the Friends of the Library, the Library Board and a person from the community who is appointed Chairperson. The Committee can meet as often as necessary or as little as once yearly. The Chair is responsible for ensuring that the money is being well invested and monitored properly. The Committee's purpose is to review and endorse use by the Library Director of the available money from the Fund to the Community Foundation. 4 The Fund started with two basic bequests of $200,000 and currently has an unaudited balance of $300,780. The amount of grant money is based on the four-year average of the Fund's holding or approximately $13,000 for this year. Earnings for future years will be approximately 12% annually based on the $300,000. Community Foundation administrative costs are 2%, so the net return is about 10%. The Foundation invests the money conservatively, and grants to the library are less any brokerage or bank fees. Frank Jones, of the Friends' organization, has agreed to renew his appointment to the Library Fund Committee. Library Board member Carolyn Haase volunteered to represent the Library Board, and a community member will need to be appointed by the Library Board to act as the Chairperson. Jack Schanz will turn over his files to assist them. B. Board Retreat A committee was formed to work with Brenda in deciding agenda items for the Library Board Retreat which will take place at Harmony Library. Madeleine will Chair the committee consisting of Charles and Mary. Some possible agenda items suggested were definition of important points and approach when speaking with various public groups and political action. Brenda will obtain a facilitator for the November 11 " Retreat. C. Other Brenda Cams distributed copies of Annual Statistics for the years 1990-1998. Circulation in 1999 is expected to reach 1.5 million, doubled from 10 years ago. Circulation at the Main Library is increasing to the level it was before Harmony Library opened. Ed remarked on the impressive growth. The meeting was adjourned at 8:00 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Marjorie Teklits Administrative Secretary