Library Preliminary Minutes 11/05/2014
PRELIMINARY MINUTES
STEPHENSON MEMORIAL LIBRARY TRUSTEES MEETING
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2014
PRESENT: Jami Bascom, Bob Marshall, Neal Brown, Bruce Dodge, Mary Ann Grant, Julie Steenson (new Library Director) and Holly Williams, resident.
The minutes were recorded by Pat LaPree.
7:02 PM – The meeting was called to order by Chairman Brown.
1) Neal introduced the new Library Director, Julie Steenson, to the resident in attendance and the clerical staff for the trustees.
2) Neal asked for feedback about using the Wensberg room for Trustees meetings going forward. Everyone is in agreement that they will continue to meet in the Wensberg Room.
3) Review of the October 1, 2014 minutes:
The Trustees reviewed the preliminary minutes. The motion was made by Bruce to accept the minutes as written, and Neal seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous in the affirmative to accept the October meeting minutes. ACTION: Pat will have the minutes posted on the Town website.
7:08 – Treasurer’s report:
Mary Ann provided the Trustees and the Library Director with the year to date expenditures and the monthly revenue figures for the Library. The Trustees and Director reviewed the line items on the budget and the balances remaining for the rest of 2014. The Director requested that the Treasurer provide her with a breakdown of revenues from the Merrill fund and asked about the procedure for the Director to request using monies from the Library checking account for Library expenditures. The trustees will consider expenditure requests from Julie as needed. A discussion followed about what the Director has identified as needs for the Library now and how to pay for them from the various lines in the budget. Julie recommended that the Library convert to Biblionix Apollo software from Alexandria. The migration fee and the annual 2015 fee for the new software will be expended from the 2014 budget. A motion was made by Neal to allocate the money for the fees needed to switch from Alexandria to Apollo, and Bruce seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous in the affirmative to proceed with the switch in software.
Bruce reported that the total cost of the Library sign, including installation, will be $810.00, and the vendor needs one half of the amount to go forward. This will be paid for in the 2014 budget and will be completed and invoiced by January 15, 2015. ACTION: Bruce will contact the vendor and get the project moving.
Julie reported that she has begun the process to have an account through the NH State Library vendor consortium that will provide a 42% reduction in purchasing costs for books and has free shipping. A discussion followed about the pros and cons of discontinuing the purchases of books from the local bookstore, Toadstool, which is owned by Greenfield residents Willard and Holly Williams. Toadstool offers a 25% discount for purchases for the Library. Jami stated that she supports the continuation of purchasing from the Toadstool because they are a good neighbor and a locally owned business. Julie stated that she has the responsibility to spend the taxpayer’s money most efficiently, and a 42% discount is fiscally responsible to obtain the most books for the budgeted money. Julie said that she will continue to order specialty items through Toadstool.
Jami made a motion to accept the Treasurer report, and it was seconded by Bruce. The vote was unanimous in the affirmative to accept the report as presented.
8:02 PM – Revisiting the 2015 budget:
Julie presented her revised 2015 budget with explanations for increases that she has asked for. A discussion followed about some of the proposed increases. Julie wants increased technical support in anticipation of receiving donations of I Pads and e-readers for library patron’s use that will need to be scrubbed before reuse. She also discussed the increase in wages and the need for a Library aid so that the Library is not staffed by only one person. A motion was made by Neal to give Kristin a bonus, funded by the library checking account or the Friends, for all her hard work, and the motion was seconded by Bruce. The vote was unanimous in the affirmative to award the bonus. The motion to accept the revision of the 2015 budget was made by Bruce and seconded by Jami. The vote was unanimous in the affirmative to accept the 2015 proposed budget.
8:40 PM – Librarian’s Report:
1) Julie provided the Trustees with a detailed report of her plans for the Library. She also provided a statistical analysis of Library usage over the past year to date. A discussion followed about how to increase the use of the Inter Library Loan system, as well as other ideas to help increase circulation, which has been on the decline over the last year. Bob noted that he found her reports to be very informative and requested that she continue to provide them to the Trustees.
2) Julie reported that she will finalize the holiday schedule for the Library and will forward it to the Trustees for their information.
3) Primex will be visiting the Library on November 10 to conduct their risk assessment for the dampness in the basement. Julie, Mary Ann and Neal will meet with them.
4) Neal stated that he wants Julie to be the point person for the Library from now on, rather than the Trustees. A discussion followed about how best to present the Library in the Spirit and on Social media sites. There will be articles continuing in the Spirit from the Library.
9:15 PM – New/Other Business:
1) Julie provided the Trustees with job descriptions for the Youth Services Librarian and the Substitute Library Aide. Bruce made the motion to accept the job descriptions as written, and it was seconded by Jami. The vote was unanimous in the affirmative to accept the job descriptions. ACTION: Julie will provide Kristen Readel and Eileen Eber with their job descriptions.
2) There will be a meet and greet for the residents to meet Julie on Saturday, November 15th during Library open hours. Jami will design and distribute posters, and the Friends of the Library will provide light refreshments.
3) Pat will be absent for the December meeting. Bob will record the minutes.
4) Mary Ann reminded everyone that the Town Report will need to be written by the end of December for submission to the Select Board. The Trustees and the Library Director will collaborate to generate the report, and Mary Ann will provide a Treasurer’s report as well. Neal suggested that Julie and Kristin write the Town report and bring it to the Trustees for finalizing the document.
5) Mary Ann brought up the need for a railing on the outside stairs leading to the entrance to the Library. DPW has come and checked it. ACTION: Mary Ann will follow up with the DPW about getting the railing installed before winter.]
9:40 PM – Bruce made the motion to adjourn the meeting at this time, and it was seconded by Neal. The vote was unanimous in the affirmative to adjourn the meeting.
The next meeting of the Trustees will be held on Wednesday, December 3, 2014 at 7:00 PM in the Wensberg Room at the Library.
Respectfully submitted,
Patricia LaPree