September 14, 2020
Library Board Meeting
A regular meeting of the Lone Cone Library District Board was held on September 14, 2020, at 6:00 p.m., at 1455 Pinion Street. Said meeting was posted in accordance with the Sunshine Law.
PRESENT: Carrie Andrew, Brandi Platt, Cady Metzger, Emily Haight, Rheanna Xavier
GUESTS: Jenny Russell, Rhonda Oliver, Joe Conway via Zoom
CALL TO ORDER
Cady Metzger called the meeting to order at 6:10 p.m.
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
A motion was made by Rheanna Xavier, seconded by Emily Haight, to approve the agenda as presented.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
The Library Board considered the minutes of the July 13, 2020, regular Library Board meeting for approval.
A motion was made by Emily Haight, seconded by Rheanna Xavier, to approve the minutes from the July 13, 2020, regular Library Board meeting as presented. All voted yes. Motion passed.
CALL FOR PUBLIC COMMENT
Emily Haight had a community member tell her they were very upset that the Library does not have an American Flag on display outside. Carrie Andrew said that this has been looked into and she has found some that are affordable. It will be a flag that is lit and goes up and stays up so the staff do not have to learn proper flag etiquette. This discussion will be revisited. Jenny Russell suggested that the community do a fundraiser to help provide the funds for the flag. Jenny also brought up concerns about the landscaping. This was addressed and it was noted that no one is happy with the landscaping, however, the walking path is the first concern that the landscapers need to fix as it is unsafe.
MONTHLY BUDGET REVIEWS
Library Director Carrie Andrew pointed out that the Library Foundation is listed on this budget review. It was explained to the current board that the Foundation is a component unit of the Library and is a 501c3. It was explained that the library used to have a Friends of the Library, but that group folded and transferred their funds to the Foundation account.
It was explained that transfers from the ColoTrust account are only made when needed for operating.
It was noted that we will not receive $52,000 from the county due to missing tax revenue from the gas and oil company. The payment plan was explained to the Board.
A proposed draft of the 2021 budget was presented for the Board to look over. In October, it will be available for the public to view. The final budget needs to be approved in December.
A motion was made by Emily Haight, seconded by Rheanna Xavier, to accept the monthly financial report. All voted yes. Motion passed.
MONTHLY REPORTS Q&A
Library Director Carrie Andrew reported that there were some corrections to the July report, the Computer WiFi was 380 and the Visitors were 367. For August, Aspencat numbers are back up because more libraries are opening back up and able to use the courier.
It was reported that we have a volunteer that would like to help our Programmer to do a Spanish Storytime in conjunction with our English Storytime.
It was reported that the lunch program will start again this week on Fridays. It was mentioned that we need to market our programs better.
It was reported that the Nordic Association’s grant from the Legacy Trust was approved and they have their equipment. They would like to have their equipment available for rent through us. We will have a waiver that patrons will need to sign before their rental. We will also ask them to do an outside event demonstration of how to cross country ski.
DIRECTOR’S REPORT
Library Director Carrie Andrew reported that we have had two patron incidents. Rheanna Xavier was present for the second incident. The first incident involved a patron that has now been banned from the library for three months for violating the Patron Conduct Policy. The second incident involved a patron who refused to wear a mask. We provided accommodations to this patron and they refused service.
In light of this, we are looking into doing some training for the staff such as de-escalation, active shooter and critical incident training as well as CPR training.
It was reported that during the LAFCON training that Carrie is attending, she will be using the information to try to help educate voters on noticing disinformation and teaching them to fact check.
It was reported that Carrie reached out to the County Clerk and offered the library as an additional voting space if needed.
It was reported that Carrie will be attending the SDA conference and gathering more information on Gallagher and Taber.
A sheet was presented to the Board about who decides what on the Board. There will be strategic planning and Board training that will look at the things that are unique to our library and help to plan goals from this information.
It was reported that we may need to write a grant to bring in someone to create marketing.
BOARD MEMBER REPORTS
Appoint New Board President: Library Director Carrie Andrew proposed that Cady Metzger be the Interim President until the November vote. A motion was made by Emily Haight, seconded by Rheanna Xavier, to nominate Cady Metzger as the Interim Chair. All voted yes. Motion passed.
Appoint Account Signers: It was reported that Lucinda Carr was our only remaining check signer. Typically, it is the Board President and the Library Director. A motion was made by Rheanna Xavier, seconded by Cady Metzger, that both Cady and Emily Haight will be the signers. All voted yes. Motion passed.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Open Board Seats: It was reported that we have two interested parties in the open seats. Jenny Russell has been a part time resident of Norwood since 2001. She has been very involved in supporting the library and would like to see it expanded as a community facility. She loves the law library.
Joe Conway understands the importance of having a good Board and supporting the community but also the employees, being mindful of the budget and how to spend the money. He has been on many different Boards. He believes it is important as citizens to step up to the need. It was something that he had been thinking about when Brandi Platt approached him about the open seats.
NEW BUSINESS
Discussion of Library Hours of Operations: Library Director Carrie Andrew informed the Board that a survey had been sent out to patrons for their input on our hours. We are going to go with the majority vote of being open from 10 a.m.- 6 p.m., Monday through Friday and Saturdays from 11 a.m.- 4 p.m.
TriState Reform Letter: A discussion was had by all of the members to weigh the pros and cons of signing the reform letter.
A motion was made by Emily Haight, seconded by Cady Metzger, that the Board supports signing the letter. All voted yes. Motion passed
Library Director Carrie Andrew made the recommendation to table the Foundation meeting until we have a full board. All were in agreement.
Policy Review:
A motion was made by Emily Haight, seconded by Cady Metzger, to adopt the Open Records Policy. All voted yes. Motion passed. After a correction, a motion was made by Cady Metzger, seconded by Emily Haight, to adopt the Open Records Policy with the corrections made. All voted yes. Motion passed.
Draft of 2021 Budget:
Library Director Carrie Andrew suggested having a strategic plan for her to target grants to write for. It was requested that Carrie prepare a break out in payroll wages and salary with line items by position in a more confidential manner for the Board to look at to calculate wage increases. Carrie was going to do a salary study including hire dates and job descriptions. Emily Haight requested that Carrie reconfigure the budget for a living wage starting at $15/hour with appropriate increases per person.
MOTION TO ADJOURN
At 8:38 p.m., a motion was made by Cady Metzger, seconded by Rheanna Xavier, to adjourn the meeting with no further action taken. All voted yes. Motion passed.