City of Rock Island Public Library Board of Trustees met Sept. 21.
Here are the minutes provided by the board:
Call to Order: Vice-president Elizabeth Russell called the meeting to order at 5:02pm.
Attendance: Karen Phillips, Jo Noon, Deborah Freiburg, Elizabeth Russell, Jacki Nelson, Dr. Yolanda Grandberry Pugh, Jenni Swanson; Angela Campbell, Library Director; Kathy Lelonek, Foundation Director; Lisa Lockheart, Publicity/Outreach Liaison;
Absent: Eudell Watts III, Patrick Mahar
Public Comment: None
Approval of Minutes: The Board reviewed the meeting minutes of August 17, 2021. With one minor typographical correction, the minutes were approved as written.
Board Education: None
Correspondence: A patron expressed great thanks for the Bestseller’s Club. Director Campbell informed the Board that the service is relatively new, and very popular. Patrons can go to our website for the form, choose authors from a predetermined list, and then any new hardback book released will be automatically placed on reserve for them.
Committee Reports
Finance – Jenni Swanson
Jenni Swanson made a motion to approve monthly bills for August in the amount of $ 45,481.72. Karen Phillips seconded. Vice-president Russell took a recorded vote: 6 ayes – Swanson, Freiburg, Phillips, Grandberry-Pugh, Noon, and Nelson; 0 nays, motion carried.
Buildings and Grounds
Director Campbell reported that the group met on September 9, 2021, to discuss the four requests for proposals that will be released in the coming months. The Business Office & Facilities Director prepared these items for the meeting, all of which were favorably reviewed. The specification portion of the bids will be voted on under new business. The Committee also reviewed site plans for the new library, and discussed the potential South Parking lot project. No action was taken on either of these items.
Personnel & Policy – Debbie Freiburg
Debbie Freiburg reported that the group met on September 15, 2021 to discuss numerous policy revisions, the Board Bylaws, the Succession Plan, and the Disaster and Recovery Plan. These items are being recommended for approval by the full board and will be voted on during new business. The committee also discussed changing the format of the library director’s evaluation. Freiburg reported that just prior to this evening’s board meeting, she heard back from the City HR Department, and they are unable to purchase enough user licenses to be able to accommodate all board members. After a quick discussion, the Board agreed that the Committee could now handle the evaluations with the user license(s) we are able to obtain. Director Campbell stated that it the online product, PerformancePro, will need to be set up with the correct goals, objectives, and tasks for the Director, but once that’s in place, it should be much easier to do. Freiburg will call a committee meeting once she learns more about the process.
Planning & Community Relations – Karen Phillips
Karen Phillips reported that the group will meet on September 30, 2021, to review a draft of the new strategic plan, the literacy action plan, and the design concept.
Foundation – Kathy Lelonek
Foundation Director, Kathy Lelonek, gave an update on the Capital Campaign. The next meeting of the Foundation Board will be November 11, 2021 at 4pm at the Downtown Library. It will be Russ Kennel’s last Foundation Board meeting, as he is retiring from the Board. We are grateful for his decades of service to the Foundation. Director Lelonek is currently recruiting for a person to fill his very big shoes.
Administrator Reports
Director’s Reports & Statistics – included in packet.
Milan Blackhawk Area Public Library District
Next Meeting: September 23, 2021 at 4pm at the Southwest Library
Unfinished Business
1. COVID Mitigation Efforts – Discussion/updates
2. South Entrance Parking Lot – Updates
3. *High School Advisory Board Members – Nominations?
New Business
1. Debbie Freiburg made a motion to approve updates to the seven policies and appendices up for review: Circulation Policy & 5 Appendices, Collection Development Policy & 2 Appendices, Community Room Policy, Library Card Registration Policy, Library Vehicle Policy, Photography &
Video Policy, Security Camera Policy; Jacki Nelson seconded. Vice-president Russell took a voice vote – 6 ayes, no nays. Motion carried.
2. Discussion of Bylaws
Freiburg explained the changes in the bylaws, which basically added an area about remote meetings, and changed the committee and executive committee appointment dates. Director Campbell said that this was the reviewing stage, and that voting to approve the bylaws would happen at the October meeting.
3. Jo Noon made a motion to approve the Library Administration Succession Plan; Jacki Nelson seconded. During discussion, Karen Phillips said she had sent Director Campbell an email with some thoughts on some of the areas, including compensation and splitting duties. She also stated that the Committee thought the Director was the backup on too many of the items. Director Campbell stated that these are some topics that can be revisited when we do an annual review of the document. Vice-president Russell took a voice vote – 6 ayes, no nays. Motion carried.
4. Debbie Freiburg made a motion to approve the Disaster and Recovery Plan; Jacki Nelson seconded. The Board appreciated how comprehensive the document was, and that they learned a lot reading it. Director Campbell stated that the biggest changes were taking out 30/31, and adding the pandemic portion. She praised the internal staff Disaster and Planning Committee for their continual hard work maintaining this document. Vice-president Russell took a voice vote – 6 ayes, no nays. Motion carried.
5. Karen Phillips made a motion to approve 2022 Holiday Closings List as presented; Jenni Swanson seconded. Director Campbell explained that 2022 was going to be an interesting year for holidays due to Christmas and New Year’s falling on the weekend. The submitted list follows the holiday observation dates that the City uses, and closes the libraries on the Saturday of Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. Jenni Swanson asked if we were going to add Juneteenth to the holiday list, due to the Federal legislation. Director Campbell explained that it is not currently a holiday in the bargaining contract, but it could be extended to the non-affiliated employees. Another option would be to keep the library open, but offer it as a “floating holiday” for staff to use at a different time. Dr. Yolanda Grandberry-Pugh noted that Juneteenth falls on a Sunday in 2022, which means it won’t really affect the Library until 2023. Director Campbell said that she now has it on her radar for the following year and will follow up with the City/Board as necessary. Vice-president Russell took a voice vote – 6 ayes, no nays. Motion carried.
6. Discussion of Midtown Library Name
Director Campbell sent around a list of names brainstormed during a library managers’ meeting. She said that it won’t be long until we need to order signage and catalog items, so we will need to have a name in place. The group took the brainstorming list under advisement and asked that it be a voting item on the October agenda.
7. *Motion to approve Snow Removal RFP specifics
8. *Motion to approve Lawn Care RFP specifics
9. *Motion to approve Janitorial Services RFP specifics
10. *Motion to approve Security Services RFP specifics
Jacki Nelson made a motion to approve items 7-10 on the agenda; Jo Noon seconded. Vice president Russell took a voice vote – 6 ayes, no nays. Motion Carried.
Information Sharing
• County Assessor’s Estimated EAV was included in the packet.
• Unique Management Reports were included in the packet and showed that the library continues to make money on collection efforts.
*Closed Session – Not needed
Announcements
• Occupancy Agreement Update – Debbie Freiburg provided an update that the Occupancy Agreement with the YMCA was coming along. There have a been many meetings and a lot of work going into making it the best agreement possible. She feels that the group is close to a final version.
• Denkmann Neighborhood Cleanup date – 9/25/2021, at 9am.
Adjournment – Vice-president Russell adjourned the meeting at 5:53pm.
https://www.rigov.org/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_09212021-822
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