OHIO COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY
Members Present:
Mr. Ted Hess, Sr. Mary Jude Jochum, Mr. Mike Baker, Mr. Charles Monfradi
Members Absent: Miss Sally Carroll
Also Present:
Dottie Thomas, Louis Horacek
Call to order:
Mr. Hess called the meeting to order at 7:05 P.M
Minutes
Mr. Monfradi moved that the minutes of the December meeting be approved as distributed. Mr. Baker seconded.
Vote:
| Mr. Hess | yes |
| Sr. Mary Jude | yes |
| Miss Carroll | absent |
| Mr. Baker | yes |
| Mr. Monfradi | yes |
Financial Report:
The Financial Report for December had been distributed with the board package.
Mr. Hess asked about the $5,000 anonymous donation. Ms Thomas said that it had been received through the Hernando, Morton, Herndon & Yeager law firm. Mr. Hess also asked if the bequest from the Ruth A. Neal Estate had been received. Ms. Thomas said that a check for $12,843.98 had been received. Mr. Hess asked if we knew a next of kin to thank. Ms. Thomas said she was checking. She said that Ruth A. Neal had volunteered in the library many years ago. Mr. Hess also said a thank you note should be sent to Herndon to relay to the anonymous donor as well as one to Ms. Neal's next of kin.
INVOICES AND WARRANTS
Sr. Mary Jude moved to approve the Financial Report and approve payment of invoices and warrants; Mr. Baker seconded the motion.
Vote:
| Mr. Hess | yes |
| Sr. Mary Jude | yes |
| Miss Carroll | absent |
| Mr. Baker | yes |
| Mr. Monfradi | yes |
DIRECTOR'S REPORT
Ms. Thomas distributed a written Director's Report. (see Attachment)
Announcements
Mr. Hess said he was receiving very good feedback on the library's introduction of wireless Internet connections.
OLD BUSINESS
WVLC Administrative Rules and Regulations
Ms. Thomas said that the West Virginia Library Commission staff had said they would consider the revisions to the WV Administrative Rules and Regulations requested by the Designate library directors, but they had not yet decided what, if anything, they would present to the WVLC Commissioners at their January meeting. Ms. Thomas said that she planned to attend the meeting. Mr. Monfradi asked what could be done if the suggested revisions were not revised or presented to the legislature in an acceptable form. Ms. Thomas said that the next step would be to put any objections in writing to the Commission during the public comment period and/or at the public hearing. Finally, the rules would be considered by committees of the legislature.
NEW BUSINESS
Technology Plan
Ms. Thomas said that the WV Library Commission required a three-year technology plan from every library, and presented the plan which she and Mr. Horacek had prepared. Mr. Horacek presented the highlights of the plan. Mr. Monfradi moved to approve. Sr. Mary Jude seconded.
Vote:
| Mr. Hess | yes |
| Sr. Mary Jude | yes |
| Miss Carroll | absent |
| Mr. Baker | yes |
| Mr. Monfradi | yes |
Legislative Day
Ms. Thomas said that WVLA was planning Legislative Day for Feb. 2 and was asking each library to buy reception tickets for legislators. Ms. Thomas suggested 5 tickets. Mr. Monfradi moved that the library purchase 5 tickets. Mr. Baker seconded.
Vote:
| Mr. Hess | yes |
| Sr. Mary Jude | yes |
| Miss Carroll | absent |
| Mr. Baker | yes |
| Mr. Monfradi | yes |
Ms. Thomas said that the library commission was asking for $4.62 in grants-in-aid. She said extra reimbursement for affiliate libraries to repay the 20% going to Service Center libraries was a separate line item titled "Library Services" instead of being included in the Grants-In-Aid line. She said that the WVLC was also asking for reinstatement of the newspaper reading service for the blind and additional database services for public libraries.
Capital Improvements
A list of 8 suggested items had been distributed with the board packet. Ms. Thomas said that a ninth item, the annual replacement of five computers, should be added to the list.
Ms. Thomas explained that the CD/DVD repair machine would keep the library from having to reorder scratched CDs and DVDs and ultimately pay for itself.
Mr. Thomas said that new shelving in storage (and additional shelving in fiction) would allow the library to increase the depth of the collection, and be a benefit to all of the state allowing resource titles of other public libraries to be housed in OCPLs storage. She said that few libraries in West Virginia have the room to increase collections, and so most libraries tend to have mostly the same popular items, and few older and more obscure titles.
Mr. Baker suggested publicizing the whole 2006 proposed Capital Improvements list, and solicit donations to support the purchase of the items. He said the library could use the Neal bequest and the anonymous donation for some of the items. The publicity would show people that such gifts and bequests had a tangible result, and did not simply disappear into the Endowment Trust or the Operating Account.
Mr. Hess asked what the first priority item was on the list. Ms. Thomas said the disk repair machine would be number one.
She noted that the microfilm machines and renovation of the staff room were in the previous 2005 Capital Improvements list.
Mr. Baker said that he would get some bids for the staff room.
Mr. Baker moved that numbers 6, 7 and 8 (foam furniture for children's storytime area, folding tables for the booksale and displays, and a color printer for technical services) be implemented out of capital funds. Sr. Mary Jude seconded.
Vote:
| Mr. Hess | yes |
| Sr. Mary Jude | yes |
| Miss Carroll | absent |
| Mr. Baker | yes |
| Mr. Monfradi | yes |
Mr. Baker moved that the Neal bequest and the $5,000 anonymous donation be used for the disk repair kit and one microfilm machine plus printer (items 2 and 4), any additional funds needed to come from the library's capital account.
Vote:
| Mr. Hess | yes |
| Sr. Mary Jude | yes |
| Miss Carroll | absent |
| Mr. Baker | yes |
| Mr. Monfradi | yes |
Mr. Monfradi said that items 1 and 3 shelving projects and another microfilm machine be submitted as Legislative Digest requests.
Mr. Baker said the replacement computers would be considered later in the year, as the 2005 computer replacements had just been ordered.
Patron Incidents
Ms. Thomas detailed a rash of problems and incidents in the past month coinciding with the opening of the Greater Wheeling Soup Kitchen across Eoff Street at the end of November. She said that many people seemed to be hanging out in the library before the soup kitchen opened at 11 a.m., and after it closed. Along with problem patrons, there had been thefts of CDs and DVDs.
She suggested the following:
Reconvening the board's personnel committee to consider employing a security guard, either immediately or in the next budget year, along with other personnel issues.
Meeting with Salvation Army, the Soup Kitchen and Catholic Charities to find out exactly what they were doing, and to express the library's concerns.
Investigate installing security cameras.
Mr. Monfradi suggested approaching the Ohio County Sheriff and request that deputies make occasional passes through the library during the day. He said we could offer to trade a couple of parking spaces for the service. Mr. Baker said the library's parking spaces were too valuable and sparse to give any up.
Mr. Hess said he had received a request from Northwood for a letter of support for their request for a zoning variance for parking requirements at their new facility at 16th Street. He said he felt it was the right thing to do. Mr. Monfradi said we should ask them to underwrite a security guard because we could have very serious problems once they began operating. Mr. Hess suggested asking them to share their security guard.
Mr. Monfradi said he agreed that the Board should support the zoning variance.
The meeting adjourned at 9:05 PM.