NDL Board of Trustees Minutes

NORTHVILLE DISTRICT LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Regular Meeting Minutes
Thursday, December 16, 2010 – 7:30 p.m.
Northville District Library Carlo Meeting Room

1.    Chairperson Joe Corriveau called the Regular Meeting to order at 7:30 p.m.
1.1    Roll Call - Present: Trustees Joe Corriveau, Robert Sochacki, Alan Somershoe, Jean Hansen, Mike DeFrancesco, Judy Sherman and Jim Morché. Also present: Julie Herrin, Director; Anne Mannisto, Assistant Director; Judith Williams, Administrative Assistant; and Paul Snyder, President of the NDL Friends. In the audience: Library staff member Al Smitley and Trustee-elect Suzanne Miller.
Absent: None
1.2    Approval of the Agenda: MOTION: Jean Hansen made a motion to approve the agenda. Robert Sochacki seconded the motion. Motion passed.
1.3    Approval of the Regular Board Meeting minutes for November 18, 2010: MOTION: Jean Hansen noted corrections to the November minutes. Judy Sherman made a motion to accept the minutes for the Board Meeting of November 18, 2010 as corrected. Jean Hansen seconded the motion. Motion passed.
1.4    Citizen Comments: None.

2.    Correspondence: Julie Herrin reported that she had received a certificate from the Library of Michigan renewing the Library’s Essential Level of Quality Services through December 2013. She also displayed a certificate that was presented by Wayne County Commissioner Laura Cox, congratulating the Library on the celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the Endowment Fund.

3.    Director’s Report:
Statistics: The circulation statistics and the door count for the month of November 2010 are down again from last year. Database accesses, especially remote accesses, continue to increase. This month’s increase is 16%.
Youth Programming: 303 children participated in 11 Library Youth Department events this past month. There were 60 participants for the Holiday Craft Program and 69 attendees at Frosty’s Birthday Party. Photos from this event will be posted on the website.
Adult Programming: The Book Discussion and Foreign Film are scheduled later this month. There were 5 individuals who received tutoring on the computers and the Friends of the Library delivered 85 books to Allen Terrace.
Staff: Julie reported that Al Smitley has announced his retirement effective the end of January. Also, Denise LaMotte has submitted a letter of resignation effective in two weeks. Two staff members attended a webinar entitled “Transforming Your Image” and two staff members attended a webinar on “Making E-Gov Work at Your Library.”   There were 103.5 hours of volunteer time this past month. Julie presented gifts of appreciation to departing Trustees Alan Somershoe and Judy Sherman as their terms on the Board are ending on December 31.
Endowment: Julie reported that at this point there have been 42 gifts made to the Endowment Fund totaling $7,900, in response to “The Roots of Wonder” artwork incentive. In addition, there have been 2 gifts of $1,000 and four additional cumulative gifts that qualify the contributors for leaves on the Library Giving Tree. The signed/numbered prints by Mike Mullen will be distributed on Sunday, January 30,, 2011, at an after-hours event here at the Library.
Facilities: Julie reported that new carpeting has been selected for the Carlo Meeting Room and it is hoped that it will be installed by the end of January. The initial phase of the Teen Area renovation will begin with the moving of the Reference shelving and the back credenza of the Reference Desk between the Christmas and New Year’s holidays.

4.    Friends Report: Paul Snyder reported that he has resigned as president of the Friends as he will become a Library Trustee on January 1. Jennifer Gustafson has assumed the presidency; however, she was unable to attend the meeting tonight. He noted that the Friends will be holding a Used Book Sale in the spring this year in
addition to the usual Fall Used Book Sale. Paul stated that the Friends would be providing treats to the Library staff in January and February this year since there are always so many sweets and goodies brought in by staff members for the holidays.

5.    Budget and Finance Review:
5.1    MOTION: Treasurer Jean Hansen made a motion to approve payment of the Northville District Library List of Bills over $1,000 for the last two weeks of November 2010 as the Board Meeting was so early in the month due to Thanksgiving. She also included the List of Bills over $1,000 for December in her motion for approval. Jim Morché seconded the motion. Motion passed.
5.2    MOTION: Jean made a motion to approve a check for $36,000 to Mercantile Bank for the 2011 H.S.A. that is due the first business day of January. Jim Morché seconded the motion. Motion passed.
5.3    Jean distributed copies of the 2011 Operating Budget based on the passage of the .2 mill tax increase in the November election. She stated that any additional changes should wait until the audit has been completed.
5.4    MOTION: Jean Hansen made a motion to transfer $7,990.01, designated as Due to Other Funds on the Financial Reports, to the Debt Fund. This is a portion of money that was received in a check from Wayne County for delinquent taxes that needs to be moved from Operating to Debt. Judy Sherman seconded the motion. Motion passed.

6.    Committee Report
6.1    Robert Sochacki reported on the meeting of the Board of Trustees to conduct the performance evaluation of the Library Director. He noted that her overall rating was 4.95, with each category of job responsibilities being rated on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 as the highest. Julie responded that the Library staff all did their jobs well and was greatly responsible for her being able to do her job well. The Board discussed separating the performance review of the Director from the review of the Library performance as a whole. The Board also discussed setting goals for the upcoming year. A Board Study Session will be scheduled to discuss the goals of the Strategic Plan at the January Board Meeting.

7.    Announcements and Comments
    7.1    The next Finance Committee meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 25, 2011 at 10:00 a.m. in the Carlo Meeting Room.
    7.2    The next Regular Meeting of the Board will be held on Thursday, January 27, at 7:30 p.m. in the Carlo Meeting Room. This meeting will include the installation of newly elected Board Members and the passage of a Resolution establishing the regular Board meeting dates for 2011.
    7.3    Robert Sochacki thanked Judy Sherman and Alan Somershoe for their dedication to the Library during their terms as Trustees, stating that they were very congenial cohorts to work with over the past years. Joe Corriveau also thanked Alan for being a calming force for him as he assumed the Chairmanship of the Board.

MOTION: Alan Somershoe made a motion to adjourn the Regular Meeting. Judy Sherman seconded the motion. Motion passed. The Meeting was adjourned at 8:15p.m.

    Respectfully Submitted,

Mike DeFrancesco, Secretary
JW 12/29/10