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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11/19/81 Library Board MINUTES OF THE LIBRARY BOARD OF THE CITY OF THE COLONY, TEXAS HELD ON NOVEMBER 19, 1981 A REGULAR MEETING of the Library Board of the City of The Colony, Texas, was called to order at 7:30 p.m. at City Hall with the following members present: George C. Gillett, Jr., Meeting Chairman Place 1 Patricia DelGado Place 2 Charles Hammons Place 3 Elaine Gayle Place 4 Fredda Holmes Place 5 and with no members absent; thus, a quorum was established. 1. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Member Hammons moved that the minutes of the regular meeting of October 15, 1981, be approved as presented. Seconded by Member DelGado, the motion was passed by the following vote: Ayes: All members present voted aye Noes: None Before moving to Agenda Item No. 2, Dan Savage, City Manager, gave the Board an update on the hiring of a city librarian.. He explained to them the procedure which had been followed and stated that three applications had been received for this position. He announced at this time that he had offered this job to two of the three people who applied; Ann Beckel was hired as the city's Librarian, and Sandri Gehrke was hired as the Assistant Librarian. 2. STATUS REPORT ON LIBRARY FACILITY Mr. Savage announced that the lease agreement on the shopping center space was approved on November 16, at the City Council's regular meeting. This is the space formerly occupied by Fox and Jacobs, and the interior is completely finished, except for a storage area, and carpeted. Mr. Savage stated that he would try to arrange a time for the Board to tour this facility as soon as he has a key. This space will be shared with the Parks & Recreation Department. It was pointed out that some Board meetings could possibly be held in this facility as well as meetings of other groups, including the Parks & Recreation Board, as the facility does have a conference room. Chairman Gillett brought up the need for an after-hours book drop at this facility. Chairman Gillett was interested in having a target date concerning the donation of books to the library. Mr. Savage stated that he would like to organize a book drive during the month of December, and he was also interested in some kind of publicity for the library during this time. Chairman Gillett stated at this time that he was planning to donate his ad space during the month of December in The Colony Courier to The Colony Library. Several items which would have to be worked out concerning the book drive were discussed, and Mr. Savage stated that he was planning to meet with Ann Beckel and Sandri Gehrke in his office on Monday, November 23, and they would discuss these details at that time. Member Gayle stated that it was her opinion that as people become aware that The Colony Library does actually exist, many donations will begin to be received. 3. WORK SESSION WITH FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY Chairman Gillett requested that Mr. Savage give the Board an overview of how he, as city manager, saw the different roles of the various groups which will be connected with the library. Mr. Savage then broke down the functions of the groups as follows: -1- CITY COUNCIL: The Council passed the ordinance which created the library, and they do determine the budget for each fiscal year, as well as being the final authority as to the overall operation of the library. They are responsible for appointing members to the Library Board, and they would also be responsible for their removal, if this became necessary. The staff and the Library Board look to the Council for their basic guidance. LIBRARY BOARD: This Board performs an oversight function. They are in a position to share knowledge and needs of the community with the City Council and provide advice to the library staff and the librarian. Is is very important for the members of this board to serve as advocates of the library and advise the Council in terms of the library's needs. The city librarian will serve as the secretary of this board and will keep them advised of operating conditions in the library. The librarian will also record and keep the minutes of the board's meetings and will, of course, attend these meetings. It is important the board an the librarian develop a good working relationship on policies and practices. The Library Board is not responsible for the administration of the library. Mr. Savage did state at this time that he was available to the members of the Board at any time they needed his help. FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY: This is a support group for the library, and they are a separate organization from the city. The initial role of this group was advocacy of the need for a library in the city. This is the group that will help the library grow and develop. Hopefully, this group could also help by volunteering their time to work in the library. Also, while the Library Board cannot engage in fund-raising activities, this is something that the Friends of the Library can do as well as something they have already done. This is a private, non- profit organization. Mr. Savage summed up by stating that everyone has a different role to play, but they are all essential in order to make the library a success and to meet the target date of January 1, 1982, for beginning operations. He also stated that it would be helpful if the Friends of the Library could take the lead in sponsoring the book drive during December. Member DelGado asked that the Friends of the Library get together during the next two weeks in order to be able to report to the Board at the December meeting concerning plans for the book drive. 4. DISCUSSION REGARDING LIBRARY USE POLICIES The board members were given in their packets copies of parts of the library policies manual from the Eugene, Oregon, library. Mr. Savage stated that, of course, all of the policies could not possibly be worked out tonight, and Chairman Gillett concurred. Mr. Savage did advise that some of the issues covered in the section dealing with registration would need to be decided in December. He also told the board that if the library is going to seek state funding, a fee cannot be charged for a library card, and he also stated that he would encourage the library to serve people outside The Colony. He further advised the board members that the policy statements on privacy of records and censorship would probably need to be made in December before the opening of the library. There was some discussion of the procedure and form of the bookplates which will be placed in donated books. Chairman Gillett suggested that possibly there could be an open period of two to three months when this would be allowed and then the practice could be discontinued. After a lengthy discussion on various procedures and policies which will have to be established, Member DelGado moved that anyone donating books be allowed to place bookplates in the donated books. The motion was seconded by Member Holmes. There followed a discussion during which it was clarified that a waiver has to be signed on donations. Chairman Gillett then called for a vote on the motion on the floor and it was passed by the following vote: Ayes: All members present voted aye Noes: None -2- Mr. Savage then advised the board that during their meeting on Monday, November 23, he, Ann Beckel and Sandri Gehrke would prepare a recommendation for the board to consider on use policies. Member DelGado stated that the policy on gifts needed to be decided as soon as possible considerisng the upcoming book drive. At this time, Member Hammons moved to adopt the policy concerning gifts from the example in the Eugene, Oregon, policies manual. The motion was seconded by Member Gayle. During the following discussion, it was suggested that a letter could be provided for the purpose of tax deductions at the time of acceptance of these gifts, and Member Hammons and Member Gayle concurred that this could bew made a part of this motion. Chairman Gillett then called for a vote on the motion on the floor, and it was passed by the following vote: Ayes: Ail members present voted aye Noes: None Mr. Savage then advised the Board that The Colony Library is eligible to join the North Texas Library System, and the consultants available to us through this system are Patricia Spears and Bill Davis. He then suggested that they be invited to the board's December meeting, as they have a pamphlet concerning library policies and could be a great help during this policy-making process. Member Gayle asked if the board should have a special meeting prior to the regular December meeting in order to draw up some policies for these consultants to look at before they attend the board's meeting. Mr. Savage advised that the staff could prepare a draft of these policies and present them to the Board. Chairman Gillett stated that he was interested in taking steps as quickly as possible to join the North Texas Library System. It was also concurred by the members of the board during discussion that if the board's regular December meeting date is not convenient for these consultants, the meeting could be held on a different date. Concerning policies, Member Hammons stated that he was interested in making the withdrawal policy as difficult as possible without causing public relations problems. Before adjourning the meeting, Mr. Savage stated that items of which he was aware that should be on the agenda of the next meeting would be consideration of policies and input from the consultants of the North Texas Library System, and he asked if any of the board members had other items which they wished to place on this agenda. It was the consensus of the board that this would be enough of an agenda for one meeting. Mr. Savage also suggested that after the first of the year, the Board should be working on possibilities of corporate foundation assistance, such as from IBM. There being no further business to be conducted by the board, Member Hammons moved to adjourn the meeting. Seconded by Member DelGado, the motion was passed by the following vote: Ayes: Ail members present voted aye Noes: None Chairman Gillett adjourned the meeting at 9:40 p.m. Barbara StieferrSec~tary GEORGE G~LETT, CHAIRMAN // -3-