New Berlin Library Board Meeting Minutes for September 26th 2018
In attendance:
George Anderson, President
Darla Smith, Vice President
Donna Wells, Treasurer
Angelica Schmidt, Secretary
Lori Wilson, Trustee
Alan Fairbrother, Trustee
Julie Baltich, Trustee
Also in attendance:
Michelle Priola, Director
Start time: 6:00 End Time: 6:45 pm
George Anderson calls the meeting to order at 6:00 pm.
Minutes:
Donna Wells made a motion to approve July minutes, seconded by Lori Wilson approved 7-0.
Bills:
Most current August and September bills passed around to Board members for review and signing. Donna Wells made a motion to approve these bills seconded by George Anderson approved 7-0.
Treasurer’s Report:
Donna Wells discussed the Profit and Loss Budget vs. Actual from January through to August of this year, as well as the Balance Sheet as of August 31st. She stated that we currently remain in budget and updated the board on transfers between accounts. George Anderson asked if Donna has any budget projections yet for next year and Donna replied that pay increases will be made to keep in sync with state mandates. Also it was brought to the Boards attention that 4CLS fees would be going up at about a 3% increase as well as the added fee of obtaining a movie license for showing movies at the library next year, that annual fee is about $368.
Lori Wilson asked various questions about how the budget works and requested further explanations so that she could make a more well-informed decision when motions concerning the budget are made. Donna agreed to discuss the budget details and format further with her.
Director’s Report
Michelle updated the Board on the progress of the Library parking lot issue in that currently none of the parking spaces are being used by other businesses or the employees therein.
Michelle discussed the idea of changing the usual Halloween scavenger hunt to a Halloween party for this year which will take place on October 27th @ 2:00 pm and will have contests and games similar in template to the annual Easter Egg Hunt but with Halloween themes. Board in agreement with this idea.
Michelle updated the Board on the solar panel issue and the work that Revolution Solar of Cooperstown did in the solar panel system repair. Board in general agreement that Revolution Solar will be utilized as our go-to business for any further concerns in the future.
Michelle read off the attendance for the Perkins Concert Series for this year. Lori Wilson asked how this year’s attendance compared to the previous years and Michelle stated much better due to various factors including introducing more child-friendly concerts as well as advertising in the newspapers. George Anderson suggested moving forward in the future to further assist with attendance, having a survey at the end of each concert as an option for guests as they were leaving. Michelle also recommended that maybe the survey could be done while patrons were voting each year for the Board of Trustees. General agreement on the survey being a good idea.
Michelle discussed various topics of the 4CLS Governing Council Meeting that she attended. The Auto Renewal policy will be opted in for our patrons as follows: If a patron has checked out a book from New Berlin Library’s inventory, it will automatically be renewed on it’s due date if the patron has not returned it yet. This does not apply to inter-library loans. The ‘J Fine Free’ policy that 4CLS discussed will not be utilized by New Berlin Library, late fees will still apply to books overdue in the Juvenile section. Michelle also informed the Board that 4CLS is currently removing driver’s license numbers from their databases, which in the past had been used as a form of proving the identity of a patron.
Michelle informed the Board that Jackie Mineo has donated $500 to the library specifically to be used for any legal fees necessary in the future. Donna agreed to add this line to next month’s budget.
Michelle asked Alan Fairbrother and Julie Baltich if they wished to run this year to be on the Board as both their terms would be ending this year. Alan agreed to and Julie stated she would let Michelle know soon. Nominations will be held in October and elections will be held in the month of November.
A special meeting will be held in December to count the ballots and determine which offices each trustee will have. The terms will begin in January.
Michelle discussed the need for a Bulletin Board policy and handed out such for review to be included on the existing bulletin board across from the check out desk. Donna Wells made a motion to approve this policy seconded by Alan Fairbrother approved 7-0.
Michelle asked the board if they were interested in hiring the Dulcimer Duo for this year’s Christmas Tea. The fee would be $250. Motion made by Angelica Schmidt to hire the Dulcimer Duo seconded by Julie Baltich motion carries 7-0.
Michelle discussed Assistant Director Rick’s vacation time/sick time as he has been employed at New Berlin Library for 1 year. He is therefore eligible to 3 vacation days which also converts to 21 hours. Donna Wells made a motion to approve Rick’s vacation time seconded by George Anderson motion carries 7-0.
Michelle reviewed the plan to purchase new library computers strategically around Black Friday sales this year. She is going to purchase all 3 at once at said sale time which should total approximately $1500. Board still in agreement on this idea.
Closing
Lori Wilson made a motion to close the meeting at 6:45pm seconded by Alan Fairbrother motion carries 7-0.