Library Board MInutes 7/9/03
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Bozeman Public Library Board of Trustees Meeting
Library Director’s Office
Bozeman Public Library
July 9, 2003
3:00 P.M.


ATTENDANCE              
Trustees: Brenda Davis, Chair; Jerry Bancroft; Holly Brown; Bob Gutzman; Al Kesselheim; Marcia Youngman, City Commissioner; Terri Dood, Staff; and Alice Meister, Director.  Guests: Clark Johnson, City Manager; Rachel Wallace and Rich Noonan, Missouri Headwaters Preservation Trust; Tom Lutey and Les McCartney, Lutey Construction; James Goehrung, City Superintendent of Facilities and Public Lands; Mark Johnson, Resource Technologies Inc.; Hillary Hertler, City Historic Preservation Planner; and Wendy Lewis, Foundation Director.

CALL TO ORDER
The meeting was called to order by Chair Davis at 3:15 p.m.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES
The minutes of the June 4th Board meeting were approved as submitted.

EXECUTIVE SESSION RE:
DIRECTOR’S PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL
Chair Davis stated that she was closing the meeting to discuss the Library Director’s annual performance appraisal with City Manager Clark Johnson pursuant to Section 2-3-203(3) Montana Code Annotated.  The open meeting was closed at 3:23 p.m.

Chair Davis reconvened the open meeting at 4:20 p.m.  At this time Johnson left the meeting.

ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION: DEPOT RESTORATION PROPOSAL(S); SALVAGE POLICY; E-RATE FUNDING; CALA FUNDING
Chair Davis changed the agenda in order to allow Missouri Headwaters Preservation Trust and Lutey Construction to present their proposal regarding the railroad depot on the Library site.  Wallace asked about the possibility of the depot being saved rather than dismantled.  She then introduced Lutey, who referred to his extensive experience with moving buildings.  He felt the depot could be moved to another site, either on or off the Library property.  Lutey distributed a letter written to Noonan in which he details the plan to move the depot at a cost of $200,000.  He would replace sections of the damaged brick around the perimeter of the building; remove the remainder of the damaged roof structure; install new roof trusses and a plywood building ceiling; separate the depot from its current foundation by saw-cutting the foundation, leaving intact 18 inches in order to provide a diaphragm at the base; excavate, form, and place the new depot foundation footings; raise the depot (approximately 349 tons) and move it to the new building location; drill and epoxy new steel reinforcement into the bottom of the existing foundation in order to tie the new and old foundations together; and form and place the new concrete foundation walls.  Bancroft then said the Library had considered the disposition of the depot over a lengthy period of time and concluded the best option would be to carefully dissemble the bricks, which would be stacked on pallets and stored in a City Yard until needed.  The Trustees have been sensitive to the issue of reuse or removal of the depot and wanted to best serve the community in balancing the requirement for a new Library and the unique characteristics of the site.  The cost would be approximately $30,000 to dismantle and palletize the brick versus $200,000 to move the building, but there is not enough money in the Library budget to move nor reconstruct the depot.  Kesselheim noted that remediation begins next week and that the Trustees have been looking at the disposition of the depot for over a year.  Johnson then stated that the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) wants the building down before the remediation starts, as there are security concerns around the building.  Also the depot sits on one of the worst contaminated areas on the property.  Wallace said they would find sources of funding, possibly from a community of railroad enthusiasts, to move it.  The concern is the deadline of this Friday, July 11th, to have a solid pledge. Bancroft said it would be more cost effective to reconstruct the depot from the palletized bricks, as the total cost would be approximately $500,000 to move and then reconstruct the depot.  There were also such concerns as:  where the depot would be situated on the site and attendant issues around that; additional expense if Envirocon is delayed in starting; bidding and permitting aspects; how long the relocated depot might sit empty before being refurbished;  whether there would be an opportunity to remove the depot later if it doesn’t happen now; and costs to safeguard the depot as all the remediation would need to be done before the building could be moved.  Hertler said that Bancroft had done a presentation before the Historic Preservation Advisory Board, which then endorsed the disassembly and reconstruction of the depot as the only real option left.  The Advisory Board is interested in obtaining Community Transportation Enhancement Program (CTEP) funds to reconstruct the depot on the site, bringing together such potential users as Sweet Pea, but that would be several years away.  Wallace then asked if Missouri Headwaters Preservation Trust might have until Friday to find funds to save the depot building, as once the depot was destroyed, this historic building would be lost forever.  She apologized for their eleventh hour request and said she did not realize that private non-profits could be involved in the Library project.  Bancroft said there had been three public meetings with comment split on saving the depot, but he hoped that the publicity was there for public participation.  Chair Davis thanked Wallace, Noonan, Lutey, and McCartney for attending and said the Trustees would discuss their request.  At this time they left the meeting.  Action After more discussion, Kesselheim moved that the Trustees appreciated the energy and enthusiasm behind the Missouri Headwaters Preservation Trust’s desire to move and save the depot but due to the looming deadline for remediation and concerns about unanticipated costs, the Trustees should proceed with their original intent to dismantle and pallatize the bricks.  The Trustees would welcome Missouri Headwaters Preservation Trust’s interest in reconstructing the depot.  Bancroft seconded, and the motion passed unanimously.  At this time Gutzman left the meeting.  Goehrung requested permission to advertise for sealed bids to remove the materials and buildings on the site for salvage.  There are two storage buildings at the base of Peet’s Hill, which have become havens for the homeless.  Goehrung would like to start development of the parking lot there but the buildings will need to be removed first.  Action Brown moved that Goehrung be allowed to advertise for sealed bids to remove the materials and buildings on the new Library site for salvage, Bancroft seconded, and the motion passed with all those in attendance approving the motion.  Due to the length of the meeting, Davis suggested that the discussion regarding whether to filter all the Library’s computers in order to receive E-rate funding (in compliance with the June 23rd Supreme Court ruling) be tabled until a later date.  The request to proceed with the Controlled Allocation of Liability Act (CALA) will go before the City Commission on July 14th.  Staff Attorney Tim Cooper has written a memo regarding CALA to the Commission; Johnson was asked to be present to explain the process.

CORRESPONDENCE
Returning to the regular agenda, Meister read a letter from Shana and Justin Deal who felt the building project should be stopped if the Library does not filter its computers in order to receive E-rate funding.  The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is ending its grant period for libraries in Montana on September 7, 2003 and gave some troubleshooting tips as well as software restrictions.  Several thank you’s were received from the State Library and individuals who attended the State Library Commission meeting at the Library.  An inquiry was received regarding the depot being used off the current site.  A family who moved from Bozeman to Colorado thanked the Library, noting what a wonderful place it was for them.  A letter was received from The Attic, Inc. worrying about the health hazards and the shutting down of traffic in front of their business during the remediation process.  Johnson has talked to them and tried to allay their concerns.  Four public comments were received about the lack of air conditioning in the building.  A patron suggested a drive-up return for CDs, and Mary Jo Stanislao replied that the new Library will have a walk-up return rather than a drive-up one as hot and cold temperatures are hard on audio-visual materials.  Another patron wanted to bring her dog to the Library, and Stanislao replied that it was against City code as well as potentially unsafe to the animal and the general public.  A patron wanted a music listening station in the new Library, which has already been planned.  A “Montana Tax Payer” wanted more Internet computers, and another one was moved downstairs to become an express station.  One individual recommended more movies, such as the Disney ones, and another commented, “This is a great Library! Thank you!!”  A patron e-mailed that he liked the location for the new Library and recommended more computer access and multi-media machines.  He was against filters on the computers.

FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY REPORT
Meister reported that the Friends of the Library plan to have its annual book sale on July 25-26 in conjunction with the downtown Crazy Days Sale.  The Friends and Foundation also plan to showcase the new Library at a table in front of the Nash-Finch Building during the Sweet Pea Festival on August 2nd.  The Friends will also be sponsoring the Jay O’Callahan Storytelling Workshop on August 4th and 5th at the Library.

FOUNDATION REPORT
Lewis spearheaded a request to the Downtown Improvement District Board for a grant of $250,000.  Brown said that City Manager Clark Johnson had suggested a proposal for the Library in conjunction with the City’s proposed parking garage and thought Lewis should check with him.  Lewis reported that plans are underway for the Foundation’s annual fundraising event on Friday, December 5.  Guest authors for 2003 will be announced in October at a special event with Library staff.  Lewis also gave a presentation to the Board of the Resource, Conservation and Development District for Gallatin, Meagher and Park Counties to explain the economic development benefits of the new Library.  Every donor to the capital campaign received a leather bookmark from the Foundation with a card saying, “Thank you for helping us write the next chapter.”  Al Kesselheim and Stuart Weber gave a special performance of “Confluence” for potential donors on June 5th at a house party.

DIRECTOR’S REPORT
At the end of the fiscal year, the 2003 circulation increased 3.85% over the previous year’s and door traffic was up 5.37%.   Reference and information questions increased nearly 24% over last year’s while InfoTrac Database usage was down nearly 29%.  All of these statistics will be in the forthcoming annual report.  The budget showed that the Library exceeded its budget by less than 1% due to air conditioning and new telephone expenses that were not known at the time the budget was drawn up.  Meister reported that the American Library Association (ALA) Conference in Toronto from June 19-25 was not as well-attended as last year’s conference due to the health scare regarding SARS.  Meister attended five ALA Council meetings in her role as ALA Councilor.  While there, she also attended the NASA@your Library program, as the Library will be hosting that exhibit in August for children ages 5-12 and for adults who don’t ordinarily use libraries.  The exhibit will include two exhibits: one with a plasma screen and NASA spotlight and one with six computers that have video clips about NASA and its contributions.  There will be programs as well.  Beth Boyson and Pam Henley attended the Gates Summer Institute on June 24-25, and Sandy Brug and Nancy Hatfield attended the Children’s Literature Conference in Dillon on June 25-27.  Three staff members plan to attend the Montana Library Association Retreat July 31-August 1.  There will be a Foundation Center Workshop on grant resources at the Library on July 14, which will be taught by Erika Wittlieb of the
Foundation Center in New York.  Children’s librarian Brug has had her first picture book Soccer Beat released to positive reviews.  75 people attended her program on July 8th.  The Library is sponsoring a contest called “Question of the Week” on the web site (www.bozemanlibrary.org) in order to promote its usage.  The Library purchased a self-check station from Checkpoint Systems for $24,500 plus $6,000 worth of software from Dynix, which comes out of the $35,000 budgeted in the capital budget.  We plan to have it in place by the end of July.  The Reference Department has dropped Encyclopedia Britannica online and now subscribes to World Book.  An extra express computer has been added downstairs due to user demand.  A new display featuring Dewey Decimal areas of the collection is now up in order to promote less frequently used materials.  Weeding or de-selection of the collection continues.  Library Activities for 2003-2004 have been drafted.  Staff evaluations will continue through August.  Cindy Christin will appear on KUSM Public Television July 10th and again on July 13th discussing summer reading programs.  She also was quoted in the newspaper today about the Harry Potter books.  The Summer Reading Program with the theme of “Laugh It Up @Your Library” is going well, with kids receiving coupons from Hardee’s, Wendy’s, McDonald’s, Burger King, and Dairy Queen, whom the Library thanks.  Meister will be on vacation August 7-15.  Incident reports included one about a man panhandling, pornography on an Internet computer used by a frequent patron, and two boys who were very confrontational to the staff and Director.  The police were called, and they were taken from the building and barred from using it for a period of time.

BOARD MEMBERS’ AND CITY COMMISSIONER’S REPORTS                  
Bancroft reported that the Art Committee had met and drafted some policies which would make the Art Committee responsible for developing and implementing the review and selection process of all artwork within designated permanent and rotation areas in the library facility and on library grounds.  Brown expressed concern about them being solely responsible for the artwork.  Due to lack of time, the discussion was tabled until the next meeting.

ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 6:08 p.m.  The next regularly scheduled meeting will be Wednesday, August 20th, at 4:00 p.m. in the Library Director’s Office.