WHATCOM COUNTY LIBRARY SYSTEM
LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING MINUTES
Deming Library, 5044 Mt. Baker Highway, Deming, WA 98244, 592-2422
July 18, 2006
printable version of the minutes

(Note: “Library” refers to the Whatcom County Library System.)

Anyone requiring these minutes in an alternate format, such as large type, Braille or an audiotape, please contact the Library at 384-3150.

1. Call To Order:
The meeting was called to order at 9:00 a.m. A quorum was determined.

Present:
Trustees Present: Amory Peck, Nina Cox, Janet Boyhan, Jan Hunter
Absent: Donna-Lee Elke
Director: Joan Airoldi
Staff: Robin Barker, Sally Crouse, Geoff Fitzpatrick, Sigrid Brorson, Christina Read, Frances Barbagallo
Guest: Sharon Digby, President of Deming Friends group

2. Public Comment: Welcome

Introductions included guest Sharon Digby, President of the Deming Friends group.

Ms. Barbagallo welcomed the Trustees to the Deming Library. She reported that things are going well at the Deming Branch. They expect to surpass a circulation of 100,000 items by the end of the year, a milestone. They have added a third internet station which will allow them to use one station as a “word processing only” station when needed. They have also decided to offer one internet session per day of one hour in length rather than two thirty minute sessions per day. They added a self check station in mid June. Statistics for the first month showed over 1000 items checked out by over 400 patrons. They also find the new scanners to be a big help ergonomically. Everyone at Deming appreciates Paul Krippner’s unique ability to squeeze all this new equipment into their space. The security system has been upgraded, and four panic buttons have been added as well as two motion sensors. The panic buttons call 911, and either law enforcement or the Nooksack Tribe responds. Everyone at Deming and WCLS appreciates the good relationship the Deming Library has with the Nooksack Tribe.

The Summer Reading Club and Teen SRC are going well. The SRC patrons enjoyed the fine forgiveness weeks. Ellen Thompson did a great job on the decorations.

Ms. Barbagallo spoke about how much she appreciates the Deming Friends who are working on the expansion project along with the Board’s Facilities Committee. She is happy they are addressing the building needs, especially in the unincorporated areas of the county. She commented that it is a daunting task for volunteers to take on this kind of project in their spare time.

Ms. Digby, reporting on what her group has accomplished since it began working on the expansion project, commented that perhaps in two years time this group will have a regular meeting room to meet in. The group has raised $182,000 since August of 2003. The fundraising was started by Tina Bixby. The responsibilities have since been divided with Ellen Dodson being responsible for local fund raising and grant writing being carried out by Leaf Schumann with Gail Weiss and Frances Barbagallo. In addition to the $182,000 already raised, the state legislature appropriated $85,000 for the project last session. The grant writers are writing the final proposal for a grant request of $75,000 from the Paul Allen Foundation right now. They have budgeted $200,000 for in-kind donations. Originally the fundraising goal was $500,000 but the group has raised it to $600,000 to cover inflation and some expenses not factored into the original estimate.

The group has filed for a conditional use permit. The public hearing will be in August. They hope to break ground in the fall and put in the building’s foundation before winter. Its presence will be a testament to the project and its needs.

Ms. Hunter said there is the possibility that Rep. Kelli Linville may consider submitting this project to the legislature again.

Ms. Airoldi thanked Ms. Barbagallo and Ms. Digby for their work on this exceptional project.

Ms. Cox complimented the Friends of the Deming Library for being a shining example.

3. Minutes:
June 13, 2006- Special Planning Meeting:
The minutes of the June 13, 2006 Special Board Meeting for Planning were considered.
It was moved by Ms. Cox to approve the minutes of the June 13, 2006 Special Board Meeting. Seconded, carried.

June 13, 2006 - Facilities Committee Meeting:
The minutes of the June 13, 2006 Facilities Committee Meeting were considered.
It was moved by Ms. Cox to approve the minutes of the May 31, 2006 Facilities Committee Meeting as presented. Seconded, approved.

June 20, 2006 - Regular Board Meeting
The minutes of the June 20, 2006 Regular Board Meeting were reviewed. Several corrections were suggested.
Ms. Boyhan moved to approve the minutes as corrected. Seconded, carried.

4. Financial Report and Resolutions

A. Expenditures:
Mr. Lazenby was unable to attend the meeting. Ms. Crouse reported the expenditures in his absence:

June 2006 payroll: $254,672.71.
June 2006 second set of claims: $38,440.91.
July 2006 first set of claims: $133,669.83.

Ms. Cox moved to approve the expenditures and accept the financial report. Seconded, carried.

B. Resolutions:
Ms. Airoldi presented the following resolutions:

7/18/06-18 In the Matter of Transferring Funds within the Budget
The resolution moves Jane Wheeler’s position from Administration to Public Services along with some other adjustments
7/18/06-19 In the Matter of Supplementing the 2006 Budget
This transfers a refund amount into the correct account.
7/18/06-20 In the Matter of Authorizing an Interfund Transfer
Pulls money from the general fund and places it in the cumulative reserve

Ms. Hunter moved to accept resolution 18, 19, & 20. Seconded, carried.

C. Budget Discussion: I-747 Update:

Ms. Airoldi reported on the issue of I-747, which was passed by the voters in November of 2001. I-747 was recently found unconstitutional because it referenced I-722 which was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court prior to the vote on I-747. The impact of the 1% cap is now known and there is discussion at many levels of government about whether this measure should be reinstated as it is or if a higher percentage level would be more appropriate. The decision could go either way and will greatly impact the library. Hopefully, the voters will realize that 1% is untenable.

Ms. Cox asked if there are any organizations taking up this cause. Ms Airoldi mentioned the Washington Library Association and the Association of Washington Cities. She emphasized that the new ruling has no impact on the Library right now--no impact on our budgeting cycle for next year.

5. Policy Revisions and Authorization: Policy on Photocopying, Printing and Fax

Ms. Barker commented that the Policy on Photocopying, Printing, and Fax needs adjustment after implementing Print Management in many of the branches. Formerly, patrons were allowed four free copies. Now, patrons are charged for all copies from the internet computers in branches with print management. The policy needs to reflect this change. According to the proposed revision, branches without print management would still be able give out four free copies per day. Other changes in the policy were reviewed.

Moved by Ms. Cox to accept the new Policy on Photocopying, Printing, and Fax. Seconded, carried.

6. Calendar for 2007 Budget Planning

The Trustees discussed the desire for a budget planning retreat which would include a working session with Jeff Lazenby. It would take place after department requests and before any preliminary budget work in October.

Ms. Airoldi mentioned the Trustees plan to spend down the reserve of 2% a year but not increase the budget more than 5% a year. She said she would like to see those choices in a document identifying what was done and why.

Ms. Barker asked what information the Trustees need in order to make a decision about the reserves. Ms. Peck requested a list of pros and cons to answer a question like: How do we balance good risk-taking with being prudent? Prior to the August Finance Committee meeting, Ms. Peck would like Mr. Lazenby to look through the example handout entitled Fort Vancouver Regional Library District Fiscal Management Policy and star the points most applicable to WCLS and strike out those not applicable.

The Budget Retreat was set for October 9th at 9:00 a.m. The Distribution of the Preliminary Budget was changed to October 12th.

7. Personnel Handbook:

Ms. Read introduced the idea of producing a Personnel Handbook that would draw all employee reference information into a single handbook. She handed out a draft of a table of contents. Currently, the information she proposed to include in the handbook is scattered in many different places. Most of the documents already exist; a few would need to be created; this includes information from the HR study that WCLS contracted to have done a few years ago.

Ms. Airoldi noted that a Personnel Handbook would be very helpful in the employee recruitment process. Ms. Cox commented that it would be invaluable for training employees. Ms. Peck expressed the idea that supervisors would benefit from access to the handbook. Ms. Cox suggested cross referencing the handbook sections to the primary documents (such as the Union contract, Policy manual, etc.). Ms. Airoldi mentioned that the handbook will also be online.

Ms. Read asked the Trustees how much involvement they want to have in the project. The Policy Committee (Ms. Peck and Ms. Cox) agreed to review the draft of the Table of Contents and respond soon.

All the Trustees were impressed with the project and asked Ms. Read to begin immediately.

The Board took a 10 minute break at 10:20.

8. Exchange of Materials & Borrowers between BPL & WCLS: Six Month Statistical Report:
Ms. Barker presented the statistics she has collected about the exchanges of materials between the Bellingham and Whatcom County Libraries.

WCLS is lending 15% more materials to BPL patrons than BPL lends to WCLS patrons at this time. However about 25% of BPL’s total circulation is to Whatcom County walk-in patrons whereas only about 5% of WCLS circulation is to city walk-in patrons. The money we contract to pay BPL each year is for walk-in traffic.

Ms. Hunter asked which takes more effort, walk-in traffic or boxing up books and transporting them back and forth to BPL? Ms. Barker emphasized that BPL has been very fair over the years. The scales are tipping in WCLS’s direction with our circulation, and our population is now higher than the city’s.

Ms. Barker gave a demonstration of a new spreadsheet she is using to compile statistics about collection size and usage in each branch. She included the various collections (adult, teen, juvenile, and elementary) and their material types (fiction, non-fiction, audio-book, video/DVD, CD-ROM) to chart how many times per year each piece goes out on average. Media circulation is very high compared to print circulation.

The statistics prompted a discussion about treading the line between providing the media that is being requested and encouraging reading, especially among the young.

Ms. Airoldi emphasized two questions the Board needs to answer:
1. How does this relate to strategic planning and the library’s goal of literacy?
2. What statistical information would the Board like to have on a regular basis?

Ms. Peck answered the second question saying she likes stories to go along with and help interpret the raw statistics. For example: I think ____ is happening because we did this: _____. Ms. Cox offered the opinion that receiving the report quarterly would be too frequent because trends take awhile to appear. She suggested presenting these statistics at the same time of year as long range planning and budgeting take place.

9. Strategic Planning:

As part of the strategic planning process, the Trustees read a report entitled Long Overdue: A Fresh Look at Public Leadership Attitudes About Libraries in the 21st Century prepared by Public Agenda. In response, the Board discussed this report.

Ms. Cox offered the opinion that there is lack of awareness on the part of the public on the true financial difficulties faced by libraries. Additionally, it is very important for us to advocate for reading books.

Ms. Airoldi read an email from Ms. Elke who had to miss today’s meeting. Ms. Elke observed that the report confirmed that we are on the right track in our thinking and also gave some new directions to think about.

Ms. Peck was impressed by the approach brought up in the report that takes the library out into the community to help solve community problems. This helps get the library out and involved in the community rather than requiring the community to come to the library.

Ms. Airoldi mentioned the CBC Beyond Words project which gathered people’s stories about the library’s meaning in their lives. She hopes that this will be among the activities that the Community Relations Coordinator takes on.

Two demographic groups were given special mention: Ms. Airoldi pointed out that the Long Overdue document raised the importance of servicing teens. Ms. Hunter thinks that kids between grades 3-8 should be promoted, as that is a time the library should work extra hard not to loose their interest.

10. Committee Reports:

Facilities: Ms Airoldi reported that the Facilities committee has nearly completed its round of visits to the branches. They plan to have a report ready for the August Facilities Committee meeting.

Advocacy: Ms. Hunter told the Board she and Ms. Elke will be working out a schedule for round table discussions in late August.

Foundation: Ms. Brorson reported on the most recent WCLS Foundation meeting. Most of the time was take up by a presentation done by the Board of a new community TV station that is in the formative stages. They are seeking a relationship with the Foundation because of its neutrality in the community and because of its 501(c)(3) status. Ms. Peck expressed concern about whether the Foundation could make the decision to commitment the Library without Trustee input. She pointed out that the Foundation does not have the authority to commit the Library to any staff time. Ms. Boyhan and Ms Airoldi expressed the opinion that what the TV station is looking for is a good solid name rather than time or money. Further discussion on this will take place as the work of the community TV group progresses.

Additional topics at the Foundation Board meeting were:

• The first round of grant requests
• Information from Totally Chocolate about chocolate library cards
• The fall fundraiser

11. Library News: Deming Traffic Study, IT Dept., Phone Messaging, MF Project

Deming Traffic Study: Ms. Airoldi read an email she received from Dina Swires of the Department of Transportation. They have determined that there is enough room for a two-way-left turn lane by the library so patrons will have a lane to use to turn left into the library as well as a refuge to turn into when taking a left exiting the library. Library. The DOT is going to try to install it by the end of the summer. After the change, they will monitor the speeds of the passing drivers to see if a speed limit change is needed. Both the DOT and the Deming Library will also be doing some trimming of surrounding vegetation that might be blocking drivers’ views.

IT Dept: Mr. Fitzpatrick announced that he and his staff have begun the final stage of the network segmentation project. Their pilot branch was Sumas and everything went well. They expect to finish the rest of the branches by the end of the year. Mr. Fitzpatrick also mentioned that the Ferndale phone system project has been completed.

Telephone Messaging: Ms. Barker reported that work on the telephone messaging project has begun. The outgoing calls have not started yet, but anyone who wants to find out what the system sounds like can call in: 312-9037.

Maple Falls: The Maple Falls relocation work is continuing. Ms. Airoldi, Ms. Brorson, and Ms. Head will be meeting on July 25th in Deming. A meeting with the Mt. Baker School District is also being planned. Sno-Isle Library System has faced similar challenges in unincorporated areas. Ms. Airoldi pointed out that a trustee from Sno-Isle would be willing to attend an upcoming WCLS meeting to explain their decisions about unincorporated areas of the system. Extra time would have to be scheduled. The idea of extending the October Board meeting into the afternoon was suggested. Ms. Airoldi will arrange this.

In regard to the proposed upgrades to the current Maple Falls facility, Ms. Airoldi reported that she met with the cemetery district. They have agreed to allow us to replace one door in order to add a window and have agreed to the other changes. The key has been moved to a more secure place, and a sign-out list for the key has been established.

11. Director’s Report:

Ms. Airoldi presented her written Director’s Report. Topics included:
1. Upcoming Events
2. Report of the Washington Library Directors Meeting
3. Background for the Planning Process & the community survey

12. Bouquets & Announcements:

The American Library Association Conference was the first conference to be held in New Orleans since the hurricane. Ms. Airoldi offered pictures from the ALA Cognotes newsletter and pointed out the positive PR opportunity this was for libraries.

Ms. Airoldi spoke very highly of the training program created by Sigrid Brorson and Sue Tommervik, now directed by Jeanne Fondrie. Many new staff have been trained this year, and Ms. Airoldi has heard high praise and comments about the program being thorough and extremely productive.

It was announced that Sumas author and former librarian Jo Derske’s new book will be highlighted at an event at the Bellingham Public Library tonight at 7:00 p.m.

Ms. Peck showed off the Bellingham Herald article about Sally Grant in honor of her service on the occasion of her retirement. She also read a thank you note Ms. Grant had sent following her retirement party.

July 18, 2006 Board Meeting:
The August 15th Board Meeting will begin at 9:00 a.m. at the Island Library.

Adjournment:
The meeting was adjourned at 12:00 p.m.