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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLibrary Board Minutes 07.14.20201 MINUTES CITY OF LAUREL Library Board 07/14/2020 06:08 PM Laurel Library COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: X Dixie Feller, Board Chair X Arthur Vogele X Bill Hanson, Vice-Chairman X Samantha Barnhart – via phone Vacant Position X Clair Killebrew – Foundation Liaison X Nancy Schmidt, Secretary OTHERS PRESENT: 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. 2. General Items a. Arthur motioned the Library Board minutes for June 2020 be accepted as presented, Bill seconded the motion; motion passed. b. Ray Wells made another donation to the library in the amount of $50.00. Arthur received his letter from Mayor Nelson appointing him to the Board for the next 5 years. c. Circulation Report - Traffic: up 45%; circulation: all items circulated totaled 2,202 (including 519 eBooks), book circulation was down 45.7%, media circulation was down 59.9%, eBook checkouts for this month was 13.5% of total book circulation, we circulated 0 items to partners and 0 items from other libraries; computers: internet use was down 37.4 %, children’s use was down 82%, wi-fi use: down 39.6%; patron cards: city registrations made up 62.6% of library users, county patrons 34.3% and non-resident registered patrons 3.2%. There were 18 tech assists in June. Despite the limitations put on everyone, the traffic report looks good. 3. New Business a. Officer elections were held at the start of the meeting. Dixie motioned that the nominations be as thus: Board Chair – Arthur Vogele, Vice-Chair – Bill Hanson, Federation Representative – Dixie Feller. Bill seconded the motion; motion passed. b. There is now an opening on the Library Board. A letter of removal was sent to Emelie Easton and shared with the Board members. Anyone interested in being on the Board should send a letter of interest to the library which will be passed along to the Mayor. Clair is interested in being appointed to the Board. We will also put the information on our webpage & see who applies. 2 c. We need to plan for a fall book sale. The shed is full & more donations keep coming in. The sale can take place in September, October, or November. We can set the date and move if further COVID restrictions are put back into place. The set is October 18th-24th, tentatively. d. We have requests for use of our community room now that we are ‘open’ again. Some of the guitar players want to start having lessons again. Bob Engel isn’t planning on teaching again, but the students have asked Pat Kukes to take over the lessons. The book club met for the first time in 4 months and they sat outside for their discussion. The bunco players are also calling regularly to see if they can start meeting again. As a group, the Board members feel that meetings can take place if there are fewer than 10 people attending, and they can safely distance. If they don’t want to follow the guidelines, they won’t be able to meet. If we get pushback from anyone, the Board will allow us to stop all meetings. e. It has been over 5 years since we’ve updated the bylaws for the Library Board of Trustees. Changes to the bylaws were discussed at length. Arthur motioned that we make the proposed changes if they are in accordance with the Administrative Rules of Montana. Bill seconded the motion; motion passed. f. Library staff is trying to ‘encourage’ patrons to wear masks, but we are getting some resistance. A patron that strongly objects to wearing a mask has written a letter outlining his reasons for not wearing a mask. A mask policy has been created and shared with the Board. The policy was created with input from library staff to help address their concerns. For those that state they have a medical reason for not wearing a mask, we can ask for a medical certificate stating they don’t need to wear a mask, but we aren’t allowed to ask what the condition is. We have other accommodations in place for those refusing to wear a mask. Arthur motioned the mask policy be adopted, Sam seconded the motion; motion passed. 4. Old Business a. With concerns about COVID-19 still abounding across the state, it was decided that the library will keep its hours limited to being open until 6:00 pm. We always want at least 2 staff on shift to avoid issues with patrons being unruly or refusing to follow our guidelines. We may have to make some decisions regarding COVID-19 on the fly without having time to consult the Board members. b. Currently there haven’t been any budget updates. Nancy attended the Budget/Finance Committee meeting to explain how she came up with the figures she turned into Mayor Nelson and Clerk Treasurer Langve. As part of our budgeting process the Board voted to drop our participation in Ancestry Library Edition and Heritage Quest. It was costing us $6.85 per search to continue offering these databases. Arthur motioned that we drop ALE & HQ, Sam seconded the motion; motion passed. c. Over 2,000 meals were served in June from the library parking lot. The school district offers breakfast and lunch 3 times per week. On Monday and Wednesday, students receive two breakfasts and two lunches. On Friday, they receive three meals of each – breakfast and lunch. d. We’ve had 45 patrons signed up for the Summer Reading Program via Read2Squared. There have been 40, 700 minutes read, 478 games completed online, 85 prizes and 164 badges won. 3 e. Invoices were reviewed for payment for June 2020. No questions or issues were notice. Amounts spent for the library seemed reasonable. Arthur motioned the expenses be approved as presented, Bill seconded the motion; motion passed. f. The Foundation had approved the purchase of a round picnic table for staff breaks, etc. After careful consideration, staff felt a regular table would be better. These are available from Lowe’s for about $100. 5. Other Items a. Upcoming Items: The Fall Federation meeting will be held in Red Lodge on September 12, 2020. We should probably prepare for the meeting to be held online if there are active outbreaks of corona virus. Nancy presented the quote for new shelves and furniture from Montana Core Enterprises. Grant monies will be pursued for the purchase of these items. 6. Announcements a. Next regular meeting is Tuesday, August 11, 2020 at 6:00 pm in the Community Room of the Laurel Public Library. Arthur motioned to adjourn the meeting at 7:51 pm, Bill seconded the motion; motion passed. Respectfully submitted, Nancy L Schmidt Nancy L Schmidt Secretary for the Board NOTE: This meeting is open to the public. This meeting is for information and discussion of listed agenda items.