City of Rock Island Public Library Board met Sept. 15.
Here is the minutes provided by the board:
Type of Meeting: Regularly Scheduled Board Meeting (Teleconference Option) Call to Order: Eudell Watts III called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m.
Attendance: Karen Phillips (teleconference), Pat Mahar (teleconference), Jo Noon, Deborah Freiburg, Holly Sparkman, Elizabeth Russell (teleconference), Jacki Nelson, Jenni Swanson; Kathy Lelonek (RIPL Foundation Director) and Angela Campbell (RIPL Library Director).
Public Comment: The public had the opportunity to comment in-person, via teleconference or phone, or via email. No public comment was received.
Approval of Minutes: The Board reviewed the minutes of the August 19, 2020, meeting. Without any additions or corrections, President Watts III advised the minutes be approved as written.
Board Education: Director Campbell presented chapters 5 and 6 of the new Serving Our Public 4.0: Illinois Public Library Standards book released by the Illinois Library Association. Chapter 5 will be discussed in further detail at an upcoming Buildings & Grounds meeting.
Correspondence: None received.
Committee Reports
Finance
Pat Mahar made a motion to approve monthly bills for August for $49,207.17. Jacki Nelson seconded.
A question was raised about which e-Content comes from Midwest Tape. Director Campbell will follow- up and report back via email. With no further questions, President Watts III took a recorded vote: 8 Ayes, Noon, Sparkman, Freiburg, Phillips, Nelson, Mahar, Russell, and Swanson; and 0 Nays. Motion passes.
Director Campbell reported there were no new updates regarding the CY2021 budget.
Unique Management Services reports were included in the Board packet. The Library still has a 5 to 1 return on investment for this service. The Board will continue to review quarterly statements.
Buildings and Grounds
Committee Chair, Pat Mahar, advised the Committee needed to meet. A Buildings & Grounds Committee Meeting was set for Tuesday, October 13, at 11am, at the Downtown Library.
Personnel & Policy – No report.
Planning & Community Relations
Committee Chair, Holly Sparkman, reported that the Committee met on September 10th to discuss a timeline and planning process for the next strategic plan. The Committee recommends the following:
Begin getting patron and staff feedback by the end of the year, with a survey instrument ready to go by January/February.
Submit all data/responses to the Committee by March 2021.
Prepare the Strategic Planning document the remainder of the year, with a launch by CY 2022.
Holly Sparkman made the motion to approve the tentative timeline and strategic planning process. Jo Noon seconded. President Watts III took a recorded vote: 8 Ayes, Noon, Sparkman, Freiburg, Phillips, Nelson, Mahar, Russell, and Swanson; and 0 Nays. Motion passes.
Elizabeth Russell reminded everyone that one of the topics that will play a large role in the next plan is Equity, Diversity, and Inclusivity. Holly then reminded everyone to participate in the United Way’s 21 Day Equity Challenge. Those in attendance who had already participated highly recommended the training. Director Campbell will send out the link again to the board.
Art Committee
Committee Chair, Pat Mahar, deferred to RIPL Foundation Director, Kathy Lelonek, regarding the numerous art projects happening. Director Lelonek reported that she is still working to coordinate the reinstallation of the large Jasper piece in the Community Room.
Foundation
RIPL Foundation Director Lelonek reported that the Foundation Board met on August 19th and September 3rd regarding their pledge to the Capital Campaign. Many thanks go to Mark Schwiebert for researching a way to temporarily change the withdrawal standards of the investments.
The Foundation is also working with the campaign cabinet on the Case Study and numerous grants.
Administrator Reports
Director Campbell provided a comprehensive report and statistics in the packet.
Director Campbell reported that the next meeting of the Milan-Blackhawk Area Public Library District will be on September 24 at 4:00pm, at the Southwest Library. They will be finalizing and voting on the Tax Levy Ordinance.
Unfinished Business
1. Director Campbell provided updates about long-range planning components. The current stage requires a lot of meetings of her and Foundation Director Lelonek, but not a lot of Board or staff input just yet. She did mention that there is increased excitement for the project, now that the Capital Campaign is back on track.
2. As Director Campbell explained, the Library is still operating in Phase III of their reopening plan. She and Jenni Swanson participated in a meeting earlier that afternoon sponsored by the Iowa and Illinois Departments of Public Health. It was implied that conditions were not improving in Rock Island County, and may get worse. Due to that report, Director Campbell recommends staying at the Library’s Phase III portion of our reopening plan. The Board concurred and will not vote on this matter again until conditions improve in Rock Island.
3. Director Campbell reported that the Per Capita Aid requirements were still not available from the State of Illinois. This will remain as unfinished business until they are available and can be discussed.
New Business
1. Jenni Swanson made a motion to pass Resolution Number 1, declaring the official intent to participate in the City of Rock Island’s Performance Contract Improvement Projects. Holly Sparkman seconded. The Board had questions about the resolution. Director Campbell explained that this gives the City the go-ahead to bond for our portion of the project. The Board already approved spending up to $50k per year to pay for our portion of the bond. President Watts III took a recorded vote: 8 Ayes, Noon, Sparkman, Freiburg, Phillips, Nelson, Mahar, Russell, and Swanson; and 0 Nays. Motion passes.
2. Jo Noon made a motion to adopt a resolution, acknowledging and approving the temporary adjustment in withdrawals of the Rock Island Public Library Foundation. Elizabeth Russell seconded. The Board had some clarifying questions. President Watts III explained the action of the Foundation during the two recent meetings, which allows for more money to be pledged towards the YMCA/Library partnership project. Foundation Director Lelonek explained that this was a temporary move and would not draw down on the principal of the investments. President Watts III took a recorded vote: 8 Ayes, Noon, Sparkman, Freiburg, Phillips, Nelson, Mahar, Russell, and Swanson; and 0 Nays. Motion passes.
3. Prior to a motion, Director Campbell explained the Library’s 4th Avenue Streetscape project. The information provided by Public Works was included in the packet. The Board had many questions, and after a few minutes of discussion, Buildings & Grounds Chair, Patrick Mahar, offered to talk to Public Works to gather more information. Director Campbell will put this topic on the “Old Business” portion of October’s agenda for review.
4. Prior to a motion, Director Campbell gave an overview of the new General Election Day 2020 holiday. This new statute requires all government offices to be closed on November 3, 2020 for the general election. Campbell explained there is currently litigation happening, and that it might be wise to wait on a vote until next meeting. It was commented that maybe the Library could be considered a “location for election day services” because of reference questions pertaining to polling places. Director Campbell will hopefully have more information by the October meeting.
Information Sharing
The Updated Board Policy List was included in the packet.
In-service Evaluations from February were included in the packet.
Mobile Library survey results were included in the packet. Director Campbell explained that the Library2Go continues to tweak their schedule, and are now trying a one-week schedule instead of the alternating two-week schedule. Karen Phillips suggested that maybe they needed to have less, but longer, stops. Director Campbell said that although our current schedule is similar to what other mobile libraries are doing across the country, longer stops might be what is good for our community and will be looked into.
Closed Session – Not necessary
Announcements
Director Campbell announced that the attorney for person who owns the adjacent property across from the South Entrance of the Downtown Library has contacted her about a potential purchase of the 11 parking spots. She hopes to have more information by the next meeting.
Adjournment
With no further business, President Watts III adjourned the meeting at 5:47pm.
https://www.rigov.org/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_09152020-630
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