October 17, 2006 Minutes
Board of Trustees
Fargo Public Library
Minutes of October 17, 2006
Present: Prakash Mathew, Helen Levitt, Suzanne Morrison, Herb Snyder, Leo Wilking, Richard Zeck
Absent: Gale Chapman
Friends of the Fargo Public Library Liaison: Carol Sawicki
Staff: Monique Andresen, Jake Fejedelem
Interim Director: Beth Postema
Others Present: City Commissioner Linda Coates
Order of Agenda
Herb Snyder moved to approve the order of the agenda with the addition under new business of request for proposals for moving services. Helen Levitt seconded the motion; the motion carried.
Minutes
Helen Levitt moved to approve the minutes of September 19, 2006. Herb Snyder seconded the motion; the motion carried.
Staff Report
Jake Fejedelem reported Meridyth Morgan resigned as a Library Associate I effective the end of the month. Staff are in the midst of moving plans.
Director’s Report
Beth Postema reported it is all building all moving all the time. This month the library has had two incidents of vandalism where someone poured motor oil into the large book drop along 4th Street. If the library was not moving from this location shortly the solution may be better lighting and security cameras. In this case, the book drop was dismantled. Book drops are still available directly into the main library building and along 3rd Street as well as at the Southpointe branch and Northport Hornbacher’s. Another concern is the part time turnover rate. It may be necessary to reevaluate the part time benefited positions.
Statistical Reports
With the opening of Northport, the main library usage statistics have not declined. The temporary downtown site may not maintain the same usage levels as the collection will be 10% of the current main library.
Year to date the library expended 69% of the budget 75% of the way through the year. Ordering of materials is on track. Some books that have been ordered will not be released until November or December so they are not reflected in the expenditures to date.
Friends of the Fargo Public Library Report
October will be the last sale for the Friends of the Fargo Public Library until the new building opens. The Friends only sale will be October 26 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. The public sale will be October 28 from 10-3 p.m.
The newsletter included a note informing people that no more donations are wanted.
The Book Talk that normally takes place in the meeting room the second Thursday of every month will be relocated with the new location to be announced.
At the last meeting funding was approved for an additional RFID pad for Northport.
Continuing Business
A. Building Progress Report
The excavation for the new Dr James Carlson Library is underway with an expected construction completion of early fall 2007. This would allow for opening the end of 2007.
The updated budget costs are projected at $16.923,845. The land acquisition for the Dr James Carlson Library will decrease slightly due to the negotiated cost of replacing the basketball courts.
LEED certification will cost $75,000 to $102,000. The building committee will decide this at the next meeting October 26. This would be the first building in North Dakota to be LEED certified. The design will be close to silver certification and the committee needs to determine if the certification process would be worth it. The advantage to LEED certification would be to move that value system forward. State agencies and energy companies may be a funding source that would not normally be a part of the fundraising campaign.
The sales tax has generated $13,010,000 for the building projects. The fundraising goal is $3 million. The campaign cabinet has good prospects and will not stop at $3 million. Commissioner Williams is watching to make sure added sales tax collected for the time period ending June 30, 2006 is allocated to the proper funds.
The main project timeline has been compressed as of the last architects meeting. A clean empty building may be turned over as early as February 1, 2007. This would need to be clean of hazardous materials. Asbestos abatement will require the heat to be shut down to remove boiler pipes. The downtown temporary site lease is currently under negotiation.
B. Fundraising Progress Report
Dr James Carlson has pledged $1 million to the construction of the Dr James Carlson Library. This will be at the Commission Monday for approval. The campaign cabinet is currently calling prospects. Planning for the staff portion of the campaign is under way. Board participation is in the follow up phase.
The public service building was purchased with several years surplus from the city budget. The current city commission is committed to the library.
New Business
A. Closing Schedule for Main Library
A tentative date of 6 p.m. December 23, 2006 for public closure has been set. This is in line with six weeks closure for moving and re-opening “Mini Main” February 7, 2007. The library will be closed December 24 and 25. Typically the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day is slow. Herb Snyder moved to close the main library December 23, 2006 and to reopen the temporary downtown site February 7, 2007. Helen Levitt seconded the motion; the motion carried.
B. Request for Proposals for Moving Services
Consultants will be at the library Friday for move management training. The estimate from other library moves is $36,000 to $48,000. Two legal notices need to be posted with time to respond. Legal notices can be posted October 30 and November 6 with a deadline of November 22 for responses. Work would begin one month later. Responses may come from specialty library movers as well as local contractors.
Materials in storage will not be accessible to patrons due to the personnel requirement it would take to pull and deliver materials. These records will be suppressed from the OPAC.
Helen Levitt moved to move forward with the request for proposals for moving services. Herb Snyder seconded the motion; the motion carried.
Public Comment
Helen Levitt expressed appreciation on behalf of the board for Beth Postema stepping into the role of Interim Director.
Next Board Meeting
The next board meeting is scheduled Tuesday, November 21, 2006, at 4:00 p.m. in the City Commission room.
The meeting was adjourned at 4:50 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Monique Andresen