Urbana Free Library Board Meeting

The Urbana Free Library Board of Trustees Minutes of a Regular Meeting Held on Tuesday, March 10, 2020 CALL TO ORDER The Urbana Free Library Board of Trustees met in the Lewis Auditorium of The Urbana Free Library on Tuesday, March 10, 2020. The meeting was called to order by the president, Chris Scherer, at 7:05 p.m. ATTENDANCE Present: Shirese Hursey (by phone), Barbara Jones, Lupe Mejia, Beth Scheid, Chris Scherer, John Thies, Michael Weissman, and Jane Williams (by phone) Absent: Barb Bennett Staff present: Becky Brown, Dawn Cassady, Celeste Choate, Rachel Fuller, Drew Kenton, Tom Kuipers, and Donica Martin Also present: Kevin Lau and Molly Sweeney ADDITIONS, CORRECTIONS, MODIFICATIONS OF THE AGENDA None. APPROVE THE AGENDA It was moved by John Thies, seconded by Barbara Jones, and passed unanimously to approve the agenda as presented. PUBLIC COMMENT None. PRESENTATION Tom Kuipers gave a presentation on a new website he is working on for Archives in Omeka called Local History & Genealogy Digital Exhibits. Tom has been building the content, starting with five past Archives exhibits. He explained the website and the various abilities of Omeka. Patrons will be able to use the website to explore the Archives special collections. Celeste Choate mentioned that proceeds from the Friends of the Library book sales helped fund this project. Celeste Choate informed the Board that the FY21 budget is a good solid budget, including a 2.25% increase in base staff wages and a 2.2% increase in non-wage lines. The past two fiscal years, the City had reduced the FICA reimbursement given to the Library, and FY21 will have the same reduction as FY20. Staff used the Strategic Plan to guide budget allocations, increasing the percentage going into programming and outreach hours. Development & Promotion will also see an increased budget as the Library works on new ways to engage the community. Celeste explained how the minimum wage increases, fund balance expenditures, and Board of Trustees of The Urbana Free Library – Minutes for the meeting of March 10, 2020 – Page 2 Foundation donations will impact the budget. The 810s are a separate fund, and Celeste explained how that fund was budgeted for FY21. The plan is to spend what is expected to be received during the year, move a couple of specific large gifts from fund balance to the Foundation, and spend Friends book sale money to increase the world language materials for adults. Celeste gave a brief overview of the 820s fund, which is made up primarily of the revenue and expense lines from the building across Green Street. There was discussion about the impact of the Coronavirus. The Library is taking the lead from the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District. There are 3-C’s signs and 20 second hand- washing song lyrics posted in the Library. Staff are wiping down work stations and have been given individual hand sanitizer bottles. The Library is talking with various institutions and waiting to see what are the best recommendations from a variety of resources. John Thies was pleased at how proactive the Library is being with this. There is the potential for an emergency Board meeting. The Library is prepared to cancel programs, if needed. ACTION ITEMS (CONSENT AGENDA) Being that Chris Scherer asked and saw that there were no requests to separate the items, it was moved by Shirese Hursey, seconded by John Thies, and passed unanimously to approve the consent agenda as presented. ACTION ITEMS (INDIVIDUAL) It was moved by John Thies, seconded by Lupe Mejia, and passed unanimously to accept The Urbana Free Library annual financial report. It was moved by John Thies, seconded by Michael Weissman, and passed unanimously to accept Resolution 2020-04 to approve the Urbana Arts Grant Agreement. It was moved by Beth Scheid, seconded by Barbara Jones, and passed unanimously to approve the FY20 Budget Amendments. DISCUSSION ITEMS None. REPORTS OF LIAISON OFFICERS Friends of the Library The Friends are looking forward to the next book sale, but have volunteered to cancel it, if needed. The Urbana Free Library Foundation The Foundation is planning an event in May to thank donors, but if that is not the best option, Celeste and Amanda are looking at other options. Illinois Heartland Library System Rachel Fuller reported that applications are currently open for the Directors’ University, which is a program for first time library directors and directors that are new to the state of Illinois. It is Board of Trustees of The Urbana Free Library – Minutes for the meeting of March 10, 2020 – Page 3 a joint effort among IHLS, Illinois Library Association, Reaching Across Illinois Library System, and Illinois State Library. ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS Celeste reported that the City Council approved the major variance in the Library staff parking lot. Fehr Graham is looking forward to moving ahead on the project. This will be a part of this and next year’s budget. The Library is stepping up cybersecurity by subscribing to a commercial resource, KnowB4, which will provide modules and scenarios for staff and the Board. Board members should anticipate getting emails from KnowB4. The new owners of the hotel at Lincoln Square were looking for information on the history of the hotel. Archives was able to provide them with images, post cards, and articles within 24 hours of the request. Mayor Marlin was pleased to be able to pass the wealth of information to the owners so quickly. BOARD PRESIDENT REPORT No report. UNFINISHED BUSINESS None. CLOSED SESSION At 7:56 p.m., it was moved by Barbara Jones, seconded by John Thies, and passed by roll call vote to move into closed session for the discussion of compensation and performance of personnel, pursuant to 5 ILCS 120/2 (c) (1) Yes votes: Shirese Hursey, Barbara Jones, Lupe Mejia, Beth Scheid, Chris Scherer, John Thies, Michael Weissman, and Jane Williams No votes: None At 9:15 p.m., it was moved by roll call vote to move back into open session. Yes votes: Shirese Hursey, Barbara Jones, Lupe Mejia, Beth Scheid, Chris Scherer, John Thies, Michael Weissman, and Jane Williams No votes: None NEW BUSINESS It was moved by Barbara Jones, seconded by John Thies, and passed unanimously to follow the City’s and Library staff’s wage increases and increase Celeste Choate’s wages by 2.25%. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 9:17 p.m. Board of Trustees of The Urbana Free Library – Minutes for the meeting of March 10, 2020 – Page 4 ________________________________________ Becky Brown, Recorder ________________________________________ Barb Bennett, Secretary/Treasurer Date Approved:__________________________ Supplementary information is available in the Board packet of March 10, 2020. This meeting was taped for later broadcast on cable television.