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HomeMy Public PortalAbout2021.01.21 LBT Minutes Minutes—McCall Public Library Board of Trustees Meeting January 21, 2021 Zoom/McCall Library Conference Room, 218 E. Park Street Call to Order: 9:05 Attendance: Via Zoom—Jacki Rubin, Lola Elliot, Dawn Matus, Meg Lojek, Amy Rush, Bob Giles, Anette Spickard, Linda Stokes. Guest: Trey Crookston, CM Co. In Library—David Gallipoli Amendments to Agenda: None Approval of Minutes: Jacki made a motion to approve the minutes of 12/17/20, David seconded. Minutes approved. Director's Report: Payment Approvals: Jacki motioned to approve payments for 12/31/20 and 1/14/21. David seconded. All in favor. Budget and Stats: December financial statements are online (https://www.mccall.id.us/financial- statements). Annual Library Report to Council: Meg conveyed that she was putting the final touches on the annual report ahead of the submission deadline later in the day (1/21/21). The Board gave the go-ahead to submit it without prior review, and agreed that Meg would share it with the Board at a future date. Direction to Staff for Website Redesign: Meg presented three draft designs developed with Erin Greaves for the Library's website. After reviewing them and another public library's website for reference, the Board and Meg agreed on a basic direction regarding layout, navigation, font and features. Annual Evaluation of Director: The evaluation is usually carried out in January, but this year, the process is slightly delayed. Meg said she had recently received the necessary paperwork and would talk to Jacki with the aim of putting the item on the agenda for the February meeting. City Treasurer's Report: LGIP deposit: In keeping with regular practice, Lola motioned to move 1st quarter donations ($3,445.00) to the Local Government Investment Pool (LGIP) account for the Library expansion project. David seconded; all in favor. Excess fund balance: About $100,000 in unspent funds (reserves) is expected to be available for re-allocation in FY21 or 22 to the Library expansion once the City's audit is complete (final numbers should be available in April-May). Meg noted that there is a Board resolution in place saying that any excess cash within the Library fund should be used for the Library expansion project. Mayor Bob confirmed that it is the Board's intent to ensure that the excess funds be used for the expansion, and the recommendation of the Board is that the funds be set aside for spending in FY21 or 22, depending on when a bond election is held. Discussion of Library Expansion and Updated Cost Estimates: City Manager Anette Spickard and Trey Crookston of CM Co. joined this portion of the meeting ahead of the Jan. 28 Clty Council meeting. Meg reviewed revisions made in consultation with Trey on project cost estimates, including reductions to some line items (among them, a $290,000 reduction in the cost of the Library; the removal of roughly $900,000 for the Parks building relocation; a reduction in the cost of parking spaces; and the deferral of the Library Plaza portion of the project to a later date). The estimate also incorporates preliminary amounts for anticipated donations, and a 2% overall inflation adjustment (actual inflation estimated at 2- 5%). Meg noted that some contingency funds would be available to help cover the higher costs. Trey advised that future inflation trends are hard to predict, and added that in some cases, project planners set a bond at an amount with a good likelihood of passage, and then bring the project budget in line with that through adjustments. In the McCall Library's case, he said the changes likely wouldn't be drastic, but would involve things like the level of finish used in the building construction or slight square footage revisions. Bottom line: The current estimated grand total for the Library expansion, including construction costs and all fees, is $6.651 million, down from the original estimate of$8.189 million a year ago (of which $6.723 million was just for construction, including the Parks building relocation/rebuild). The new construction cost estimate suggests that efforts made to offset inflation have been successful, the caveats being that actual inflation could be higher than calculated, and anticipated funding from sources such as donations could change. On the plus side, Jacki noted that fundraising by the Library Foundation and City funds that have been earmarked for the expansion should contribute an additional $2 million or so in savings, which would bring the amount of the bond below $5 million, as requested by the Mayor. In response to a request from Jacki, Trey will provide a figure showing how much inflation has added to the cost of the project in the year since the first bond election. Trey also confirmed that, as noted below the estimate, delaying the project by an additional year would increase the cost by 4-5%. Discussion turned to the timing of the bond. Anette shared a SWOT analysis showing the pros and cons of putting the bond on the ballot at different times, and asked for the Board's input by the end of 1/21/21; the analysis will be shared with the City Council for its Jan. 28 meeting. Jacki said she is still committed to putting the bond on the ballot in May, and noted that delaying would add to the cost, slow momentum, and run the risk of lost grants and donation pledges. Waiting until November when a City Council election is expected could also dilute voter enthusiasm. Lola, Dave and Dawn agreed that May is a good time. Patrick, who was unable to attend, said via email that he favors waiting until the fall of 2021. He cited the planned school district bond and the pandemic's effects on voter confidence. Participants pointed out that the school bond, which includes refinancing of existing debt at lower interest rates, could actually reduce the taxpayer burden, and that deferring the expansion project will add to the cost. Bob thanked everyone for their input, and said he would share the Board's views with City Council. Jacki and Meg agreed to prepare a summary memo of the Board's discussion for the Jan. 28 meeting. Foundation Report: Amy summarized the results of the Library Foundation's first public outreach annual campaign, "KISS 2020 Goodbye." The goal of raising $20,000 was easily surpassed. The campaign drew 75 donors and total estimated contributions of$33,000. Looking ahead, the Foundation will meet in February to discuss big-picture fundraising issues and to plan for an online auction in the spring. Friends Liaison Report: To help the Friends streamline their meetings, Lola will begin sharing the Board's minutes in advance. She relayed that Friends members are coming up with creative ideas such as a concierge service to help patrons search for books in the Pumphouse collection. City Council Liaison Report: Bob thanked the Board for a productive discussion and said it helped him to prepare for the Jan. 28 Council meeting. Board Policy for Public Comment Guidelines: Tabled until February meeting or later. Revision of McCall Public Library Strategic Plan —Adopt Draft, Goal #1: Jacki motioned to adopt the draft with a plan to amend it as needed at a later date, after the Board has had a chance to review all sections of the Strategic Plan; David seconded and the motion passed. Revision of McCall Public Library Strategic Plan— Preliminary Discussion of Goal#2: Postponed until a later date. Adjournment: 11:45 Next Meetings: January 28, 5:30 PM—City Council discussion of Parks building and potential library bond February 18, 9:00 AM — Board meeting March 18, 9:00 AM— Board meeting Minutes prepared by Dawn Matus, Secretary Respectfully submitted by Jacki Rubin, Chair