MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF
THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE OLD BRIDGE PUBLIC LIBRARY
MAY 11, 2005
Present:
Joseph Nuzzo, President
Mary Chamberlain, Vice President
Steven Goldman, Treasurer
Kathryn Arabia, Secretary
Dr. Joan George, Trustee
Linda Seiler, Trustee
Barbara Cannon, Mayor’s Alternate
Margery Cyr, Director
Maria Nowak, Executive Assistant
Absent:
Tara Flynn-Rozanski, Trustee
Dr. Patricia Johnson, Superintendent of Schools’ Alternate
Guests:
Arthur Freihon
Mary and Robert Garcia
The President called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. and announced the meeting had been advertised and would be conducted in accordance with the Sunshine Law. The Secretary called the roll.
Mr. Nuzzo welcomed retiree Mary Garcia and her husband to the meeting.
Mr. Nuzzo congratulated Mrs. Garcia on her recent retirement from the Library and presented her with a gift on behalf of the Board, thanking her for her years of service to the Old Bridge Public Library.
Minutes
Motion: made by Linda Seiler, seconded by Mary Chamberlain, to approve the minutes from the April 6, 2005 meeting. Vote: Yes: Joseph Nuzzo, Steven Goldman, Kathryn Arabia, Mary Chamberlain, Linda Seiler and Dr. Joan George; Barbara Cannon abstained.
Finance
Motion: made by Steven Goldman, seconded by Mary Chamberlain, to approve the bill listing in the amount of $159,620.19. Unanimously approved
FY 2005/2006 Operating Budget
Mrs. Cyr reported the Library’s budget hearing will be held at 2:00 p.m. on May 12, 2005 at the Township offices.
Mr. Goldman asked Dr. Joan George and Linda Seiler to attend the budget hearing with Mrs. Cyr.
Dr. George and Mrs. Seiler agreed to attend.
Executive Session
Motion: made by Steven Goldman, seconded by Mary Chamberlain, to move into Executive Session at 7:45 p.m. Unanimously approved.
The Board went back into public session at 7:52 p.m. and announced matters of personnel were discussed.
Personnel
Resignation
Motion: made by Steven Goldman, seconded by Dr. Joan George, to accept the resignation of Circulation Library Page, Nicholas Hess, effective April 28, 2005. Unanimously approved
Personal Leave of Absence
Motion: made by Dr. Joan George, seconded by Mary Chamberlain, to approve a three month personal leave of absence without pay for LAI Passport Clerk, Kim LoPresti, effective April 14, 2005. Unanimously approved
Termination
Motion: made by Mary Chamberlain, seconded by Steven Goldman, to approve the termination of part-time Custodian, Carmela DiMaria, effective May 11, 2005. Unanimously approved
Job Title Change
Motion: made by Joseph Nuzzo, seconded by Kathryn Arabia, to approve job title change for Gail Sankner from LAII Head of Technical Services/Periodicals to LAIII Technical Services Manager at an annual salary of $29,000, effective July 1, 2005. Unanimously approved
Librarian II: Head of Support Services/Assistant Director Position
After a lengthy discussion, the Board approved the contractual position of Assistant Director and amended the draft job description with the following motion:
Motion: made by Mary Chamberlain, seconded by Kathryn Arabia, to approve the contractual position of Assistant Director at an annual salary of $60,000 and job description as amended. Unanimously approved.
Director’s Report
The Board reviewed and accepted the Director’s Report.
Old Business
Lighting Project
Mrs. Cyr reported the lighting project is completed; we are still waiting for the As-Builts.
Mr. Goldman said that the architect had asked that the switches be relabeled on the switch panels, as the labels were too small; the electrical contractor said he would do them all over immediately.
Roof Inspection
Mrs. Cyr reported that Joe Criscuolo is working with Renaissance Coating, a state contractor. Mr. Criscuolo asked Renaissance Coating to take a look at the library roof. As Renaissance is a state contractor, the roofing project would not have to go out for bid. Renaissance states, in their report dated May 7, that the roof does not need to be replaced as it can be repaired for a cost of $85,000.
Mrs. Cyr said she informed Renaissance the roof was repaired for $30,000 three years ago; and at that time, the library knew it was a short term solution. It is also stated in the Renaissance report that this repair will be a short-term solution.
Mrs. Cyr said James Cummins & Company reported (during their yearly inspection of the roof) that the roof can be repaired, but at a cost of $30,000. They also disagree with some of Renaissance’s findings. Cummins & Company says the roof needs to be replaced and if Township wishes, it could be replaced a section at a time.
Mrs. Cyr said she will send the Cummins report over to Michael Jacobs. A meeting with Michael Jacobs and Joe Criscuolo will then be setup.
Public Support for the Library
Mrs. Cyr reported she placed an article in the May/June Bookends about supporting the library and the necessities for additional funding for the library’s budget.
Mrs. Cyr said she would like to setup a committee with some Board members to start gathering names of people in the community who could help with campaigning for additional support for the library.
The Board all agreed this was a good idea and discussed different ways of promoting the library for additional support.
Linda Seiler and Barbara Cannon both said they would like to work on this committee.
New Business
NJ Library Trustee Association Meeting
Mrs. Cyr informed the Board about the NJ Library Trustee meeting on May 31, 2005, which will be held at the East Brunswick Library at 7:30 p.m. and asked if any of the Board members would like to attend.
Dr. George, Mrs. Seiler and Mrs. Cannon all asked to be registered for the meeting.
NJ Library Trustee Training
Mrs. Cyr informed the Board the Fall trustee training will be held on September 30 and October 1, 2005.
Thanking Former Board Member
Mrs. Chamberlain asked that Mary Gannon be called and invited to the June Board meeting so that the Board can present her with a gift thanking her for her years of service on the Library Board.
Staff Day
Mrs. Seiler asked about attending staff day on June 10. Mrs. Cyr said that she reached out to some of the staff about Board members attending and the feedback was that the staff felt it would be less comfortable and thought it would change the feeling of day.
Vending Machines
Mrs. Cannon asked why the placing of vending machines in the library was voted down.
Mrs. Cyr reported it was a lengthy discussion at the April 6 meeting and the overall decision was that there should be no vending machines in the public areas. Some of the Board members expressed their feelings that people should not eat in the library at all.
Executive Session
Motion: made by Steven Goldman, seconded by Mary Chamberlain, to move into Executive Session at 7:45 p.m. Unanimously approved
The Board went back into public session at 7:52 p.m. and announced matters of personnel were discussed.
Adjournment
Motion: made by Mary Chamberlain, seconded by Steve Goldman to adjourn the meeting at
9:07 p.m. Unanimously approved
Respectfully submitted,
Kathryn Arabia, Secretary
Library Board of Trustees
Date Approved: June 8, 2005
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