December 16, 2008 Minutes
Board of Trustees
Fargo Public Library
Minutes of December 16, 2008
Present: Herb Snyder, Gale Chapman, Richard Zeck, James Council, Dawn Morgan, Gregory Heller
Absent: Suzanne Morrison
Staff: Tim Dirks, Eve Haaland, Beth Postema, Ginny Mueller
Order of Agenda
Gale Chapman moved to approve the order of the agenda; seconded by Gregory Heller; motion carried.
Minutes
Motion was made by Gregory Heller to approve the minutes of November 18, 2008; seconded by Jim Council; motion carried.
Staff Report
Eve Haaland presented the staff report, beginning with children’s programming. On December 9th, we held the Trim the Tree program with 42 children attending and 3 volunteers assisting. A Winnie the Pooh Program was held December 11th with 66 in attendance. We have free family movies on December 29th (Wal-E) and January 26th (Prince Caspian). Winter Read-A-Thon begins January 5th. Cindy Mason hosted 2 Boy Scout tours, showing 36 boys the numerous ways to use their library. Teen programming has included gaming (13 attendees) and a beeswax candle making craft (17 attendees). Our internet classes have gone well and are always in demand.
On December 5th, an all-staff meeting was held to discuss the logistics of our upcoming move to New Main, with safety being a primary goal. On December 12th the library had our annual Christmas potluck, which was enjoyed by all.
Eve Haaland announced the Employee of the Month award went to two individuals – Lauren Johnson and Eve Haaland. Since Eve’s term as Staff Representative to the board expires the end of the year, this is her last board meeting. She stated that she has enjoyed the opportunity to attend the meetings and to meet all members of the board. President, Herb Snyder, acknowledged that we will all miss Eve and her reports and wished her luck. Greg Gilstrap will be the new Staff Representative beginning in January.
Director’s Report
Tim Dirks directed attention to the Director’s Report included in the packet, noting that he has begun his Question & Answer sessions at each library. His first was on December 4th at Northport, with Carlson on December 11th and Mini-Main scheduled. We are going into our second round of interviews with 3 candidates for the Children Services Library I position. We are in various stages of interviewing and hiring for other positions.
The interior of New Main is being worked on in every area, which the target date of February 16th looking favorable. The architects budgeted office furniture for New Main at just under $300,000 and the bids came in at $189,034. Tim Dirks stated that his goal is to have $110,000 - $120,000 additional funds in the project account when it is complete to be used for books and library materials.
Statistical Reports
November Usage
Comparisons from November, 2008 to November, 2007 show a decrease in volunteer hours and in attendance, due to the door counter being out of order at Carlson. This has since been repaired. Comparing year-to-date 2008 to year-to-date 2007 shows attendance, programs, volunteers, internet and web page hits all have increased activity. Total circulation for both print and non print materials was up 8.41% compared to November 2007, and up 15.75% compared to YTD 2007.
November Financials
½ of our new laptops were paid out of the special projects fund, with the other ½ being paid for by the Friends. Donations for specific programs/materials have been received and expended.
With 92% of the year represented, the library is at 82.28% of its budget expended.
We are working very hard to finish the year within our budget constraints. It has been a difficult year, given that Northport was initially paying expenses out of start-up funds and then needed to be combined with our general operating budget. An updated fines, deposits and collections spreadsheet was distributed.
The libraries will be closing at 4:00 PM on December 24th and will be closed on Christmas Day. Libraries will open as usual on Friday, December 26th.
Friends of the Library Report
There was no representative at the meeting.
Old Business
New Main Opening Event Committee Update
The major donor reception has tentatively been set for Friday, April 24th and the library opens to the public on Saturday, April 25th. We are discussing having an insert in the newspaper, detailing the events surrounding the opening and a map of the building. This would also be available for the events on April 24th and 25th. At this time, we are putting together the cost of the advertising and events and presenting to the Friends to determine their desired level of contribution. We will also like to utilize volunteers for tours, parking, etc. to ensure that everything goes smoothly.
New Main Coffee Vendor Update
Dunn Bros. has expressed interest in becoming a vendor for New Main. Their proposal is due January 16th.
NEW BUSINESS
Request for Proposal for Moving Services
The draft for Request for Proposal was presented by Tim Dirks. Our City Attorney has reviewed and approved the document. It was pointed out that paragraphs 26 and 27 on the last page are duplicate, and one should be removed. Jim Council made a motion that we accept the Request for Proposal for Moving Services with the above noted change. Greg Heller seconded; motion carried.
Public Comment
There was no public comment.
Next Board Meeting
The next regular Board meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, January 20, 2009, at 4:00 p.m. in the City Commission room.
The meeting adjourned at 4:45 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Ginny Mueller