Urbana Free Library Board Meeting

The Urbana Free Library Board of Trustees Minutes of a Regular Meeting Held on Tuesday, March 10, 2015 Present: Geoff Bant, Mary Ellen Farrell, Anh Ha Ho, Mark Netter, Chris Scherer, and Jane Williams Absent: Bill Brown, Anna Merritt, and Beth Scheid Staff present: Becky Brown, Dawn Cassady, Celeste Choate, Lynn Harmon, Carol Inskeep, Mary Towner, Anke Voss, Caleb Wilson, and Lisa Wilson Also present: Alfred Kagen, Jason Liggett, and Corrie Proksa The Urbana Free Library Board of Trustees met in the Jean Evans Archives Room of The Urbana Free Library on March 10, 2015. The meeting was called to order by the president, Chris Scherer, at 7:00 p.m. It was moved by Mark Netter, seconded by Geoff Bant, and passed unanimously to accept the minutes of the February 10, 2015 Board of Trustees meeting as presented. It was moved by Anh Ha Ho, seconded by Jane Williams, and passed unanimously to accept the closed session minutes of the February 10, 2015 Board of Trustees meeting as presented. It was moved by Jane Williams, seconded by Mark Netter, and passed unanimously to accept the closed session minutes of the January 13, 2015 Board of Trustees meeting as presented. It was moved by Mark Netter, seconded by Jane Williams, and passed unanimously to accept the closed session minutes of the December 9, 2014 Board of Trustees meeting as presented. It was moved by Jane Williams, seconded by Geoff Bant, and passed unanimously to accept the payment of the bills for February 11, 2015 and the February 25, 2015. PETITIONS AND COMMUNICATIONS Public comment Mr. Storm (Misstated at the meeting by Director Choate as “Mr. Swann”) sent an email to the library in support of the purchase of the property on the corner. Presentations None. Board of Trustees of The Urbana Free Library – Minutes for the meeting of March 10, 2015 – Page 2 ITEMS FOR ACTION OR DISCUSSION Building and Grounds The City will remove City trees in the Tepper building patio areas. The trees are resting on the roof and there is concern about damage to the building. Celeste Choate went to the State for a Question and Answer session for the grant. The grant applications were prioritized into three categories, with renovations being placed in the third category. There is a good probability that the library will not receive any money from the grant, but going through the process has been beneficial. Celeste was given suggestions as to other grants for which the library may be qualified. Ha Ho asked how much money would be needed to repair the air handler and boiler. It will take approximately $236,000. Technology M.C. Neal created a band width report, which Celeste passed out to the Board. There will be some budgeting changes in the next fiscal year, because the grant which helped supplement the cost is ending. M.C. has been investigating various options to get the most band width for the best price. Finance Because there was a January budget revision, and because all of the numbers for February revenue were not yet available, it moved by Jane Williams and seconded by Mark Netter to table the March budget revision until next month. Celeste spoke with the auditors about the best way to designate funds assigned to specific expenses in the general fund balance. The auditors recommended making a note at the bottom of the budget to explain that certain funds have been assigned for a specified purpose. There was discussion about ways to present the budget to the Board. It was the consensus of the Board to prefer a higher level of reporting rather than all of the detail, i.e. seeing consolidated wages rather than every line used to pay wages. Celeste will provide the budget in a couple of different ways to see what is most useful to the Board. There was discussion about the proposed FY’16 budget. Elizabeth Hannan, at the City of Urbana, warned that the State tax money may be less than anticipated. There are two agencies which predict this amount, and Elizabeth decided it would be wiser to use the number from the more conservative of the two. Chris Scherer asked about health insurance. The library is anticipating an increase in health premiums on January 1, 2016. Several lines have been used in the budget as both a revenue and expense line. The FY’16 will show separate lines for the expense and the revenue. Lines showing FICA and IMRF revenues and expenses will also be a part of next year’s budget. Chris Scherer asked if the loan agreement between the City and the library was ready. It isn’t quite finished yet. Board of Trustees of The Urbana Free Library – Minutes for the meeting of March 10, 2015 – Page 3 Policy It was moved by Mark Netter, seconded by Jane Williams, and passed unanimously to approve the Nepotism Policy as presented. It was moved by Ha Ho, seconded by Geoff Bant, and passed unanimously to approve the Documented Counseling Policy as presented. Jane Williams asked that possible reasons for starting the process be made available to staff. Mark Netter asked for clarification about which staff are covered by this particular policy. Geoff Bant asked if there would be a preliminary conversation before staff would start the process. Since the first step in the process leaves no record in a staff member’s file, it was felt that the first step could be that beginning conversation. It was moved by Jane Williams, seconded by Mark Netter, and passed unanimously to approve the Schedules Policy as presented. It was moved by Mark Netter and seconded by Geoff Bant to amend the Grievance Policy to mention allowing advocates for either staff or the Board to be included in a final hearing. It was moved by Mark Netter, seconded by Jane Williams, and passed unanimously after discussion to approve the Grievance Policy as amended. It was moved by Jane Williams, seconded by Geoff Bant, and passed unanimously to approve the Travel and Training Policy as presented. There was discussion about the fact that reimbursement rates are determined by the destination city. Since that changes from year to year, the rates were not added into the policy. It was moved by Jane Williams, seconded by Ha Ho, and passed unanimously to approve the Emergency Closing Policy as presented. It was moved by Mark Netter, seconded by Jane Williams, and passed unanimously to approve the EEO and Antidiscrimination Policy as presented. This policy is the same as the policy used by the City of Urbana. Mark Netter requested a report in about a year as to how the new policies are working. Chris Scherer asked how staff would be informed of the new policies. Celeste explained that the ways the policies will be distributed and made available to staff. The Board discussed the Circulation Policy at the request of a patron who asked them to consider allowing patrons to bring in replacement items rather than pay for lost or damaged item. After discussion, it was decided for a variety of reasons to leave the policy as it stands. Education and Training Celeste complimented Lora Fegley, Mary Towner, and Anke Voss on an amazing staff in- service day. She also commented that ALA was great, and staff are looking at ways of incorporating things they learned. Board of Trustees of The Urbana Free Library – Minutes for the meeting of March 10, 2015 – Page 4 REPORTS OF LIAISON OFFICERS Friends of the Library The book sale starts on Thursday, March 12. The Urbana Free Library Foundation The Foundation meets the end of March. Illinois Heartland Library System IHLS is looking for Board members. Celeste will attend a focus group for long range planning. REPORTS OF ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF Executive Director The 8th Annual Fairy Tale Ball is coming soon. Last year 1,600 people attended. Associate Director No further report. Adult Services Chris Scherer asked if there really had been 5,000 people participate in Teen Open Lab. Mary Towner explained that it was not a mistake. Teen Lab has been going for two years and is a popular program. Children’s Service No further report. Archives Chris Scherer asked Anke Voss if she will be on TV every Monday. Anke Voss explained that she had done a specific talk for CI Living, and she will do future ones. Chris also asked about how the oral history project with the League of Women Voter’s was progressing. Anke answered that it was just getting started. Circulation Services Chris Scherer asked Dawn Cassady about the gate problem. Dawn answered that the gates were temporarily fixed until the piece that was replaced broke again. Chris also asked about Market at the Square. Celeste explained that it is a good outreach place to meet patrons. The City has asked the library to take on an even greater role this summer. Dawn mentioned that there will be activity themes each month. Board of Trustees of The Urbana Free Library – Minutes for the meeting of March 10, 2015 – Page 5 UNFINISHED BUSINESS None. NEW BUSINESS There was discussion about revisiting the Strategic Plan. Options include editing the old plan or starting a new plan. The current plans end June 30, 2016. Celeste mentioned that there are a variety of ways to create a Strategic Plan. She will bring ideas next month. CLOSED SESSION At 8:41 p.m., it was moved by Ha Ho, seconded by Jane Williams , and approved by roll call vote to go into closed session to discuss property pursuant to 5 ILCS 120/2 (c) (5). At 9:07 p.m., it was moved by Jane Williams, seconded by Mark Netter, and approved by roll call vote to go back into open session. ADJOURNMENT It was moved by Jane Williams and seconded by Mark Netter to adjourn at 9:07 p.m. Becky Brown Recording Secretary Supplementary information and department reports are available in the Board packet of March 10, 2015.