Minutes - 2010 - Eagle Public Library - 02/08/2010 - Regular EAGLE PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES
MINUTES
February 08, 2010
Library Workroom
Board President Mary Berent called the EPL Board of Trustees meeting to order at 7:00 PM.
Present were Board Members Danae Curtis, Margo Walter,Nancy Marshall, and Maureen
Germano, and Councilman Norm Semanko. Also present were Ron Baker, Library Director,
Julia Gleed, Friends' Treasurer, and Terri Lenigan, Administrative Assistant. Councilman
Semanko was excused at 8:16 PM.
Director Baker requested that addenda item under New Business, Formation of a Library
Foundation be repositioned and included in the Friends Report. Formation of a Library
Foundation could affect the activities of the Friends group. Nancy Marshall made a motion that
the agenda, as amended, be approved; Margo Walter seconded the motion and the agenda was
unanimously approved.
Danae Curtis made a motion that the minutes for the 11 January 2010 meeting be approved;
Margo Walter seconded the motion and the minutes were unanimously approved.
Margo Walter made a motion that the bills be approved for payment; Nancy Marshall seconded
the motion and the bills were unanimously approved for payment.
Friends of the Library Report (Friends' President absent)
Julia Gleed reported in the absence of the Friend's President. The "Every Day Book Sale" is still
successful, providing the Library with extra purchasing power. They anticipate some new
members joining the group soon.
Formation of a Library Foundation: Library patron Pat Minkiewicz approached Board President
Mary Berent about starting a Library Foundation. Mrs. Minkiewicz has offered to volunteer
attorney time to set up a Foundation and expressed a willingness to donate to the Foundation.
She felt that the Foundation could be used to raise operational funds; however, capital funds are
usually a more appropriate use of Foundation monies„ Saundra McDavid and Jeannie Jackson-
Heim are also interested in helping to start this Foundation, according to Mrs. Minkiewicz.
The Idaho Community Foundation distributes some funds to the City of Eagle, generally
between $2,000 and $2,500. We might be able to work through them to establish a separate fund
within the Foundation. Some advantages might be they have the staffing to set up a fund and
obviate the need for attorney fees. The disadvantage would be that ICF may not aggressively
raise funds on our behalf It may be better to raise our own funds. It might be advantageous to
work with ICF, at least initially, to set up a separate fund so that monies raised for EPL would
not be comingled with those of other organizations.
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The first step is for Director Baker to contact ICF and request their parameters for assistance and
define what they can and cannot do to help us. Director Baker will report his findings at the
next Board meeting.
Director's Report
Statistical reports (handout): Statistics have been fairly uniform since October 2009. However,
the uptrend for EPL patrons' use of the Boise branch libraries at Collister and Cole and Ustick
continues.
Mayor's State of the City Address, Tuesday, February 9, 2010: Several members of the
Library's Management Team will attend. Director Baker provided input and statistics to the
Mayor for his speech.
Customer Appreciation Day, Saturday, February 13, 2010: Due to the generosity of the Friends,
whose funds sponsored our table, the Library will be represented at the trade show.
January's tax receipts by the Library Fund: The Library fund levy is budgeted at $553,000.
January collections are on track at $300,000, somewhat ahead of what was anticipated. State
pass-through accounts and revenue sharing are less than anticipated. Over all, this is relatively
good news.
Annual Statistical Report to the Idaho Commission of Libraries: Completed and sent to the
Commission on time! A copy was available for Board members to review.
Recent building issues:
Intercom at back door: Public works has evaluated the damage and has determined that the
intercom cannot be repaired. The Friends considered replacing the system, however, determined
the $700 replacement cost prohibitive. A sign has been posted advising patrons to come to the
Circulation Desk with any donations.
HVAC unit for Community Room: The very chilly temperatures, (58°), in the Community
Room have been warmed up by replacing parts and fixing the wiring. And just in time for the
annual Little House youth program honoring Laura Ingalls Wilder's birthday. This program is
always a huge success and this year was no exception with 271 attendees and 18 volunteers.
Transfer of Library's M&O accounts: The City Auditors were not satisfied with the way records
were being kept as they could not distinguish costs to upkeep each building. They have
requested separate accounting per building. Two years ago, it was decided that the City would
be responsible for maintenance of all City buildings. The M&O accounts were removed from
the Library budget and put in the City's General Fund. These accounts will be restored to the
Library budget for FY 2010/11. At all budget hearings and negotiations, it should be made clear
that this is a lateral shifting of accounts and not an increase to the Library's budget.
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The LYNX! Contract: Contract negations continue with reimbursement issues a contentious
point for MLD. The lawyers for MLD and the City of Boise have major disagreements
regarding reimbursement in the past. MLD has not reimbursed ACL for excessive patron usage.
MLD is refusing to sign the contract unless the reimbursement clause is removed, even though it
is legal to have such a clause.
Library Liaison/City Hall Reports (Councilman Semanko)
The major concern of the City Council has been the City Hall Task Force and discussion of
options under the current City Hall building lease. Other topics of interest included: how the
addition of the F-35 fighter jet to Mountain Home Air Base and Gowen Field will benefit the
Treasure Valley and the City of Eagle; comingled recycling; and mixed use hearing for the
property development at Chinden and Linder roads.
Unfinished Business
Strategic Plan update (Maureen and Mary): Per the committee's request, the Management Staff
has investigated three alternative funding scenarios:
1. With only the base levy of$553,000 would it be feasible to continue to run the Library as
a City entity at much reduced services and hours or would outsourcing be a better option.
2. Remaining at the current budget, which would not allow restoration of hours, staff, or
services.
3. Working to get back the Library's historic levy, which would restore Library hours, staff,
and services.
The first two options should include illustrative scenarios that detail what services would be lost.
The plan might also include services to be considered when economic conditions improve.
Review of Household survey (www.surveymonkey.com/s/EPL v1): Board Member Maureen
Germano has spearheaded the effort to update the household survey, using "SurveyMonkey"to
aid in the gathering and compilation of data. "SurveyMonkey is a web-based tool designed
specifically to create and publish custom surveys and view results graphically and in real time.
The survey may also be posted on our web page and printed in the Valley Times.
Suspension of Community Room Use Policy (ACTION ITEM): Due to scheduling difficulties,
it was necessary to review use of the Community Room by private, non-profit groups. Since
Library, City, and Friends of the Library sponsored activities are given priority and with only
one evening and shortened Saturday hours available, there has almost never been a time
available for non-profit groups to reserve the Room. Director Baker has asked the Board to
consider temporarily suspending use of the Community Room until restoration of Library hours.
Margo Walter made a motion to suspend use of the Community Room as outlined in the
following paragraph:
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Therefore, until further notice, the use of the Community Room by private,
non-profit organizations is temporarily suspended due to the limited open
hours of the Eagle Public Library. Use of the Community Room is restricted
to Library programming, municipal functions, and the activities of the Friends
of the Library and other library partnership groups providing broad-based
public services (e.g. AARP and tax preparation counseling). When open
hours are restored, it is the Library Board's intention that non-profit
organizations will once again be able to schedule use of the Community Room
per the policy adopted by the Board on 12 Apr 2004.
Maureen Germano seconded the motion which carried unanimously.
Broadband Technology Opportunity Program (BTOP): The Gates Foundation in conjunction
with the State Library Commission is offering a grant to upgrade Internet connectivity, Wi-Fi
systems, firewalls, remote authentication, filtering, if requested, hardware, if needed, and other
technology improvements. Although there may be a poverty standard which could eliminate
EPL, Director Baker felt that we should apply. Director Baker will report on details as they
become available.
Additional items or Public Comment
The Eagle Community Fund is asking for grant applications. In the past, we had been awarded a
$500 grant to augment the Large Print collection. This may be a good opportunity to set up a
separate parenting collection to be shelved in the Children's area.
Selection of Next Meeting Date
The next meeting of the EPL Board of Trustees will be Monday, 8 March 2010 at 7:00 PM in the
Library workroom.
Adjournment
There being no further business, Margo Walter made a motion that the meeting be adjourned;
Danae Curtis seconded the motion. The meeting was adjourned at 8:43 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Terri T. Lenigan
Administrative Assistant
Topics:
Mayor's State of the City Address
Customer Appreciation Day
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Topics (con't):
January's tax receipts
Building issues: Intercom at back door, HVAC for Community Room
Transfer of Library's M&O accounts
LYNX! contract negotiations
Strategic Plan update
Household Survey/SurveyMonkey tool
Suspension of Community Room Use Policy
Formation of a Library Foundation
Broadband Technology Opportunity Program (BTOP)
Eagle Community Fund Grant/Parenting Collection
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