HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - PPMLT - 11/09/2016 Paul Pratt Memorial Library Board of Trustees
November 9, 2016
Library Meeting Room,6 pm.
Present: Carolyn Coffey (Chair),Agnes McCann, Marylou Lawrence, Elaine Breslow, Roger Lowe, Sarah
Pease, Lynne DeGiacomo,Jessica Patterson (Friends),Jackie Rafferty(Director)
Meeting called to order, 6:03 pm
1. a. The minutes of the October 12, 2016 Trustees meeting were moved,voted and approved
unanimously.
2. Director's Report (Rafferty)
a. Jackie has asked the staff to track the effectiveness of our social media posts, based on
number of followers,views, likes, etc. She manages our Twitter account and has had
success highlighting books that are not on the bestseller lists. She also uses it for marketing
by posting information about our upcoming programs.
b. The Town Accountant has notified us that the laws have changed regarding board approval
of bills. Going forward, a multi-member board may designate one member who can
approve invoices for payment, rather than the entire board, as is currently required. That
member must report on the bills that were approved to the full board at the next meeting.
After a discussion, it was decided to continue with the procedure of having the full board
approve the bills but to designate the Trustee Chair as authorized to approve invoices that
must be processed between the monthly meetings. The motion was moved,voted and
passed unanimously.
c. Jackie provided copies of the draft of the FY2017-2022 Strategic Plan and asked for
feedback. The Trustees voted unanimously to approve the content and will proofread the
report for wording/punctuation errors and Jackie will make the edits. The Plan is due to the
MLBC on December 9.
d. The installation of the digital display is imminent. Staff training will be provided and
Bronwyn will be required to post and update content, due to her computer's connection to
the town's server.
e. There was a discussion of a proposed funding request to the Friends for a new digital
camera with better resolution that would be used to take pictures during library programs.
The current camera we use does not take quality pictures that can be enlarged. Elaine
suggested putting the old camera into the lending library when it is up and running. Brigid is
looking into pricing and the request will be taken to the Friends when the data is gathered.
Another suggestion that came up was to ask the Cohasset High School Art Department
about a possible Independent Study in which a photography student would take pictures
during programming. This would free up the staff members that are running the program
and the student would gain valuable experience.
f. Jackie provided updates on the Equal Access for All Grant and the All Aboard Greenbush
Grant. She is scheduled to be interviewed on WATD, which also provides support to the
blind. She has had constructive feedback from the Equal Access Advisory Board,especially
Kevin McCord from Launch, which serves individuals on the Asperger's and autism
spectrum. The Greenbush Grant is continuing to make preparations for the program which
will take place this spring. The group has found a graphic designer to design marketing
materials. He is Keith Conforti from Twist,which is a local graphic design firm. They are also
working with MA DOT to plan STEM programs,tours of the MBTA Control Center and the
grand finale at South Station.
g. Program Committee—Jackie would like to increase the size of the committee, due to the
tremendous amount of work involved in putting together and running the current and
future programs. She also mentioned a possible new program focusing on art books in
collaboration with the South Shore Art Center. Bronwyn will be creating and sending out
invoices to the two local businesses that have pledged donations in support of the season's
Sunday Author Talks.
3. Financial Report/Bills Payable (Rafferty)
a. The outstanding bills were moved, seconded and approved unanimously.
4. Chair's Report (Coffey)
a. Carolyn shared a mockup of the new logo that was created by Ronnie Goodwin and the
Trustees seemed pleased with the result.
b. Carolyn asked everyone to put a sticker their primary and secondary priorities for the
physical space of the library on sheets labeled with identified future needs. The top votes
were for access to the back parking lot and larger and more flexible meeting space.
c. Carolyn showed some of the Power Point slides that were submitted by two of the design
teams that are bidding for project. The two firms are Stefura, which did the original work
when the library moved to its current location, and Abacus, a firm based in Cambridge. She
asked the Trustees to consider whether to move forward on a small scale or attempt to
tackle a larger, more comprehensive project. It was decided to ask the design firm that is
chosen to provide a list of options with the cost for each, even though this may increase
their bill for the work. Lynn questioned whether previous donors would be upset if areas
that were named in their honor were removed. Jane Goedecke from the CLT met with
Carolyn and Marylou to discuss financing the project and Jane suggested possibly hiring a
professional fundraising organization if it was agreed to go forward with the large scale
renovation. Jackie shared a printout of the Massachusetts Public Library Construction
Program, which could be a possible source of funding. While the Trustees recognized that
there are other pressing projects in town that will require Town funding,they also felt that
the Town has a responsibility to invest in its public buildings. The group plans to explore the
possibility of combining a funding request for the library project with other upcoming Town
projects on a joint bond issue.
5. CLT Report (Brown)
a. Steve was not present so Marylou gave the report.
b. The CLT has not met in the last month but they have a meeting scheduled for next week.
6. Friends Report (Patterson)
a. Jessica was welcomed to the meeting.
b. The annual appeal was mailed last week and approximately$8000 has been raised so far.
c. The Homework Center had about 19-20 participants last week and appears to be running
smoothly.
d. The Friends agreed to fund the STEM programs for this year and will consider it again next
year, depending on the success of the fundraising.
7. Other
a. There was no other business.
Meeting adjourned at 7:32 pm.
Documents:
Minutes of the October 12, 2016 Trustees Meeting
Director's Report November 9, 2016
Chapter 41: Section 56.Warrants for payment of bills
The Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program Fact Sheet
November FY17 Financial Report
November 9, 2016 Accounting Report—Bronwyn
FY17 November 9, 2016 Warrant
Library Trustees Authorization for Payment, 11/9/2016
FY17 Deposits to Gift Account—11/9/16
FY17 Deposits to Treasurer—Fines& Fees, etc., November 9, 2016
Circulation Department Report: October 2016
November, 2016 Report from the Reference Desk
Young Adult and Reference Services Report, October 2016
November 3, 2016 Report from the Children's Room
Paul Pratt Memorial Library Strategic Plan 2017-2022