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HomeMy Public PortalAbout2023.09.11 LBT MinutesMcCall Public Library Board of Trustees Meeting September 11, 2023 - 10:00 AM Attendance: (Legion Hall) Meg Lojek, Matt Stebbins, David Gallipoli, Lola Elliot, Amy Rush (Virtual) Susie Reddick, Nathan Stewart, Linda Stokes Call to Order: 10:05 am Amendments to Agenda: Meg changed the date of the past minutes we will approve today from June 12th (as it appears on the original agenda) to July 10th. David moved to approve the change; Matt seconded the motion which passed unanimously. Approval of Minutes: Matt moved to approve the minutes of July 10th, 2023; Lola seconded the motion which passed unanimously. Matt moved to approve the library history subcommittee minutes of January 17, 2023 and January 31, 2023; Lola seconded the motion which passed unanimously. Public Comment: None. Director's Report: (Meg) Payment Approvals: Lola moved to approve payments of 7/6/23, 7/12/23, 7/27/23, 8/4/23, and 8/17/23; David seconded the motion which passed unanimously. Monthly Budget and Stats: Financials are available online at https://www.mccall.id.us/financial-statements. Our fiscal year ends in two weeks. We're in good shape, especially due and with thanks to assistance from the Friends of the Library who supported children's book purchases. Grants Updates: The $100,000 LOT grant has been awarded to the library on the contingency of funding availability. We will find out next year if we will receive funding from the local option tax. Lola played a role in the Progressive Club's award of a $10,000 grant which the library has received. The funds will be directed to the children's section of the library expansion. We are honored that the group donates their hard-earned funds (through the Festival of Trees and the Fashion Show) to the library. The Idaho Commission for Libraries Facilities Improvement grant was not awarded. They had many more requests than they can fund, but we are happy that the Cascade Library was awarded one of their grants. A $10,000 USFS grant that Meg worked on with Morgan Zedalis has been approved. The funds will go to the USFS to assist with the indigenous artifacts that will be on temporary loan to the library. Meg is also working with Joe Thurston to come up with an installation plan. Page 1 of 4 Public Art Update: Joe Thurston' wood carvings will have their home in lighted boxes in the expanded library. We can now see a diagram showing where the boxes will be located along the stairway. CM is exploring cost savings. Staff Training Update: HOPE (Healthy Outcomes for Positive Experiences). Recently, library staff attended a virtual training session conducted by Meridian librarian Audra Green. She guided our staff through various opportunities that children might have at the library to counter negative experiences in other parts of their lives. The staff appreciated and enjoyed the training; many thanks to Matt who connected us with Audra. Staff and Summer Reading: The staff is understandably struggling at times with the construction going on around them. The current working environment is dark, noisy, and challenging, even though we all know the construction leads to a good end. Discussion and concern about a staff member who has used up all personal leave. The summer reading program has wrapped up. Happily, there has been an uptick in participation and, while the formal report comes out next month, the numbers look good: over 90,000 combined minutes of reading, 408 books given away, and 272 prizes handed out. Thanks to all the staff who worked on this valuable project! Building Update: (Nathan) Lots of visual activity is taking place at the library. Last Wednesday, the construction team met and discussed upcoming goals. Currently the focus is on the exterior, especially the insulation and rock work. Rough -in interior work is also underway. The roof was installed this month, and Nathan hopes to see the east parking lot completed in September. In addition, work is being conducted to manage water run-off between the library and City Hall. All this work, combined with vehicles and materials in the area, makes it a challenge for library access. Hopefully, fences will be pushed back, and there will be more space available for patrons by October. Crews are on schedule; we anticipate a May 2024 opening of the library expansion and an October 2024 completion of the existing library's remodel. Formal landscaping may be delayed to optimize purchasing and planting. Crews will continue to work inside throughout winter months. After the spring move to the expanded library, work will begin on the existing library's remodel. Nathan and Meg are working hard on furniture and shelving acquisition this month. The City may be able to make direct purchases without going out for bids which would facilitate the process. Many materials prices, including lumber, are down from original estimates. Those savings will help cover some overage costs such as the underground storage tank removal and roofing material costs which are rising. Page 2 of 4 Foundation Update: (Amy) Amy has updated the "case for support" document she uses to recruit donors and is pleased with the product. She is also happy about two construction site tours, one on beam -raising day and the other a week later to the top five donors to our project. A $50,000 gift was the result of one tour which is great. Amy has also received a commitment to introduce new donors; to that end, she will schedule more tours. It will take Amy's hard work and the support of the Foundation to complete our construction schedule with no budgetary interruptions until we're completely done next fall. Amy also described her current work on a designated remote working space in the expanded library. She hopes to have ten local employers contribute $10,000 each and is off to a positive start with Idaho First Bank. It's been a good month, Amy reports, though we're still looking to close the funding gap. Thanks so much for all this good news and your hard work, Amy! Treasurer's Report: (Linda) Linda reports that August statements will be available later this week. The FY24 budget packet will be available online on October 1St on the City's website. The approved Library budget is about $1.5 million; there is a separate budget of $5.4 million for construction. To date, $3.3 million has been spent on the project. Library Policy Review: Section 1J After discussion, Matt moved to approve the amended Policy Section 1J; David seconded the motion which passed unanimously. We should be done editing the policy manual by the end of 2023. Thanks to Meg for making this such an efficient process! Friends Liaison report: (Lola) Lola reports that the Friends of the Library had a terrific month punctuated by a 30 - year appreciation celebration held in the Carpenters' Shop at the SITPA site and a celebratory book sale the next day which brought in $1100. The FOL has purchased a credit card machine to create more purchasing options for customers. Meg will attend the fall FOL meetings to make her annual funds request of the group. Lola will be there, too, and will encourage the return of the FOL BBQ fundraiser and a larger FOL donation targeted at the new children's library. NOTE: Meg has been working with Linda to secure a credit card machine for our library. With guidance from the Cascade Public Library, which has a card system in place, it looks like this will happen in McCall. Page 3 of 4 City Council Liaison report: n/a Mayor Bob couldn't make it to our meeting today. Update on History Committee Work: (Susie) Susie plans to complete the research and written portion of our document that charts the McCall Public Library history by the end of October. Matt will seek formatting advice, and Lola will work on interviews in the meantime. We will meet again at Susie's house on Monday, December 11th to combine our efforts. Adjourn: 12:09 pm Next Meetings: October 16th, November 13th, December llth (Library Board and History Committee) Minutes prepared by Susie Reddick, Secretary Respectfully submitted by Jacki Rubin, Chair ?/' Page 4 of 4 o„(