Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Packet 11.12.2024 AGENDA CITY OF LAUREL CITY COUNCIL MEETING TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2024 6:30 PM COUNCIL CHAMBERS WELCOME . . . By your presence in the City Council Chambers, you are participating in the process of representative government. To encourage that participation, the City Council has specified times for citizen comments on its agenda -- once following the Consent Agenda, at which time citizens may address the Council concerning any brief community announcement not to exceed one minute in duration for any speaker; and again following Items Removed from the Consent Agenda, at which time citizens may address the Council on any matter of City business that is not on tonight’s agenda. Each speaker will be limited to three minutes, unless the time limit is extended by the Mayor with the consent of the Council. Citizens may also comment on any item removed from the consent agenda prior to council action, with each speaker limited to three minutes, unless the time limit is extended by the Mayor with the consent of the Council. If a citizen would like to comment on an age nda item, we ask that you wait until the agenda item is presented to the Council by the Mayor and the public is asked to comment by the Mayor. Any person who has any question concerning any agenda item may call the City Clerk -Treasurer's office to make an inquiry concerning the nature of the item described on the agenda. Your City government welcomes your interest and hopes you will attend the Laurel City Council meetings often. Pledge of Allegiance Roll Call of the Council Approval of Minutes 1. Approval of the Minutes of October 22, 2024. Correspondence 2. Fire Monthly Report - October 2024 3. Police Monthly Report - October 2024. 4. Resignation Letter from LuAnne Engh on Tree Board. Council Disclosure of Ex Parte Communications Public Hearing Consent Items NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC The Consent Calendar adopting the printed Recommended Council Action will be enacted with one vote. The Mayor will first ask the Council members if any Council member wishes to remove any item from the Consent Calendar for discussion and consideration. The matters removed from the Consent Calendar will be considered individually at the end of this Agenda under "Items Removed from the Consent Calendar." (See Section 12.) The entire Consent Calendar, with the exception of items removed to be discussed under "Items Removed from the Consent Calendar," is then voted upon by roll call under one motion. 5. Claims entered through November 8, 2024. 6. Approval of Payroll Register for PPE 10/27/2024 totaling $272,978.86. 7. Clerk/Treasurer Financial Statements for the month of September 2024. 8. Clerk/Treasurer Financial Statements for the month of October 2024. 9. Council Workshop Minutes of November 4, 2024. Ceremonial Calendar Reports of Boards and Commissions 10. Budget/Finance Committee Minutes of October 22, 2024. 11. Emergency Services Committee Minutes of September 23, 2024. 1 12. Laurel Urban Renewal Agency Minutes of October 21, 2024. 13. Cemetery Commission Minutes of October 15, 2024. 14. Library Board Minutes of April 9, 2024. 15. Library Board Minutes of May 21, 2024. 16. Library Board Minutes of June 11, 2024. 17. Library Board Minutes of July 9, 2024. 18. Library Board Minutes of August 13, 2024. 19. Library Board Minutes of September 13, 2024. 20. Laurel Urban Renewal Agency Minutes of November 4, 2024. 21. Public Works Committee Minutes of October 21, 2024. 22. Tree Board Minutes of October 3, 2024. Audience Participation (Three-Minute Limit) Citizens may address the Council regarding any item of City business that is not on tonight’s agenda. Comments regarding tonight’s agenda items will be accepted under Scheduled Matters. The duration for an individual speaking under Audience Participation is limited to three minutes. While all comments are welcome, the Council will not take action on any item not on the agenda. Scheduled Matters Items Removed From the Consent Agenda Community Announcements (One-Minute Limit) This portion of the meeting is to provide an opportunity for citizens to address the Council regarding community announcements. The duration for an individual speaking under Community An nouncements is limited to one minute. While all comments are welcome, the Council will not take action on any item not on the agenda. Council Discussion Council members may give the City Council a brief report regarding committees or groups in which they are involved. Mayor Updates Unscheduled Matters Adjournment The City makes reasonable accommodations for any known disability that may interfere with a pe rson’s ability to participate in this meeting. Persons needing accommodation must notify the City Clerk’s Office to make needed arrangements. To make your request known, please call 406-628-7431, Ext. 2, or write to City Clerk, PO Box 10, Laurel, MT 590 44, or present your request at City Hall, 115 West First Street, Laurel, Montana. 2 File Attachments for Item: 1. Approval of the Minutes of October 22, 2024. 3 4 5 6 File Attachments for Item: 2. Fire Monthly Report - October 2024 7 For the Month of: Number of Calls Number of Hours 6 6 11 0 7 9 8 5 0 52 533 Training Total Training Hours 412 945 Laurel Fire Department October Announcements: Preparing for winter weather calls. Other Calls Other Activities Total Training/Service Hours for the Month Public Assist Medical Assist. Severity Staffing Total Wildland Fire Alarm Extrication Other Rescue Structure Fire Call Type DEFINITIONS Structure Firefighting A structure fire is a fire involving the structural components of various types of residential, commercial or industrial buildings. We carry out all levels of Structure Firefighting, including entry and attack, ventilation, salvage, overhaul, and investigations. Wildland Firefighting Wildfire,brush fire, bush fire, desert fire, forest fire, grass fire, hill fire, peat fire, vegetation fire, etc.. Extrications Rescue victims entrapped in automobiles, machinery, farm equipment, buildings, and trenches, etc.. Other Rescues Rope Rescue, Water Rescue, Ice Rescue. Alarms Respond to any false alarms or malfunctions. Other Calls EMS assist, industrial or aircraft firefighting, vehicle fires, hazmat, spills, public safety, investigations, gas leaks, carbon monoxide problems, etc.. Severity Staffing-Montana DNRC pays up to 8 firefighters to staff the station each day and respond as a Task Force to wildland fires within Yellowstone, Stillwater and Carbon Counties, as and when needed. They can also be called up to respond to fires anywhere in the Southern Zone areas. The 2 State-owned type 5 wildland engines assigned to Laurel are the ones primarily used for these calls. This has proven to be beneficial to Laurel as a means for a quick response to all incidents. 8 File Attachments for Item: 3. Police Monthly Report - October 2024. 9 Page 1 of 5 Total Calls Printed on November 1, 2024 [CFS Date/Time] is between '2024-09-23 09:02' and '2024-10-28 11:04' and [Primary Incident Code->Code : Description] All Code : Description Totals 10-15 : With Prisoner 0 0 : Abandoned Vehicle 24 24 : Agency Assist 58 58 : Alarm - Burglary 28 28 : Alarm - Fire 7 7 AMB : Ambulance 102 102 : Animal Complaint 14 14 : Area Check 1 1 : Assault 6 6 : Bad Checks 0 0 : Barking Dog 6 6 : Bomb Threat 0 0 : Burglary 2 2 : Child Abuse/Neglect 14 14 : Civil Complaint 12 12 : Code Enforcment Violation 14 14 : Community Integrated Health 4 4 10 Page 2 of 5 Code : Description Totals : Counterfeiting 0 0 : Criminal Mischief 6 6 : Criminal Trespass 8 8 : Cruelty to Animals 1 1 : Curfew Violation 11 11 : Discharge Firearm 0 0 : Disorderly Conduct 12 12 : Dog at Large 41 41 : Dog Bite 8 8 DUI : DUI Driver 11 11 : Duplicate Call 1 1 : Escape 0 0 : Family Disturbance 18 18 : Fight 2 2 FIRE : Fire or Smoke 23 23 : Fireworks 0 0 : Forgery 0 0 : Found Property 10 10 : Fraud 5 5 : Harassment 6 6 : Hit & Run 4 4 11 Page 3 of 5 Code : Description Totals : ICAC 0 0 : Identity Theft 2 2 : Indecent Exposure 0 0 : Insecure Premises 1 1 : Intoxicated Pedestrian 2 2 : Kidnapping 0 0 : Littering 0 0 : Loitering 5 5 : Lost or Stray Animal 9 9 : Lost Property 10 10 : Mental Health 10 10 : Missing Person 1 1 : Noise Complaint 2 2 : Open Container 0 0 : Order of Protection Violation 4 4 : Parking Complaint 9 9 : Possession of Alcohol 0 0 : Possession of Drugs 1 1 : Possession of Tobacco 0 0 : Privacy in Communications 1 1 : Prowler 1 1 12 Page 4 of 5 Code : Description Totals : Public Assist 64 64 : Public Safety Complaint 11 11 : Public Works Call 7 7 : Report Not Needed 4 4 : Robbery 0 0 : Runaway Juvenile 2 2 : Sexual Assault 4 4 : Suicide 0 0 : Suicide - Attempt 1 1 : Suicide - Threat 6 6 : Suspicious Activity 64 64 : Suspicious Person 17 17 : Theft 29 29 : Threats 6 6 : Tow Call 0 0 : Traffic Accident 20 20 : Traffic Hazard 5 5 : Traffic Incident 15 15 : TRO Violation 0 0 : Truancy 0 0 T/S : Traffic Stop 219 219 13 Page 5 of 5 Code : Description Totals : Unattended Death 0 0 : Unknown - Converted 0 0 : Unlawful Transactions w/Minors 0 0 : Unlawful Use of Motor Vehicle 0 0 : Vicious Dog 5 5 : Warrant 19 19 : Welfare Check 24 24 Totals 1039 1039 14 File Attachments for Item: 4. Resignation Letter from LuAnne Engh on Tree Board. 15 16 File Attachments for Item: 9. Council Workshop Minutes of November 4, 2024. 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 File Attachments for Item: 10. Budget/Finance Committee Minutes of October 22, 2024. 36 37 38 File Attachments for Item: 11. Emergency Services Committee Minutes of September 23, 2024. 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 File Attachments for Item: 12. Laurel Urban Renewal Agency Minutes of October 21, 2024. 51 52 File Attachments for Item: 13. Cemetery Commission Minutes of October 15, 2024. 53 MINUTES CITY OF LAUREL CEMETERY COMMISSION October 15, 2024 PUBLIC IMPUT; none General Items; 1. Approve Minutes of July 16, 2024 minutes; motion by Wally 2nd by Steve, motion pass OLD BUISNESS; 1. Eagle Scout Project; flre pit installed , a fiag collection box is placed at the cemetery for used American fiags. That project is complete. 2. 2. Cement Planter; will leave as is for now NEW BUISNESS; 1. Flag collection box; Richard bought a used mail box at a city auction and it will be painted and decaled to be installed at ACE hardware. Meeting started at 5pm adjurned at 5:40 pm motion by Wally 2nd by David Members present; Tom Canape, Wally Hall, David Gaslow,, Richard Klose, Steve Hurd, also C C member Michelle Mize NEXT MEETING January 21, 2025 54 File Attachments for Item: 14. Library Board Minutes of April 9, 2024. 55 1 MINUTES CITY OF LAUREL 04/09/2024 06:02 PM Laurel Public Library COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: Katie Fjelstad X Arthur Vogele, Board Chair X Kate Manley X Lela Schlitz – via Zoom X Nancy Schmidt, Secretary X Mary Nelson X Clair Killebrew – Foundation Liaison OTHERS PRESENT: None 1. Public Input Citizens may address the committee regarding any item of city business not on the agenda. The duration for an individual speaking under Public Comment is limited to three minutes. While all comments are welcome, the committee will not take action on any item not on the agenda. a. Addressing the Board – None 2. General Items a. The minutes for March 2024 were presented for approval. Arthur motioned the minutes be approved as presented, Lela seconded the motion. Motion passed. b. Correspondence – the following were received this month: a $25 donation from Ray Wells, we received a $1,000 grant from Town Pump for the summer reading activities this year, and a $100 gift card from Donohue Roofing for posting a review on their website. The gift card will be used by staff for items needed at the library. c. Circulation Report – (compared to the same time period as last year) Traffic: up 2.2%; circulation: all items circulated totaled 5,056 (including 716 eBooks), book circulation was up 13%, media circulation was down 8.9%, eBook checkouts for this month was 15.6% of total book circulation, we circulated 933 items to partners and 312 items from other libraries; computers: internet use was down 18.7%, children’s use was down 30.8%, wi-fi use up 107%; patron cards: city patrons make up 62.6% of registered users, county is 28.5% and state/out of county has 8.9% of our registered patrons. There were 48 tech assists in March. 3. New Business a. Just a quick reminder that there is a trustee training being held in Billings this year. It is Tuesday, May 14th at the Billings Public Library. Nancy will email the link to the registration page so everyone has a chance to register for the training. There is no cost to attend since the federation has paid for the trainer. b. The annual Montana Library Conference is being held in Butte this year. It is scheduled for April 17th to 20th. Arthur will ride with Nancy either in the city car if it is available for her personal car. We will share our workshop information with the rest of the board at our next meeting. 4. Old Business a. The Federation meeting was held Saturday, April 6th in Billings. Clair, Nancy and Arthur reported that it was a very interesting meeting from the start. Clair attended as the liaison for Kate, our 56 2 board chair, since she has another meeting to attend that day. The main decisions made during the meeting where that the book kit weeding would be done under the collection management policy of the Laurel Public Library until Gavin, Alysia, and Nancy could create a policy specific to the federation book kits. After some discussion, it was determined that book kits have significant value to the federation members. The federation members decided that the coordinator stipend should be increased to $1,750 and $750 would be paid out to library staff that deal with the book kits the most. Members have asked for a monthly report on the circulation of the book kits. The bylaws discussion was tabled until a committee consisting of 2 trustees and 2 library directors could create an updated bylaws for adoption at the fall meeting. Nancy has been voted as the continuing coordinator for two more years. The trustee from Lewistown, Mary, is the temporary chair and Arthur will be the vice-chair for the next meeting. The Plan of Service was discussed, monies were decided upon for each library, and regional trustee trainings were planned for those that can’t attend the semi-annual meetings. Billings Public Library respectively declined their share of the extra $4,000. The next federation meeting is Saturday, September 28th in Roundup. b. Nancy stated that she received the resolution and ballot information from the civil attorney concerning the library mill levy. There is a statement that will accompany the resolution directed to the council members with information as to why the board feels a permanent mill levy should be placed upon the November ballot. The amount being requested is 45 mills, or $466,000. There was discussion about asking for the 45 mills on the ballot but only requesting that a smaller amount be levied and increased incrementally each year as needed. Arthur stated that we won’t know if a mill levy will pass unless we try. Library staff have received a number of inquiries about funding for the library and how to increase our budget. After extensive discussion the board members voted unanimously to move forward with a mill levy request. 5. Other Items a. Upcoming Items: 1. Board concerns – only had questions about the mill levy and how it was progressing. What did we need from the members to help move this forward? We discussed this earlier at length. 6. Announcements a. The next regular meeting is May 14, 2024 at 4:30 pm in the library community room. A Zoom link will be added to the next agenda. Kate adjourned the meeting at 7:25 pm. Respectfully submitted, Nancy L Schmidt 57 3 Nancy L Schmidt Library Director Secretary for the Board NOTE: This meeting is open to the public. This meeting is for information and discussion of listed agenda items. Join Zoom Meeting https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81873158498?pwd=zpwR85eU1wFSuOb0NeXntgr8ZIsxYp.1 Meeting ID: 818 7315 8498 Passcode: 551579 58 File Attachments for Item: 15. Library Board Minutes of May 21, 2024. 59 1 MINUTES CITY OF LAUREL 05/21/2024 06:02 PM Laurel Public Library COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: X Katie Fjelstad X Arthur Vogele, Board Chair X Kate Manley X Lela Schlitz – via Zoom X Nancy Schmidt, Secretary X Mary Nelson Clair Killebrew – Foundation Liaison OTHERS PRESENT: None 1. Public Input Citizens may address the committee regarding any item of city business not on the agenda. The duration for an individual speaking under Public Comment is limited to three minutes. While all comments are welcome, the committee will not take action on any item not on the agenda. a. Addressing the Board – None 2. General Items a. The minutes for March 2024 were presented for approval. Arthur motioned the minutes be approved as presented, Lela seconded the motion. Motion passed. b. Correspondence – the following were received this month: a $25 donation from Ray Wells, the dulcimer players gave us a small donation with a Thank You card, and payment for a sample of the library plate. We have started to receive payments for the purchase of the library plates from the Montana Department of Revenue. c. Circulation Report – (compared to the same time period as last year) Traffic: up 10.8%; circulation: all items circulated totaled 4,871 (including 634 eBooks), book circulation was up 21%, media circulation was up 31.5%, eBook checkouts for this month was 14.4% of total book circulation, we circulated 936 items to partners and 213 items from other libraries; computers: internet use was down 27.4%, children’s use was up 38.5%, wi-fi use down 50%; patron cards: city patrons make up 65.3% of registered users, county is 25.8% and state/out of county has 8.9% of our registered patrons. There were 35 tech assists in April. 3. Old Business a. The mill levy resolution was voted down by the council 1-7. Kate stated that she felt the council members weren’t really understanding what was being requested by the library. There is an alternative to getting the mill levy on the November ballot. A petition signed by 5% of the registered voters of Laurel could put the levy on the ballot. Looking at the timeline, it would be really tight to get this done right now. After a lengthy discussion it was decided by the board members that this would be something that would be looked at after the new year. b. The final amount raised at the book sale was $3,394.50. There was also $1,476.25 deposited in the Foundation account - $1,000 Town Pump grant, $60.00 from license plate sales, and $419.25 in other donations. Our next book sale is scheduled for the end of October. c. The federation sponsored trustee training was held May 14 th in Billings. There were 18 attendees – 4 directors and 14 trustees. Katie and Arthur attended the training and felt that it 60 2 was very informational. It was suggested that we have more training held by the Local Government Center in Bozeman. d. Arthur and Nancy attended the annual Montana Library Association conference in Butte. They attended the Shared Catalog meeting on the first day. There was also an opportunity to hear some of the directors talk about using outside space around the library for a community gardens. The Joliet librarian shared her experience about making sure we use self -care to help us continue giving out best to our community. It was also discussed that interest displays would be beneficial to help patrons see some of our niche offerings. It was very informational for both attendees. e. The federation has a new state library consultant since Suzanne Reymer and Pam Henley retired. Cara Orban will now be working with our federation. Nancy met with her last week to discuss how the federation will be running in the new fiscal year. Cara is trying to help us decide how to create the smaller regional meetings that have been determined to be needed by the membership. The next meeting is being held in Roundup in September. Part of the plan of service is allowing for Laurel library staff to receive a stipend for handling the circulation and maintenance of the book kits. 4. New Business a. The city applied for a few grants through HB 355 – State-Local Infrastructure Partnership Act of 2023. They were awarded four grants, one of which was for the repair/replacement of the soffit and fascia on the library. This is a matching grant of which the city will meet the 25% required for completion of the work. The timeline is September 2024. b. The FY 24/25 budget was completed and turned into the clerk/treasurer. It includes increases for items that are going to need to be repaired or replaced within the next year such as the exterior door hardware, computer updates, wage increase per CBA contract, travel increase for training staff, and cleaning increases. c. One of the items mentioned at the conference was the need for a Disaster Preparedness and Disaster Impact Policy. Lela mentioned that her husband has worked in this area before. Nancy will meet with Lela and her husband after her leave to complete a draft form of the policy. d. The summer reading program will be part of the Book Buzz program presented by the school librarians. It begins June 12th and runs through July 31st. The programs are scheduled for 10:30 am each Wednesday (except during the 4th of July week). Zoo Montana and the Billings Symphony will be part of the presenters. e. There won’t be any summer lunches served at the library this year. According to the State Office Public Instruction, we are no longer in the FRAC map area that allows for us to be part of the lunch program. West Elementary is in the map area but because of the construction, it won’t be used. The school superintendent decided that the lunches will be served by the middle school. f. Nancy will be taking 4 weeks off for knee surgery in June. She will be gone June 4th through July 5th for sick leave. Mike will be left in charge of the library with help from Eli where needed. Nancy will be in contact with library staff via email or text if anything important arises. 5. Other Items a. Upcoming Items: No board concerns at this time. 61 3 6. Announcements a. The next regular meeting is July 9, 2024 at 6:00 pm in the library community room. A Zoom link will be added to the next agenda. Meeting adjourned at 7:31 pm. Respectfully submitted, Nancy L Schmidt Nancy L Schmidt Library Director Secretary for the Board NOTE: This meeting is open to the public. This meeting is for information and discussion of listed agenda items. Join Zoom Meeting https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81873158498?pwd=zpwR85eU1wFSuOb0NeXntgr8ZIsxYp.1 Meeting ID: 818 7315 8498 Passcode: 551579 62 File Attachments for Item: 16. Library Board Minutes of June 11, 2024. 63 1 MINUTES CITY OF LAUREL 06/11/2024 06:00 PM Laurel Public Library COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: Katie Fjelstad Arthur Vogele, Board Chair Kate Manley Lela Schlitz – via Zoom Nancy Schmidt, Secretary Mary Nelson Clair Killebrew – Foundation Liaison OTHERS PRESENT: None Meeting canceled – medical reasons 1. Public Input Citizens may address the committee regarding any item of city business not on the agenda. The duration for an individual speaking under Public Comment is limited to three minutes. While all comments are welcome, the committee will not take action on any item not on the agenda. a. Addressing the Board – None 2. General Items a. Circulation Report – (compared to the same time period as last year) Traffic: up 7.3%; circulation: all items circulated totaled 4,547 (including 638 eBooks); book circulation was up 12%, media circulation was down 15.1%, eBooks checkouts for this month was 12% of total book circulation, we circulated 979 items to partner libraries and 241 from other libraries: computers: internet use was down 38%, children’s use was down 45.5%, wi-fi use was down 51.1%; patron cards: not available at this time. There were 27 tech assists in May. 3. New Business a. 4. Old Business a. 5. Other Items a. Upcoming Items: 1. Board concerns 6. Announcements a. The next regular meeting is July 9, 2024 at 6:00 pm in the library community room. A Zoom link will be added to the next agenda. 64 2 Respectfully submitted, Nancy L Schmidt Nancy L Schmidt Library Director Secretary for the Board NOTE: This meeting is open to the public. This meeting is for information and discussion of listed agenda items. Join Zoom Meeting https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81873158498?pwd=zpwR85eU1wFSuOb0NeXntgr8ZIsxYp.1 Meeting ID: 818 7315 8498 Passcode: 551579 65 File Attachments for Item: 17. Library Board Minutes of July 9, 2024. 66 1 MINUTES CITY OF LAUREL 07/09/2024 06:02 PM Laurel Public Library COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: Katie Fjelstad X Arthur Vogele, Board Chair X Kate Manley Vacant seat X Nancy Schmidt, Secretary X Mary Nelson – via Zoom X Clair Killebrew – Foundation Liaison OTHERS PRESENT: None 1. Public Input Citizens may address the committee regarding any item of city business not on the agenda. The duration for an individual speaking under Public Comment is limited to three minutes. While all comments are welcome, the committee will not take action on any item not on the agenda . a. Addressing the Board – None 2. General Items a. The minutes for May and June 2024 were presented for approval. Arthur motioned the minutes be approved as presented, Mary seconded the motion. Motion passed. b. Correspondence – None c. Circulation Report – (compared to the same time period as last year) Traffic: down 47.2%; circulation: all items circulated totaled 5,240 (including 624 eBooks), book circulation was up 10.1%, media circulation was up 8.2%, eBook checkouts for this month was 12.9% of total book circulation, we circulated 865 items to partners and 397 items from other libraries; computers: internet use was down 53.4%, children’s use was even, wi-fi use down 53.6%; patron cards: not available at this time. There were 34 tech assists in June. 3. Old Business a. The budget has been submitted to Mayor Waggoner and the Clerk/Treasurer. There haven’t been any questions directed to me about our budget requests. If there are any concerns, Nancy will let you know. We are hoping that the budget will be passed/approved through the council by the end of August. Kate suggested that the library think about having a Book Fair at Barnes & Noble to help with the expense of purchasing books for the library. b. The paperwork has been submitted and signed for the soffit and fascia. The city is handling all of the information for the grant. Hopefully, we will have this work completed in September or October at the latest. 67 2 c. The Book Buzz Summer Reading Program seems to be very successful this year. There have been 365 attendees through the month of June. This compares 192 attendees last June. We have one more month of programming which will feature Drange Apiaries, Billings Symphony Quartet Musical Storytime, and library staff doing programming for the last Buzz Day. d. Nancy hasn’t been officially released for full-time work until she sees her surgeon on July 24th. Until then, she will likely be working some part-time days as the pain dictates her mobility. 4. New Business a. The mayor has received an email from Paige Farmer stating that she would like to be a trustee for the Laurel Public Library. Next year Elysia Vasser may be interested in a position on the board starting in July 2025. Nancy stated that she would like to take Lela out to lunch as a thank you for all her time spent working with the library board. Nancy will send her an email to determine when she and her husband are available for lunch. She will contact everyone once there is a date and time set for lunch. b. Nancy and Lela had corresponded about the disaster preparedness and impact policy. Lela’s husband, Harry, has been involved in creating these programs in the past and would like to help us with this policy and the steps involved in implementing them . Once there is more information, it will be shared with the rest of the board members. c. Some of you may have noticed that a couple library staff members have been absent for quite a while. Nancy was out for her knee surgery but was allowed to come back to work July 6th. Stacie has been out for medical reasons as well but we are having some issues getting FMLA implemented with her doctor’s signature. We will keep trying to get the proper signatures so we are following the union rules as well as federal requirements. Once she is back, everyone will be informed. Kate suggested that Stacie may be eligible for a health advocate or EAP through work. We will help her look into this information. 5. Other Items a. Upcoming Items: No board concerns at this time. b. Michelle Kanta, teacher from Graff Elementary, has been working at the library this summer to complete her library endorsement practicum. She needs 60 hours for the summer to complete her requirements. This has been and will continue to be an enormous help with staffing issues through June and July. c. Board elections will take place in August when we have a full board of trustees from which to choose. d. Kate asked about meetings that may be taking place in September. The only meeting of note is the Federation meeting on Saturday, September 28th in Roundup. Regional meetings for the federation will be scheduled as needed. 68 3 6. Announcements a. The next regular meeting is August 13, 2024 at 6:00 pm in the library community room. A Zoom link will be added to the next agenda. Meeting adjourned at 6:50 pm. Respectfully submitted, Nancy L Schmidt Nancy L Schmidt Library Director Secretary for the Board NOTE: This meeting is open to the public. This meeting is for information and discussion of listed agenda items. Join Zoom Meeting https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81873158498?pwd=zpwR85eU1wFSuOb0NeXntgr8ZIsxYp.1 Meeting ID: 818 7315 8498 Passcode: 551579 69 File Attachments for Item: 18. Library Board Minutes of August 13, 2024. 70 1 MINUTES CITY OF LAUREL 08/13/2024 06:06 PM Laurel Public Library COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: X Katie Fjelstad X Arthur Vogele – 6:28 X Kate Manley – Board Chair X Paige Farmer X Nancy Schmidt, Secretary X Mary Nelson X Clair Killebrew – Foundation Liaison OTHERS PRESENT: None 1. Public Input Citizens may address the committee regarding any item of city business not on the agenda. The duration for an individual speaking under Public Comment is limited to three minutes. While all comments are welcome, the committee will not take action on any item not on the agenda . a. Addressing the Board – None 2. General Items a. The minutes for July 2024 were presented for approval. Mary motioned the minutes be approved as presented, Katie seconded the motion. Motion passed. b. Correspondence – None c. Circulation Report – (compared to the same time period as last year) Traffic: up 3.1%; circulation: all items circulated totaled 5,131 (including 623 eBooks), book circulation was up 12.9%, media circulation was up 1.1%, eBook checkouts for this month was 13.3% of total book circulation, we circulated 833 items to partners and 229 items from other libraries; computers: internet use was down 37.5%, children’s use was down 76.7%, wi-fi use up 14.6%; patron cards: city patrons make up 64.7% of our registered users, county is 26.2% and state/out of county has 8.9% of our registered users.. There were 62 tech assists in July. 3. New Business a. The Public Library Standards have been completed for this year and shared with board members. We meet all required minimum protocols so we are eligible to receive the per capita funds through the state library. b. The Fall Retreat is being held in Chico Hot Springs on Sunday & Monday, Oct 6th – 7th. Anyone that want to attend needs to let Nancy know so she can get them registered and rooms reserved for everyone. Kate stated that she would like to attend and Paige was interested but couldn’t go this year. c. Library staff would like to close the library for the full Labor Day weekend. The community room is getting overloaded with donations from patrons. Mike and Eli would 71 2 like to have the building closed so it will be easier to clean up and move excess boxes to the shed until the next book sale. They are planning on clearing on Friday and finishing up whatever needs to done on Saturday. 4. Old Business a. Our new board member, Paige Farmer, was welcomed by all board members. We are very excited to have Paige on our library board and look forward to her input and ideas to help us move the library forward. b. Just a quick notice that over the next few weeks, Mike, Eli, and Chris will be taking some vacation and personal time off during August. Most of the library staff have an abundance of vacation and personal time available that will need to be used before ne xt March and June. Arthur proposed the idea that we reduce public hours during the week to help with time off. This will be considered but doesn’t seem likely at this time. c. The full general fund budget has been given to the council for review. This will be discussed next week at the council workshop. The board requested that Nancy attend the council workshop and meeting just in case there are any questions concerning the library. d. The soffit and fascia are on the agenda just for updates. We aren’t able to move forward with this until after the budget passes. e. Our summer reading program/Book Buzz was very successful again this year. We had 478 children and 266 adults attend the 8 programs this year. Compared to 357 children and 213 adults attending in 2023. We are surprised at the higher numbers considering that we didn’t have the lunch program going at the same time like in summers past. If we hadn’t had Michelle working on her practicum, we wouldn’t have had enough people working to keep our library open full time. f. Board elections were held. Kate will remain as Board Chair, Mary as Vice-chair, and Arthur as the Federation Representative. 5. Other Items a. Upcoming Items: There is a Trustee training being held in Columbus on Friday, August 30th a.m. It is being held at Down Home on the Yellowstone, a new book store in Columbus. There is no charge for this training and anyone is welcome to attend. b. The next Federation meeting is Saturday, September 28th in Roundup. 6. Announcements a. The next regular meeting is September 10, 2024 at 6:00 pm in the library community room. A Zoom link will be added to the next agenda. Meeting adjourned at 7:10 pm. Respectfully submitted, 72 3 Nancy L Schmidt Nancy L Schmidt Library Director Secretary for the Board NOTE: This meeting is open to the public. This meeting is for information and discussion of listed agenda items. Join Zoom Meeting https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81873158498?pwd=zpwR85eU1wFSuOb0NeXntgr8ZIsxYp.1 Meeting ID: 818 7315 8498 Passcode: 551579 73 File Attachments for Item: 19. Library Board Minutes of September 13, 2024. 74 1 MINUTES CITY OF LAUREL 08/13/2024 06:06 PM Laurel Public Library COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: Katie Fjelstad X Arthur Vogele X Kate Manley – Board Chair X Paige Farmer - Zoom X Nancy Schmidt, Secretary X Mary Nelson X Clair Killebrew – Foundation Liaison OTHERS PRESENT: None 1. Public Input Citizens may address the committee regarding any item of city business not on the agenda. The duration for an individual speaking under Public Comment is limited to three minutes. While all comments are welcome, the committee will not take action on any item not on the agenda . a. Addressing the Board – None 2. General Items a. The minutes for Aug 2024 were presented for approval. Arthur motioned the minutes be approved as presented, Mary seconded the motion. Motion passed. b. Correspondence – $$0 from Lela in memory of Virginia Gomer; $250 from Laurel Federated Women’s Club; resignation letter from Stacie Stocks c. Circulation Report – (compared to the same time period as last year) Traffic: down 6.79%; circulation: all items circulated totaled 4,841 (including 620 eBooks), book circulation was up 6.4%, media circulation was down 7%, eBook checkouts for this month was 13.98% of total book circulation, we circulated 1,024 items to partners and 304 items from other libraries; computers: internet use was down 29.8%, children’s use was up 11.6%, wi-fi use up 11.6%; patron cards: city patrons make up 62.7% of our registered users, county is 26.2% and state/out of county has 11.1% of our registered users.. There were 57 tech assists in August. 3. Old Business a. The fall Federation meeting is scheduled for Saturday, September 28 th, 2024 in Roundup. The hours for the meeting are 9:30 am to 3:00 pm if anyone would like to attend. It is being held at the Roundup Community Library. Lunch and refreshments will be provided by the Friends of the Roundup Community Library. b. After watching the wind storms that rolled across the state, it is becoming a concern that the pine tree on the west side of the building needs some care and attention. The branches are resting on the roof of the library and it has been noticed by library staff that the tree itself seems to sway quite a bit in the high winds. Nancy talked with Kurt 75 2 Markegard about having the tree trimmed and possible actions for the future. He noticed that the roots have traveled toward the fiction wing of the library which could pose a problem in the next 5 years or so. We will keep watching the tree for safety reasons. c. Nancy will be attending the MT Arbitrator & Labor Relations Conference in Butte. She will be out of the office Tuesday, October 1st through Thursday, October 3rd. She will be available by cell phone or email if anyone needs to contact her. d. The fall Coordinator & MSL Commission meetings are being held in Helena, Tuesday, October 8th and 9th. Nancy will also be attending these meetings as part of her responsibilities for the federation coordinator. She will give a meeting report at the next board meeting. 4. New Business a. The annual MLA Fall Retreat is being held at Chico Hot Springs Resort again this year. The dates are October 6th & 7th. Anyone wanting to participate needs to let Nancy know so she can reserve a room for them and submit their registration to MLA. Attendees will offer a report on the retreat at the next board meeting. b. Final budget update – our budget has been finalized and accepted by the council. We were looking at a funding shortfall but Kelly found 4 more mills to cover our budget request for FY 24/25. We are good to go for this year and will start looking at the bud get for next year. c. Soffit & fascia update – the contract has been signed by the mayor. We are now waiting on Rob from Donahue Roofing to sign the contract and decide when they are available to complete the soffit & fascia work. Nancy will follow up with the Mayor or Kelly to see if the contract has been signed and is ready for implementation. 5. Other Items a. Upcoming Items: No board concerns at this time. b. Our next book sale is scheduled for Monday, October 28th through Saturday, November 9th. We will be open for the book sale on both Fridays and during regular library hours. 6. Announcements a. The next regular meeting is October 15th, 2024 at 6:00 pm in the library community room. A Zoom link will be added to the next agenda. Meeting adjourned at 6:58 pm. Respectfully submitted, Nancy L Schmidt 76 3 Nancy L Schmidt Library Director Secretary for the Board NOTE: This meeting is open to the public. This meeting is for information and discussion of listed agenda items. 77 File Attachments for Item: 20. Laurel Urban Renewal Agency Minutes of November 4, 2024. 78 79 File Attachments for Item: 21. Public Works Committee Minutes of October 21, 2024. 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 File Attachments for Item: 22. Tree Board Minutes of October 3, 2024. 87 88