Loading...
HomeMy Public PortalAboutJanuary 15, 2014 Minutes with Links_201402071312108030Trustees of the Watertown Free Public Library January 15, 2014 Present: Katherine Button, Michael Hanlon, Gracemarie LeBlanc, Raya Stern, Carol Tierney, Trustees; Leone Cole, Director; Caitlin Browne, Assistant Director; Emily Miranda, Children's Dept.; Donald Bleech, Red Leaf Cafe. Excused: Timothy Tracy The Chair brought the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. Kyle Igoe of Watertown Community Access filmed the meeting. A round of introductions took place. Mr. Hanlon read the Rules for the Public Forum: "The Public Forum on the Order of Business shall be limited to remarks about Library business. Personnel matters will not be considered for public comment. No more than ten minutes shall be devoted to the Public Forum. Any petitioner or member of the public wishing to speak must place his or her name on a list and identify the topic prior to the scheduled start of the meeting. The Chair of the Board of Library Trustees will determine whether the topic is appropriate, and recognize speakers at the Public Forum in the order in which their names appear on the list. After being recognized by the Chair, the speaker must state his/her name and address for the record. Comments must be kept to two (2) minutes or less. Should the speaker deviate from the stated topic, the Chair may ask the person to cease and to step down. All remarks shall be addressed to the Chair and through the Chair, and shall not be addressed to any individual member of the Board of Library Trustees, town official, department head or employee. No person having the floor shall enter into discussion either directly or through a member of the Board without the permission of the Chair. The meeting minutes will acknowledge the speakers and their topics. The Chair will respond." David Jenkins of the Peace Pole Project signed up for the Public Forum. Election of Officers: Ms. Stern made a motion to keep the present slate of officers: Mr. Hanlon, Chair; Mrs. LeBlanc, Vice Chair; Ms. Stern, Treasurer, and Ms. Button, Secretary. Mrs. LeBlanc seconded. All voted in favor. Secretary's Report: Ms. Stern moved to accept the December 3, 2013 Minute as amended. Ms. Tierney seconded. All voted in favor. Peace Pole: The meeting went out of order to discuss the possibility of installing a Peace Pole at the Library. According to David Jenkins and Emily Page, of the Institute for Individual and World Peace, a Peace Pole can be either an indoor or outdoor display, six or eight feet tall, with the inscription, "May Peace Prevail on Earth," in four different languages. The community would choose which languages. The Peace Pole Project started in Japan in 1975. There were questions about how the pole would be installed, secured and maintained. Ms. Stern recommended outdoors near the Christmas tree where the pole would not be in the line of foot traffic. It was recommended that the Institute also contact Project Literacy, World in Watertown, and Watertown Citizens for Peace, Justice and the Environment. Mr. Jenkins thinks the month of May would be an appropriate time to install a peace pole. Ms. Stern made a motion to accept the Peace Pole Project and to direct Mr. Jenkins to follow up at another meeting with a specific plan. Ms. Tierney seconded. All voted in favor. Financial Report: We are about half way through the fiscal year and the budget is around 55% spent. Ms Stern is concerned about the Office Equipment Maintenance line, which is 84% used. The gas bills are coming in erratically. The Library is watching the Building Maintenance line. The Personnel budget is 49% spent. The Library is fully staffed. Ms. Cole will invite the new Help Desk person to the next meeting. Ms. Stern reported on further investigations regarding the Griffin Fund stocks. The Burke Fund is held in a trust with the Boston Foundation. Charles Burke was a library trustee for over fifty years, much of that time as treasurer. The Library receives a distribution from the Burke Fund every Spring. Mr. Burke's will determines a number of restraints on how the Library spends the money. Because of Mr. Burke's keen interest in serving young adults, a certain percentage of the distribution must support materials aimed toward teenagers. The Burke Fund also pays for movie licenses, museum passes, and programs for all ages. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts each year disburses state aid, in the form of LIG/MEG (Library Incentive Grant/Municipal Equalization Grant), if the Library meets certain requirements, including the number of hours kept open, and the percentage of the total budget spent on materials, to meet the MAR (Municipal Appropriation Requirement). A public library serving a population the size of Watertown must devote at least thirteen percent of the budget to library materials, in the various formats for books, periodicals, and databases. The Minuteman Network coordinates our OverDrive ebook service. The Library is paying for Hoopla on its own. Ms. Button made a motion to accept the Financial Report. Ms. Stern seconded. All voted in favor. Red Leaf Cafe: Proprietor Donald Bleech wished everyone a Happy New Year. Ms. Stern complimented Mr. Bleech for the staff luncheon. There was a good variety of dishes, and people loved the gluten free options. For the cafe's winter menus, Mr. Bleech is offering more variety of soups and chili. The web site should be ready soon, with links going to and from the Library's web site. Mr. Bleech gave out copies of the 4th quarterly report for the months October through December. Director's Report: This year, instead of sponsoring another mini -golf event, the Library is proposing a 5k fundraiser to be held some weekend in May or June. Emily Miranda of the Children's Dept. came to the Trustees' meeting to answer any questions. Mr. Hanlon recommended talking with the Boys and Girls Club, which sponsors a 5k race every Fall, about their route and other logistics. Keeping the race on sidewalks will make the route accessible for people with disabilities and families with strollers. The Library may need to pay a police detail. Ms. Miranda hopes that local sports clubs will sign up as sponsors. Ms. Cole said that such an event would serve more as a community builder, to create good will, than as a fund raiser. Ms. Miranda will come back with more details and a proposed budget for the 5k. Ms. Browne gave an update on Makerspace. The first monthly "Meet and Make" drop -in meeting takes place Thursday, January 23, 6:30 to 8:00 PM, in the Lucia Mastrangelo room. To make a Makerspace work, the Library needs volunteers. Ms. Miranda is putting together a collection of Makerspace books. FY15 Budget Submission: As requested by the Town Manager, Ms. Cole presented two budgets: level services and a 2.5% reduction budget. The level services budget, a 1.9% increase over last year, amounts to $2,421,836, including $4500 for web design costs. Last year the Town's Information Technology department absorbed service costs from the web company Bartlett Interactive. The level services budget allows 13% towards materials. Ms. Cole included in the budget proposal a request for $34,000 in additional funding for materials, because of the need for multiple formats of the same titles. A second request for additional funding of $10,000 would go towards Project Literacy. A 2.5% reduction budget, amounting to $2,316,536, does not meet the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners Municipal Appropriation Requirement. The difference between the two budget proposals is $105,300. On Thursday, January 30, Ms. Cole and Mr. Hanlon will be meeting with the Town Manager to discuss the budget. Ms. Stern made a motion to accept the FY15 Level Services Budget of $2,421,836 plus requests for additional funding of $44,000. Ms. Tierney seconded. All voted in favor. Mr. Hanlon asked Ms. Cole to draft a letter to the Town Manager about the Trustees vote on the budget proposal. New Business: The Fourteenth Annual Unity Breakfast takes place Monday, January 20, starting at 9:00 AM. This year's Unity Award goes to the Project Literacy Volunteers. As a late agenda item Ms. Tierney brought up the inclement weather policy, what to do during a snow emergency. Ms. Cole explained the past practice, that is, the Director and the Chair making the decision whether to close the Library. The policy as stands today is that during Town Hall business hours, the Town Manager makes the decision. After hours, evenings and weekends, the Chair, in consultation with the Director, makes the decision. The question was raised if Trustees should consult together to decide whether to close the library. Ms. Cole reminded the group that the open meeting law prohibits any type of group vote outside of a posted meeting and thus the Trustees as a whole cannot make that type of group decision. Ms. Browne said that when the Library closed because of the power failure, signs were placed on the doors and a note was added to the web site. Ms. Cole added that there are many factors to consider when closing the library. She stated she is not inclined to send home staff to drive in the middle of a snow storm with poor road conditions and traffic jams. Next Meeting: Tuesday, February 4, 2014, 7:00 PM. Motion to adjourn: 8:40 PM. Respectfully submitted, Katherine Button ENCLOSURES: Agenda; December 3, 2013, Minutes; FY14 Year -to -Date Budget Report; Burke FY14; Fund or Grant Book Funds; Expenditure Breakdown FY14; Memo re: FY15 Budget Submission; Next Year Budget Comparison Report; Library Compensation Worksheets FY14 Level Service & 2.5% Reduction; Supplies & Services Expenditure Worksheet FY15; Special Revenue % Expendable Trust Worksheet FY15; Departmental Licenses, Permits & Fees Worksheet FY15; Requests for Additional Funding FY15; Budget Narratives FY15 Level Services & 2.5% Reduction; Organization Chart; Library Performance Measures; Memo re: Fundraiser Proposal; Proposal for 5k Fundraiser; Memo re: Peace Pole Display; Red Leaf Cafe 4th Quarter Report.