CALL TO ORDER AND APPROVAL OF AGENDA
The regular meeting of the Rochester Public Library Board of Trustees Meeting was called to order by Dave Nelson.
Members present: Chris Colby, Ed Haskell, Tyler Hoecker, Betty Hutchins, Dave Nelson, Tom Sherman and Debbie Westerland.
Staff present: Audrey Betcher, Library Director; Jean Jahn, Head of Automation Services; Kim Edson, Head of Reader's Services; Beth Warfield, Head of Children's Services; Purna Gurung, Office Services Coordinator.
Others present: Al Dollerschell, Friends of RPL
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Ed Haskell moved, Debbie Westerland second to approve the meeting minutes from April 20, 2005. Motion approved.
APPROVAL OF BILLS
Ed Haskell moved, Debbie Westerland second to approve the bills as submitted. Motion approved.
MONTHLY REPORT
The Library Board reviewed the April monthly report. Dave Nelson noted that circulation to date compared to last year has increased by close to 20%. Kim Edson reported a decrease in the bookmobile circulation is partly due to renewal issues. We had more visits on the bookmobile than last year. The Board expressed concern that the growth in staff levels is not keeping pace with the circulation growth. The Library can continue to explore staff efficiencies, e.g. self serve reserve pickup, but only to a certain extent. More staff will be needed to absorb the double digit growth in circulation.
FOUNDATION REPORT
The Library Foundation Board brings forward the name of Mark Neville for approval for the Foundation Board.
Ed Haskell moved, Debbie Westerland second to accept Mark Neville's appointment to the Library Foundation Board. Motion approved.
The unveiling of the Donor Recognition wall is scheduled for Wednesday, May 25th. Invitations have been sent out.
FRIENDS REPORT
The Friends received $120 in booksale proceeds for Rochester Reads from Barnes and Noble. Tom Sherman said he attended the author visit and was impressed by event. The Board congratulated Carrie Farrow for organizing the sucessful event.
SELCO REPORT
We received a reply from the President of the SELCO Board. They have decided not to charge RPL for delivery. They grandfathered RPL in at the current funding level of 4 days of delivery. The 5th day of delivery is paid by Minitex. Judith Jordan, their marketing person, is no longer working there.
COMMITTEE REPORTS
Finance Committee: None.
Policy Committee: The Committee will be meeting to discuss the issue of business opportunities and will be bringing a policy forward in the near future.
Planning Committee: None.
Personnel Committee: None.
Youth Advisory Board: The Summer Reading Program starts June 12th. The theme is "Oh, the places you'll go!" Mugby Junction has agreed to donate gift certificates for prizes. Various movies have been lined up. A Swing Dancing program is scheduled for July.
DOWNLOADABLE AUDIO BOOKS
We have been investigating downloadable audio books, which are books that can be downloaded to a computer or mp3 player. This format is becoming more and more popular. There are only two vendors, Overdrive and Recorded Books, who have a library model.
We recommend licensing the product from Overdrive for a one year trial. Overdrive has a better product and a broader selection than Recorded Books as evaluated by RPL staff. We will evaluate the format over the year and decide whether to continue to purchase more downloadable audio books for the future.
We were able to negotiate a lower price. The contract calls for a $1,600/month maintenance fee for 3 years. This fee includes a $7,500 materials credit for the first year and $2,000 material credit for the subsequent two years. The initial $7,500 credit will get us about 300 titles, including fiction, non-fiction and children's books. If we decide to cancel the contract after a year, we lose the web support and web hosting but we have the option to move the audiobooks to RPL's server.
We are planning on using money from the Gift Fund for the initial costs and later incorporating this format into the 2006 book budget. This format will also save us money in terms of replacement costs (wear and tear and theft). Staff will monitor usage and incorporate the statistics into the monthly reports.
Ed Haskell moved, Chris Colby second to approve proceeding with the downloadable audio books project on a trial basis for one year. Motion approved.
PARKING RATE CHANGES
The City Council has approved a new parking rate structure. Starting June 1, the first hour of parking will be free. We expect this change to favorably impact our patrons.
VISITING A PEER LIBRARY
Jean and Audrey reported on their recent visit to the Cedar Rapids Public Library (CRPL). One of the goals in the 2005 Action Plans is to forge a relationship with a peer library of comparable size. CRPL staff will be visiting RPL this summer. CRPL has implemented RFID. CRPL and RPL are dealing with some similar issues such as security and using a collection agency. They are also automated with Sirsi.
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
The Conceal and Carry bill passed today. The amended bill does not include language that allows local government agencies from banning guns in their premises. Library funding issues are still being discussed in the different committees. LGA, ELM Database funding and other issues have not been resolved so a Special Session is emminent.
STRATEGIC UPDATE/DISASTER PLAN
Audrey and Andy Stehr attended a Disaster Planning seminar. We are using the lessons learned at this seminar to create RPL's disaster plan. We do have some supplies on hand to handle basic disasters e.g. buckets, plastic sheeting, sponges for a burst pipe etc. The Computer Center does have a disaster plan in place. We have multiple backups of our server offsite. We are self insured through the League of Minnesota Cities.
OTHER NEWS
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned.
Respectfully submitted,
Purna K Gurung
Secretary Pro-term
The next regular meeting of the Library Board will be Wednesday, June 15, 2005, at 4:30 pm in Meeting Room B on the second floor of the library.