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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLibrary Board - Minutes - 05/11/1995CITY OF FORT COLLINS PUBLIC LIBRARY PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES - REGULAR MEETING Ben Delatour Room - Fort Collins Public Library May 11, 1995 PRESENT: LIBRARY BOARD: Al Stone, Acting Chairperson, Le Moyne Anderson, Alan Bednarz, Linda Knowlton, M. Madeleine Wawro ABSENT: Anne Ostrye-Macdonald, Karen Dornseif CITY STAFF: Linda Saferite, Carol Clemons, Larry Webber, Marjorie Teklits FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY LIAISON: Shirley Chase The meeting was called to order at 6:30 p.m. by the Acting Chair, Al Stone. The minutes of the April 13, 1995 meeting were amended to show a correction: Page 2, third paragraph, second line should read voice synthesizer instead of voice sensitizer. REPORTS - On the Job With - Carol Bering -Clemons (1) Patron Confidentiality. A form letter is being developed which, when signed by a Library card holder, will give permission to a family member to check out materials. Many customers have asked for this flexibility, and the City Attorney has been asked to ensure that the wording of the form is in line with the Colorado Revised Statutes. (2) Collection Agency Update. Statistics on the collection agency's progress as of December 1994 were given. 264 accounts were sent to the collection agency for a total amount of $31,949.85 owed to the Library. The average amount per account is $121.02 and the average age of each account is 23.04 months. Thus far, $8,466.58 has been collected from 50 accounts, and 206 accounts remain active with $22,482.82 owed. The percent of recovery is 26.49; the collection agency recovery fee is 32.26%. The Library is investigating a means by which accounts can be sent to the agency on a monthly basis. - Statistics Report 87,659 items were checked out during the month of April and 358,415 year-to-date, representing a 4.4% increase over last year and a 44.4% increase compared to 1988. Interlibrary loan transactions thus far this year are up 36.2% over last year and 246.5% over 1990, which is an indication that, because the rate of borrowing from other libraries has increased so greatly, the Library's collection is too small. - General Report - Linda Saferite Both of the LSCA (Library Services and Constriction Act) grants that the Library applied for are being recommended for funding by the State Board of Education in early June. One grant is for Hispanic programs and materials to augment the Library's Spanish language collection ($12,900), and the other is for the development of a promotional video to educate the community on the Library's services ($9,000). Front Range Community College has confirmed that the State Legislature approved $2.2 million for a joint community college/public library. A meeting will be held next week to discuss the project scope, the City's role, and timeline. Supporting documentation to the library consultant's Old Fort Collins High School Feasibility Study is being developed and will be distributed in the near future. Public meetings will be held at the Library this summer to help educate the community of the Library's needs, advise them of the options available, and to solicit their input. The Fort Collins Public Library is a StateLINC library; a brochure outlining StateLINC services was distributed to the Library Board. The Fort Collins Public Library Community Survey was mailed to a random sampling of 2,000 residents. A 15-20% return is expected by May 22. The results, which will be tabulated by the High Plains Regional Library Service System, will be compared to other libraries and help to develop what strategies to take in the future. The elementary school library card sign-up contest has been completed; 250 applications were received. Pizza Hut is donating prizes to the children in the school with the highest percent of new applications. In addition, on May 6, a table was set tip in Target to encourage shoppers who did not previously have a library card to sign-up; 44 applications were received. Tables will also be set up in Wal-Mart on May 13 and ShopKo on May 20. Twenty-five new applications were received at the Cinco de Mayo celebration. The percent of Spanish-speaking applicants who apply for positions at the Library is near zero, and efforts continue to encourage more ethnic diversity in staff recruitment. The Library has asked several libraries along the Front Range for copies of their "Rules of Conduct for Libraries" to assist in developing a similar document for the Fort Collins Public Library. When completed, the document, which lists rules for acceptable behavior in the library, will be presented to the Library Board for approval. The PRA School District selected Dynix Scholar and it is hoped to have it in place by the fall. LINC titles will then be accessible to the community as well as the Library. Green and white exterior signs with the universal library symbol are in place in the streets around the Library. It is hoped they will increase the public's knowledge of where the Library is located. The landscaping project for the Library is well underway, and Front Range Community College Horticultural program students have planted some low maintenance and low water usage shrubbery around the building. 2 The Library has joined the Better Business Bureau and is able to offer customers information concerning local businesses. FortNet has purchased two computer stations which will be placed near the Public Access Computers on the second floor of the Library. - "How'd we do's?" Customer responses have been more positive in nature, and written or telephone communication from staff has been very well received. - Mini Library Update - Larry Webber The Library hopes to begin moving into the building by June 1, and an opening date will be announced after the carpeting has been installed. Staff as well as volunteers from the community will be asked to help unpack, sort, and shelve books. OLD BUSINESS - Library Fund Advisory Committee Linda Knowlton will replace Anne Ostrye-Macdonald as a member of the Library Fund Advisory Committee. Library Board members will schedule a meeting during the week of May 22 to discuss what the role of the committee should be and its relation to the Library Board and present their findings at a future Library Board meeting. NEW BUSINESS - Library Board Members' political role - Susan Kirkpatrick Al Bednarz asked Susan Kirkpatrick what the Board's role should be in relation to City Council and what does City Council expect from the Board. Susan Kirkpatrick encouraged the Library Board to communicate more with City Council. City Council will respond if they are reminded on a regular basis that there is a constituency that needs to be served. It is important to emphasize to them that planning is needed for facilities that the community needs. She suggested quarterly letters from the Library Board Chair to the Council Liaison informing how busy the Library is and inquiring how Library facilities are fairing under the City Dialog process. She suggested the use of FortNet as a good link for library advocacy as well. As residents of the community, Library Board members can exert more influence on City Council than Library staff. - 1996 Budget input for City Council Al Stone made a motion to accept the memo prepared by Anne Ostrye-Macdonald to Mayor Azari concerning 1996 City Budget Preparation as written and Linda Knowlton seconded the motion which was unanimously accepted by all Board members present. The meeting was adjourned at 8:15 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Marjorie Teklits Library Secretary 3