MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
OLD BRIDGE PUBLIC LIBRARY
NOVEMBER 10, 2004
Present:
Steven Goldman, President
Mary Chamberlain, Vice President
Mary Gannon, Treasurer
Joseph Nuzzo, Secretary
Kathryn Arabia, Trustee
Linda Seiler, Trustee
Dr. Patricia Johnson, Superintendent of School’s Alternate
Margery Cyr, Director
Absent:
Barbara Cannon, Mayor’s Alternate
Guests:
Jennifer Sherman, Ralph Oppenheim and Harry Watkins
The President called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. and announced that the meeting had been advertised and would be conducted in accordance with the Sunshine Law. The Treasurer called the roll.
Minutes
Motion: made by Linda Seiler, seconded by Dr. Patricia Johnson to approve the minutes of the October 13, 2004 Board meeting as amended. Vote: Yes: Steven Goldman, Joseph Nuzzo, Linda Seiler and Patricia Johnson. Mary Chamberlain, Mary Gannon and Kathryn Arabia abstained.
Finance
Motion: made by Mary Gannon, seconded by Kathryn Arabia, to approve the payment of bills in the amount of $141,994.42. Unanimously approved
Audit
Mrs. Cyr reported the audit of the Library books will be done on November 15, 2004.
Budget Hearing for FY05/06
Mrs. Cyr reported that she and Mr. Goldman attended the Budget Hearing at the Township on Monday, November 8, 2004. In attendance were Councilwoman Panos, Councilmen Butler and Calogera; Township Business Administrator Michael Jacobs, Finance Director Himanshu Shah and Scott Wolman.
Mrs. Cyr stated it was a lengthy meeting, but she feels it went well and believes the Township understands the Library’s needs. Councilwoman Panos called Mrs. Cyr and informed her she had the same impressions from the meeting. Mr. Goldman said Councilman Calogera related the same thing to him.
Mr. Goldman stated they were concerned about the roof problem the Library is having and feels they will move on bonding the money for a roof replacement. Mr. Jacobs informed Mr. Goldman and Mrs. Cyr that Mayor Phillips wants the roof done.
PERSONNEL
Resignation
Motion: made by Joseph Nuzzo, seconded by Kathryn Arabia, to accept the resignation of part-time Passport Clerk, Patricia Garland, effective October 16, 2004. Unanimously approved
Motion: made by Mary Gannon, seconded by Mary Chamberlain, to accept the resignation of Library Page Suzan Ozcelik, effective November 6, 2004. Unanimously approved
New Appointment
Motion: made by Mary Chamberlain, seconded by Kathryn Arabia, to approve Patricia Garland, temporary substitute Passport Clerk, at an hourly salary of $12.10 effective October 26, 2004. Unanimously approved
Motion: made by Kathryn Arabia, seconded by Mary Chamberlain, to approve Stacey Wood, Library Page, at an hourly salary of $5.25 effective October 18, 2004. Unanimously approved
Motion: made by Mary Gannon, seconded by Kathryn Arabia, to approve Marianna Tabacco, Library Page, at an hourly salary of $5.25 effective October 28, 2004. Unanimously approved
Statistics
Statistics were placed on file.
Director’s Report
The Board reviewed the Director’s Report and discussed various aspects of it.
Wireless Internet Access
The Laurence Harbor building is currently wired for wireless access and the Central building is in the process of configuring the building for wireless access. This program is made available at no cost to the Library by Cablevision. Access for twenty-five users at a time at both locations is possible. Cablevision stipulates that the access is to be used only by public computers and not staff computers. Mr. Nuzzo expressed concerns about wireless jamming. Mrs. Cyr said that she would have Sara Hansen, Head of the Electronic Resources department, contact Mr. Nuzzo to discuss this issue.
OLD BUSINESS
Old Bridge Public Library Foundation
Mrs. Arabia asked Mr. Oppenheim about the status of the Library’s nonprofit Foundation. Mr. Oppenheim related that the approval for the nonprofit foundation has been received from the State of New Jersey. The next step will be to draft a set of by-laws, select a Board of Directors and submit 501(C) 3 paperwork to the IRS.
Mr. Goldman asked Mr. Oppenheim which attorney he is using to help him with the foundation. The Library is working with an organization called the ProBono Partnership in Newark, a legal resource center for community-based nonprofit organizations. They have been most helpful with the process.
Lighting Project
Mrs. Cyr reported the large meeting room is completed and looks terrific. All the lights have their own switches so that either the top, middle or bottom lights can be all turned off individually. The electricians are now working on the front lobby and should be in Technical Services by the end of next week.
Mrs. Cyr stated the electricians have been very cooperative and clean.
Roof Project
Mr. Jacobs and Mr. Shah discussed the Library’s roof and funding for it during the Budget Hearing. Both shared that the Mayor wanted the Library’s roof to be replaced as soon as possible to ensure the integrity of the building. We were led to believe that funding for this project will be included in the Township’s Capital Budget.
Buildings and Grounds Committee Meeting
Mr. Nuzzo reported the Buildings and Grounds Committee met twice in the last month. The Committee discussed the direction in which the Library should go with custodial services; the leaking problem around the windows; and sloping of the landscaping. It was agreed that the slope of the landscaping was contributing to the problem and would need to be changed slightly. The aluminum framing around the windows and base boards was discussed. There is some concern that the windows were not installed correctly. Mrs. Cyr is researching the manufacturer of the windows.
Mrs. Cyr said she spoke with the architect of the building yesterday and he informed her it was time for the caulking around the windows to begin to fail. Mrs. Cyr spoke with Metro Glass; they are the company who completed the installation of the windows after Sunrise Glass was asked to leave the project. Metro Glass informed Mrs. Cyr they do not do caulking. Metro Glass referred Mrs. Cyr to South Shore Waterproofing. Mrs. Cyr also has several other companies Mr. Vitale [from James Cummins & Company] referred her to. One of these companies has refused to provide the Library with an estimate. Mrs. Cyr has only received one estimate to date.
Mrs. Cyr said the project of caulking around the windows will be costly and will be back on the Board’s agenda next month.
The Committee also discussed the vacant part-time Custodian position. The Library has not received many applications for the position; and the applications received the do not provide the skills and the background that the Library is seeking. The Committee recommends changing the custodian position to a supervising custodial position with a background in total building and equipment maintenance. The position will stay part-time at twenty-five hours per week; 12:30 pm- 5:30 pm Monday through Friday. The rate of pay would be higher than the other two custodian positions due to the additional responsibilities and requirements of the position. The rate of pay will be $16.40 an hour; annually it will cost the library an additional $3,406.00.
The Board all agreed with the Committee’s recommendation and wants the library to advertise for the position as soon as possible.
Motion: made by Joseph Nuzzo, seconded by Linda Seiler, to approve creating a Head Custodian position at twenty-five hours weekly at an hourly rate of $16.40. Vote: Yes: Steven Goldman, Mary Gannon, Joseph Nuzzo, Kathryn Arabia, Linda Seiler and Dr. Patricia Johnson. Mary Chamberlain abstained.
NEW BUSINESS
Laurence Harbor Branch Morning Hours
Mr. Oppenheim and Ms. Sherman addressed the need for morning hours at the Laurence Harbor Branch to serve the very young children and the elderly of the community.
Motion: made by Mary Gannon, seconded by Joseph Nuzzo, to approve the closing of the Laurence Harbor Branch on Fridays; and moving the four hours to Wednesday mornings on a six month trial basis starting January 2005 to June 2005; and to be re-evaluated in July. Unanimously approved
Policy for Charging Fees for Check Out of Videos and DVD’s
Mrs. Cyr asked the Board to discuss the Library’s policy for charging a fee for borrowing of the Library’s feature videos and DVD’s. The Departments have discussed this issue extensively; and although they acknowledge that the Library’s budget is in trouble this fiscal year and these fees contribute to the Library’s budget, charging fees for the borrowing of library materials violates professional library ethics and goes against the philosophy of free access to public library materials. The recommendation from the Department Head Team is that the borrowing fee be eliminated and the overdue fee be doubled to $2.00 per day. In this way, customers check out these materials at no cost, but if they choose to violate Library Policy by keeping them too long, they will pay a higher cost.
The Board discussed this issue at great length. It was agreed to table the issue until next month’s meeting for further discussion.
2005 Holiday Schedule
Friday, December 31 – CLOSED - HOLIDAY
New Year’s Day Saturday, January 1 – CLOSED – not a Holiday)
Martin Luther King Day Monday, January 17 – OPEN
President’s Day Monday, February 21 – OPEN
Good Friday Friday, March 25 – OPEN
(Sunday, March 27 – Easter – CLOSED – not a holiday)
Memorial Day Monday, May 30 - CLOSED
(Sunday, May 29 – CLOSED – not a holiday)
Independence Day Monday, July 4 – CLOSED
Labor Day Monday, September 5 – CLOSED
(Closed Saturday 9/3 & Sunday 9/4 – not holidays)
Election Day Tuesday, November 8 – OPEN
Veteran’s Day Friday, November 11 – OPEN
Thanksgiving Day Thursday, November 24 – CLOSED
Day after Thanksgiving Friday, November 25 – OPEN
Christmas Day Monday, December 26 – CLOSED - HOLIDAY
(Closed Sunday, December 25 – not a holiday)
THREE FLOATING HOLIDAYS TO BE USED IN CURRENT YEAR OR LOST
2006 HOLIDAY SCHEDULE (preliminary)
New Year’s Day Monday, January 2 – CLOSED - HOLIDAY
(Closed Sunday, January 1 - not a holiday)
The holidays are in accordance with the Union contract.
Mary Gannon made a motion to approve and Mary Chamberlain seconded the 2005 Holiday Schedule. All in favor.
2005 Schedule Board Meetings – Start Time 7:30 p.m.
January 12, 2005
February 9, 2005
March 9, 2005
April 13, 2005
May 11, 2005
June 8, 2005
July 13, 2005
August (no meeting scheduled)
September 14, 2005
October 12, 2005
November 9, 2005
December 14, 2005
There was extended discussion of the calendar of the Board meetings for 2005. Mrs. Seiler asked the Board to consider scheduling the meeting for another day and time due to a conflict with another Township meeting.
Motion: made by Linda Seiler, seconded by Mary Chamberlain, to table approving the 2005 Board meeting schedule. Vote: Yes: Linda Seiler and Mary Chamberlain; No: Mary Gannon, Kathryn Arabia, Joseph Nuzzo, Dr. Patricia Johnson and Steven Goldman. The motion fails.
Motion: made by Mary Chamberlain, seconded by Mary Gannon, to approve the 2005 Board meeting schedule. Vote: Yes: Mary Chamberlain, Mary Gannon, Joseph Nuzzo, Dr. Patricia Johnson, Kathryn Arabia and Steven Goldman; No: Linda Seiler. The motion passes.
January Board Meeting
Mrs. Chamberlain requested the January meeting be held at the Laurence Harbor Branch. The Board agreed to have the January meeting at the Branch. It will be so advertised.
Name Tags
Mrs. Cyr distributed to the members of the Board their new name tags. Mrs. Cyr thanked Maria Nowak for her work on the design of the name tags and on purchasing them for the staff and the Board members. Mr. Goldman proposed all Board members wear their name tags when they are in the building on library board business. The Board all agreed. The Board members will leave their name tags at the Reference desk.
Adjournment
Motion: made by Dr. Patricia Johnson, seconded by Joseph Nuzzo, to adjourn the meeting at 9:15 p.m. Unanimously approved
Respectfully submitted,
Joseph Nuzzo, Secretary
Library Board of Trustees
Date Approved: December 8, 2004 |