September 23, 2009
Teton County Library Board Meeting
September 23, 2009
President Lisa Delaney called the meeting to order. Attending were board members Bill Wotkyns, Anne Ladd, and Clark Heindl. Also present were Director Deb Adams, Assistant Director Isabel Zumel, Foundation Executive Director Missy Falcey, her assistant Pauline Towers-Dykeman, Facility Manager Dail Barbour, Communications Supervisor Margaret Thompson, and Attorney Chris Reimer and guest Lee Ridell.
Correspondence from the public: None
Approval of Minutes: Clark moved to approve the August 20, 2009 minutes, Bill seconded, all voted in favor.
Section 215 Report: No requests were received under Section 215 of the Patriot Act.
Friends Report: The Friends are busy getting ready for the book sale in October as well as working on facility suggestions for the library addition project.
Foundation Report: Discussion: IRS tax status and 990 compliance
Missy Falcey introduced Chris Reimer, a local attorney and expert in non-profit tax regulations to explain some changes the Foundation is considering. In 2006 some major changes were made in terms of requirements for non-profits and form 990 was instituted. This requires more rigorous reporting and new policies for non-profits in areas such as record retention and whistle blower protection. These new rules are not as advantageous with regard to the Foundation’s tax status as a supporting non-profit organization as the previous ones were. As a result, the Foundation is considering a change of status to a public charity. This would have tax advantages for the Foundation but the governing aspects would stay the same. The current by-laws require notice to the Library Board. The proposed changes will be presented to the Foundation Board at the December meeting. Missy thinks the Friends may want to consider this also.
Financials
Monthly Report-Questions & Answers
Review: State of Wyoming-Dept. of Audit Report
Deb explained that this is traditionally a slow tax receipt time for library. As a result, we have used a substantial amount of our cash reserve which is a good illustration of why we have it. To date, the library has not generated a lot of expenses in this fiscal year. Deb also provided a copy of the state survey of county board expenses. This is not an official audit but more of an informational compilation generated by the WY Department of Audit.
Action Item: Approve Vouchers
Anne moved to approve the vouchers as presented, Bill seconded, all voted in favor.
Librarian’s Report
Discussion: Staff Vacancies and Library Hours
Deb informed the board that there are 7 staff vacancies currently or coming up as people have given notice. They are: Collection Development Supervisor, Teen Program Coordinator, College Prep Coordinator, Volunteer Coordinator, Alta Library Assistant, Technical Services Library Assistant and Library Page.
In the past the Foundation has funded some positions as a pilot project and if successful, the library folds the position and the salary into our operating costs. The VITA tax program coordinator is an example, as is the College Prep Coordinator. The County Commission looked at all county vacancies this week. Our approach has been to support the county in terms of any budget reductions. However, the Library Board has statutory authority to allocate and manage the funds. In order to have clarity about this, the Commission requested their legal council to look at the relevant statutes. Deb worked very hard this year on several options to reduce our budget if necessary with a primary strategy of keeping all staff employed.
The Commissioners understood the necessity to fill the collection development position and they approved a total of four county positions. They are particularly struggling with EMT coverage which is a concern as well as a challenge for the Commission. Deb shared her concern with the library board that we are starting to lose ground with the college prep and teen coordinator positions. With school starting, this is the time to be working on both of these areas. She and staff have worked on spreading out some of the tasks but this is not a solution. She would like to post the positions internally to see if any current staff is interested. This would still leave the same number of vacancies.
Bill thinks it would be confusing for the Commissioners to fill the positions internally. His preference would be to push really hard to fill these two after the county assessment. Deb reiterated that the delay is impacting the program. The board felt that we need to impress Jim Radda in the County Attorney’s office with the urgency of reviewing the statutes. Deb emphasized that consistency with our teen audience is very important-we don’t want to lose ground. Deb can provide information from the schools, patrons, and our stats about the benefits of a teen coordinator and the volunteer coordinator. The Library Board agreed that we should fill the College Prep Coordinator vacancy now. They also agreed to continue to be supportive of the county’s budget efforts and keep them aware of the library board’s responsibilities.
Facilities Planning: Main Library
Review recommendation from Architect Selection Committee
Action Item: Approve Selection of Architect for Design of Main Library/Remodel
Review/Discussion of next steps for facilities planning
Deb gave a short review of the process after the submissions to the RFQ were received on August 7, 2009. She and Dail reviewed the submissions for completeness-did they meet all the requests for information in the RFQ. All submissions did and then were given to the committee members to evaluate independently. The committee short listed 3 firms using the scoring template included in the RFQ.
Dail called the references of the short listed firms, asking the same questions of each reference and furnished the results to the committee. The committee then conducted interviews and weighed the pros and cons of each presentation as well as the team strengths and what they had to offer the library. The recommendation for the board is to select Gilday Architects with Humphries Poli Architects. The committee cited their depth of experience with library remodels and integration with new buildings, an ability to interface well with the library staff and the fact that a recent project by Gilday Architects was finished ahead of schedule and under budget. Anne and Clark stressed that the committee could not have gone wrong with any of the firms shortlisted. This made the decision difficult. However, it was a unanimous decision by the committee. The board asked some questions concerning the ability of the local firm to be adequately staffed. Anne felt the local office would ramp up and noted that Dennis Humphries has been very available during the Alta project. As the initial work will be done by Dennis the impact on the local office will not be immediate.
Bill announced that he will recuse himself as he has a conflict. Clark moved to approve the recommendation of Gilday Architects with Humphries Poli Architects to design the new library addition and remodel, Anne seconded, all voted in favor.
Deb handed out the outline for next steps in facility planning with a reminder that the timeline is very tight. The SPET process will be a grassroots local effort with help from the architects with graphics and possibly attendance at some meetings associated with that effort. The contract will be an AIA contract reviewed by the County Engineer’s office and the County Attorney’s office. Deb requested that the board appoint a working group, similar to the Alta process, composed of Deb, Isabel, Dail, and 2 board members. Clark and Bill volunteered to be the board representatives. Anne moved to approve the group (above), Bill seconded, all voted in favor.
Deb also informed the board that the Web page will play a major part in the effort and urged them to check it out. Public input can be given via the website and there will be drawings, photos, and updates as the project progresses. Margaret asked the board to let Deb or her know of any additional ideas they might have to improve the site.
Alta Branch: Construction Updates
Action Item: Approve Construction Payments
Dail informed the board that the project is on schedule. We are anticipating starting on November 16 by installing shelves, then furniture and books. A grand opening is planned for after the first of the year.
Anne moved to approve the pay application for Shaw Construction in the amount of $98,004.96. Clark seconded, all voted in favor.
The meeting was adjourned at 5:30PM.
Dail Barbour
Administrative Assistant to the Board
