Town of Granby
Granby Library Board Meeting Minutes
December 14, 2009
held at Granby Public Library
Call to order: A quorum was present and the meeting was called to order at 7:34 p.m.
Members present: Chairman Lynn Lochhead, Bob Donna, Judy Goff, Lisa Blessis, and Shawn Ball.
Members excused: Carol Bressor
Absent: Marty Council
Staff: Joan Fox
Visitors: Bruce Sullivan
Review Agenda
S. Ball asked to add to the agenda under New Business – Volunteer Recognition event.
Minutes
The Board reviewed the minutes of November 9, 2009.
ON A MOTION by B. Donna, seconded by S. Ball, the Board voted (4-0-1), to approve the minutes of the meeting of November 9, 2009. Ms. Goff abstained.
Public Comment: No public comment.
Director’s Report
Statistics for June Granby Cossitt Total
Circulation 11,502 1,234 12,736
Programs / attendance 39/485 3/18 45/503
InterLibrary Loans Loaned: 83 Borrowed: 249
Connecticard 2,184
Funds received from lost books (quarterly): n/a
Director’s Report:
- JobNow, a program website that Granby Public Library offers to library patrons, began this month for one-year. This program is a career coach service and already there have been 36 hits to the website.
- A total of 30 libraries, including Granby, participated in an over dues and copy fees survey. From the survey results, Granby was part of the majority when asked about the charge for book fines ($.10), DVD fines ($1.00), and black and white copies($.10). For the color copy charge and fax service fee, Granby charges $1.00 and most libraries did not offer these services.
- Reported on the library website hits for the week of November 27-December 3 as:
- Library calendar – 486 hits
- Library homepage – 206 hits
- Library catalog – 108 hits
- Museum passes page – 58 hits
- Cossitt page – 44 hits
- Reported on state average statistics as compared to Granby’s. Some highlights were:
- Hours open/typical week Granby – 8.6 State – 6.3
- Circulation per capita Granby – 15.2 State – 9.3
- Total teen circulation Granby – 11,400 State – 5,931
- Programs/Attendance All Ages Granby – 73/2,611 State – 14/741
- It was noted that Granby has high ratings for teen circulation reading and programs for all ages.
- Upcoming closings: 12/24 at 3 p.m. and re-open Monday, Dec. 28th; closing early Dec. 31st, Jan. 1st closed and reopen Saturday Jan. 2nd. The Granby Public Library starts its Sunday, winter months hours on Jan. 3rd
February 18, 2010 is Snapshot Day for participating libraries, and Granby is participating. A photographer is needed that day to take candid photos.
DVD thefts have occurred again and have been reported to the Police Department. To discourage thefts, the DVDs will be moved (closer to the circulation desk) and lockable security cases for the DVDs are being reviewed for purchase.
Cossitt items are:
- Seven entries were received for the Gingerbread House contest, at least one for each category. The Drummer took photos.
- The gift tag tree deadline is Wednesday.
- No programs in January.
- Holcomb Farm Book Club (Wisdom of the Last Farmer) 1/12.
- More than one way to escape a courtroom (Attorney Sally Roberts) 1/14.
- SATA (O. Henry) 1/12.
- Girls Book Club and Teen at end of month.
- Winter story times at Granby Public Library begin on 1/11.
Old Business
Chairman Lochhead reviewed this section with the Board.
Expansion Committee Update: There is no status change at this time and it doesn’t look like the town will be starting new projects in the near future. This project will be tabled for a while.
Cossitt Improvement Project: It was noted that this project most likely would not start up until spring 2010. The bidding process for the project is not finalized. It appears that the library will need to be closed for a number of months in 2010. Arrangements for the storage location of the books will to be discussed further at another meeting.
GLB Liaisons to Friends and GLA: It was noted again that communication between the Boards is very important. The Friends of Cossitt Library meet the second Wednesday of each month. The Friends of Granby Library meet the last Monday of each month. J. Goff may be able to attend the Friends of Granby Library meetings. She will check her schedule. The liaisons commitment to attend the Friends of Cossitt and Granby Library meetings need to be reconfirmed. L. Lochhead will continue to attend the Friends of Cossitt Library meetings, however, she has schedule conflicts in the beginning of January.
D. Lydon attended the last meeting of the Friends of Granby Library. Joan Fox indicated that at the last meeting a brainstorming session took place discussing elder care and how the GLA may be able to provide a series of educational programs on elder care.
L. Lochhead attended the November meeting of the Friends of Cossitt Library. She noted several items were discussed. Some were:
- A large dollhouse was donated to the Cossitt Library and is displayed.
- Every year Friends of the Cossitt Library provides a dictionary to each 3rd grade student. This past year approximately 189 dictionaries were passed out.
Several poetry readings are scheduled for the upcoming year.
When the renovation and repairs take place at Cossitt Library, the Friends of Cossitt Library would like the following items to be reviewed.
- Water leak issues on the west wall.
- The entry staircase needs to be replaced.
- The alarm system should be looked at and perhaps updated.
Reappointments for 2010: There will be two vacancies in January 2010. M. Council does not wish to be reappointed. Two potential volunteers have been identified. Appropriate procedures for nominating new members will be followed up.
New Business
2010 – 2011 Budget: J. Fox reported there would be no dollar increase in the budget. There are some reductions and some added expenses that balance each other, consequently leaving the bottom dollar figure the same as last year. Several reductions were made to account items like machine maintenance, library automation, records on line, and public relations. Added expenses were a special event was for the Cossitt Library and a small increase concerning the part-time staff members.
Cossitt Library Fund Raising Efforts: As part of this improvement project, the Hartford Foundation grant requirement is to have a $10,000 local contribution. Chairman Lochhead was pleased to announce that the Friends of the Cossitt Library will support the renovations and help to move forward with fund raising efforts, including a pledge of $1,500 being made by them. The Granby Library Association announced they have a match fund raising effort in the amount of $2,500. This leaves approximately $3,500 needed for the fund raising efforts.
The Board created a sub-committee to begin the initial work for marketing the Cossitt Library fund raising efforts. Lisa Blessis and Lynn Lochhead are planning to schedule a brainstorming meeting in early January to address this topic. Judy Goff is looking over her schedule and may join the sub-committee if her schedule permits. Some ideas were: going to the public by a town-wide mailing, placing an article and insert in the Drummer about the project, and contacting the Yankee Flyer and Granby News about articles or display ads.
Other Agenda Items as Identified by Board Members: S. Ball commented that the Volunteer Recognition event date should be discussed. The Board reviewed and decided that the usual date for volunteer recognition event should be changed to April 11th. This subject matter will be discussed at future meetings.
Adjournment
ON A MOTION by J. Goff, seconded by L. Blessis, the Board voted unanimously (5-0-0) to adjourn the meeting at 9:00 p.m.
The next meeting will be Monday, January 11, 2010, 7:30 p.m., at Cossitt Library.
Respectfully submitted,
Pat Chieski
Recording Secretary for S. Christian
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