HomeMy WebLinkAboutCommittee of the Whole Minutes 05.02.2000 MINUTES
CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE
MAY 2, 2000 6:33 P.M.
COUNCIL CHAMBERS
MEMBERS PRESENT:
Chairman Chuck Rodgets
Lauren Van Roekel
Ken Olson
Gay Easton
Bill Staudinger
Gary Temple
Mark Mace
Bud Johnson
OTHERS PRESENT:
V. Joe Leckie
Larry McCann
Mary Embleton
Cal Cumin
Rick Musson
Jim Stevens
Jan Faught
Peg Arnold
Peg Arnold presented a report about the Laurel Public Library. The library employs 2.65 full-
time equivalents, has 350 visitors per week, and has 700 items borrowed per week. The
loaned items include books, large print books, books on cassette, videos and magazines, and
many additional items are used within the library.
Internet access is available at the Laurel Public Library to library cardholders and is regulated
by an acceptable use policy. Minors must have parental permission to use the Internet or may
use it with their parents. Access to business, medical, scientific, general education and
consumer information is available through Info Trac, an electronic product accessed through
the Internet. We are able to purchase Info Trac through cooperative buying with other
libraries in the state. Full text magazine articles, as well as citations to other articles, are
available.
The library is presently involved in the project of automation and bar-coding books and
building our database with full marc records and sending some of our records to a company
called OCLC so that other libraries can borrow our materials through interlibrary loan.
Automation will allow us to have our catalog available electronically at the library. The
Montana Library Network, a federally funded organization, is working towards having
catalogs from all Montana libraries available on the Internet.
We cooperate with other libraries by participating in Interlibrary Loan and will soon be able
to borrow from a database of 43 million records, instead of the seven million available at the
present time. We have been lending our materials to other libraries for the past year and are
receiving more requests as additional records are entered into the database. After July 1, we
will be reimbursed from state funds for lending the materials.
The library is required to purchase four workstations and a content server with the $16,263
that was received from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. These computers will be
loaded with software for children and adults. Internet access is a requirement of the grant;
however, different access privileges will be available for different types of users. The Gates
Foundation will set up the equipment and train the staff
The Library Board has recently revised and adopted its by-laws and will be revising other
policies in the near future. Training for the staff on new technologies, keeping up with library
users' demands for recreational reading and informational needs, and maintaining adequate
funding for the operation of the library are future challenges that the Library Board will face.
Rick Musson distributed information regarding radios for the Fire Department. The base
radio in the FAP has been losing communication with dispatch. Rick and Jim Stevens
submitted a request for a new radio to the Budget/Finance Committee on May 1st, and the
cornmittee requested further information to determine the possibility of enhancing the system
for both fire and ambulance.
Industrial Electronics submitted a proposal for a repeater system that would enhance the
distance, coverage and range available. The proposal included a 25-watt Motorola Desktrac
($1,614), which would be used for dispatch, and a 100-watt Motorola MTR2000 Repeater for
the Fire Department ($9,555). A $1,500 installation fee and a $1,000 site hookup fee would
be charged. The site rental fee per month per repeater would be $150, including antennae and
coax. The repeater site would be in the Blue Creek area. Rick suggested locating all three
repeaters (fire, ambulance and police) in the same location. With this proposal, a greater
coverage range would be available for all three departments. The Sheriff's Department,
which has had their west repeater at this location for several years, has not encountered
problems with coverage, and test for coverage would be conducted. Rick will check to see if
there have been increases in the site rental fees in the past few years. If the system were
approved, proper FCC licensing would have to be obtained. Rick has contacted 9-1-1
Services regarding funding for this project.
Mary Embleton stated that registrations for the Elected Officials Workshop scheduled for
May 10-12 are due.
The meeting adjourned at 6:59 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Cindy Allen
City Council Secretary