Director’s Report

2/1/2005 Trustees Meeting

(January 2005 activity)

• 1/3/05 Attend Selectmen’s meeting. Newspaper lists all department heads expected to discuss budget shortfall. This is not the case.

• 1/5/05 Meet with Marguerite Monahan regarding FY 06 budget and potential cuts in FY 05 budget.

• 1/6/05 Walter calls at 7, informs me that parking lot not yet plowed. Library opens at noon.

• 1/6/05 Attend department head meeting at Town Hall

• 1/9/05 Book Sale and Southern Rail Concert. Both well attended and successful.

• 1/10/05 Wendy Rowe and I meet with Marguerite Monahan to continue budget discussions.

• 1/12/05 Yearly periodical list renewal completed.

• 1/13/05 Meet with Greg and Sandy to clarify Union issues. Nothing resolved.

• 1/18/05 Judy from DPW reports that parking lot light fixed over the holiday.

• 1/19/05 Membership meeting at Minuteman.

• 1/20/05 Atrion in to switch out equipment.

• 1/20/05 Meeting with Bill.

• Book order for January completed

• DVD/ Video order for January completed.

• 1/24/05 Library closed for snow.

• 1/25/05 Work desk most of the morning as library short staffed.

January has been a busy month here at the library. As the holidays have ended, library users are returning to us in large numbers. Nina has started her winter series of programs for children and is having much success. One new feature that she is doing is called “Book Cooks”. Each week the children will learn about a certain food (the first week was Thunder Cakes), make the food, and then enjoy the snack while hearing a story featuring the food item. The program has proven to be quite popular.

Snow and ice are proving to be a challenge this month. Walter has done a great job shoveling and salting. Ice repeatedly forms on the handicap ramp and by the book drop from roof melt. Not sure if anything can be done with this but the staff has done a good job at salting and scraping.

A plow driver reported to me that the bike rack might have been plowed along with the snow. He stated that a new driver was assigned to us during one of the storms and he was not familiar with the parking lot. I have looked for said rack and believe it to be buried in the large mound outside my office window. I’ll look again in June when this stuff finally melts.

Our three computers have arrived and two have been put into operation. I’ve been very pleased with how they have worked and how the company has worked with us. I have ordered four more and will be replacing all the opacs that still use Windows 98.

The other major work for January has been with the budget. Preparations for FY 06 have begun and the library is facing a potential 0.5% to 1% cut to its FY 05 budget. I am awaiting further updates on both issues.

Respectfully submitted,

Patrick W Marshall

Director

Town Meeting Warrant Article

Library Trustees warrant article for the May 2005 ATM


ARTICLE #__: To determine whether the Town will vote to re-authorize the
revolving fund for the Medway Public Library as provided for in
M.G.L. Chapter 44, Section 53E-1/2.  Said fund to have the following
restrictions:

1. The fund would be used for library automation and public copy
   machine expenses.
2. The revenue from the fund would come from charges for lost or
   damaged library materials, charges for lost or damaged library cards,
   meeting room use fees, printer use collections, public copy machine
   revenues, and from fines for overdue library materials.
3. The Board of Library Trustees would administer the fund and authorize
   the expenditure of monies in the fund.
4. The limit on the amount to be expended from the fund would be $22,500.

Or to act in any manner relating thereto.

                                          BOARD OF LIBRARY TRUSTEES