Board of Library Trustees Meeting
May 5, 2009

7:00 p.m.

Medway Public Library

Attendees:

Trustees:

MaryAnn Cabibbo
William Roberts, Secretary
Chuck Rockwood
Wendy Rowe, Chair

Citizens:

Margaret Perkins
Paul Marble, Fin Com Representative
Ed Duggan, Trustee Candidate
Carol Brown, Trustee Candidate

Minutes:

1. Approval of agenda

Motion to approve agenda: MAC1, WLR2, passed unanimously

2. Secretary's report

As an after thought, motion to approve last April's minutes: MAC1, WLR2, passed unanimously

3. Citizens Speak
4. Budget Report
5. Acting Director's Report
• Sharing Franklin's Director, cleaning

The situation coming into the meeting is:

• The Selectmen want a letter from us saying that we're in favor of regionalization.
• The Selectmen have added the money for Felicia Oti and the cleaning to the library's budget (thus boosting our MAR)
• They want us to have Felicia Oti as our "interim" Director.

Our problems with the second (including the money in our budget) are simple:

• If the money is in our MAR, then if after a year, for whatever reason, the arrangement with Franklin isn't pursued and if the money is then removed from our budget, we could well lose our certification again.
• If our budget increases, what we have to spend on materials has to go up (it's supposed to be 16% of our budget).

Thus simply including the extra money in our line item increases our expenses. These expenses are being born by donations and the Tuchinsky fund interest. Increasing them would hasten the day when we have drained the fund.

Paul (our FinCom rep) said that they (FinCom) had not understood the MAR issue.

Paul said that the Selectmen were all very much in favor of regionalization. They hoped and expected it would save money in the long run and would improve library services.

Carol said that regionalization of some kind was all but inevitable.

MaryAnn pointed out that no one knows what regionalization means and thus saying that we were in favor of it was difficult. She preferred language that said we were in favor of investigating regionalization.

Wendy, Ed & Paul felt that the Selectmen would not be happy about such phrasing.

Chuck agreed about the uncertainty of what regionalization means and felt that we should be careful to phrase it in a way that would be acceptable to the State Board of Library Commissioners. He felt the motion should include the phrase "Joint Library"

MaryAnn felt that the motions should be contingent on getting the extra money in a separate budget line item. Losing our certification once we've regained it is too horrible to be thought of.

Bill felt that we should just give the Selectmen what they want and try to sort out the budget issue afterwards as between reasonable people. He felt that if we expressed ourselves to be in favor of Regionalization and that after diligent study, it proved not to be feasible, that nothing was lost. He also felt that if worst came to worst, and if the regionalization money did in fact wind up in our budget, then it would be unlikely that the Selectmen would let us lose certification over the want of $40,000.

Anyhow, after some dickering the motions were:

• Motion: the Trustees are in favor of going forward with Regionalization. WLR1, WER2, after more discussion, passed unanimously
• Motion: As a first step toward regionalization we accept Felicia Oti as our interim Director for fiscal 2010 for a max of 14 hours per week. WLR1, WER2

There was some discussion of that. Felicia will be preparing our long range plan (needed to get grants). This planning also requires community involvement. She will also be working on defining exactly what regionalization is and how it can work. A regionalization plan is quite important.

After discussion it passed unanimously

• Motion: The Trustees urge that the money for regionalization be put in a separate line item outside the Medway Library's Municipal Appropriation for FY2010, to avoid jeopardizing our future state certification. WLR1,WER2

Wendy will add the justification of this in the letter and will stress how important it is to preserve certification once we regain it.

Passed unanimously

Wendy asked Ed if he would attend the next Franklin Board of Library Directors meeting. He agreed. It was pointed out that it's usually held on the 4th Monday which is Memorial Day and so it's bound to move.

The Secretary notes that his spell checker insists on changing the word "regionalization" to "rationalization".

• Picturing America grant materials on display

Will put them up in batches, starting with some with a democracy theme, appropriate given the upcoming election and Town Meetings

They would like us display as many as possible during the course of the year.

6. Assistant to the Director's Report

Margaret passed out the budget report. We're on track.

She said she was going to start weeding the mysteries. The Secretary is resisting the urge to think of something smart to say concerning unexplained disappearances and bound bodies turning up in the basement.

7. Old business
• STM Mon May 11 7pm HS
• ATM Mon June 15 7pm HS
8. New Business
• CORRECTION: Annual Town Election TUES MAY 19 (3 Trustee candidates for 3 positions)
• Meena's request: vote to allow former-Trustee President of the Friends unchaperoned Library access?

We have not in the past given access to anyone but Trustees and staff and bonded sorts like the cleaning people. Bill thought it would be all right and moved to that effect (WLR1, CR2) but then the general feeling was that we should check so Wendy is going to see about asking Town Council and the motion was tabled.

• Medway Pride Day May 16

Need people to work the Friend's booth

• Public servant pension controversy

Wendy read a letter she sent the Town which declined any possible compensation for her Trustee and volunteer efforts. She's following in husband Pace Willisson's footsteps in this. They hope it would start a trend.

9. Fundraising
• Booksale May 8 & 9; $5 a bag May 16
• Friends $10/ticket Berkshires timeshare week, drawing 2pm Sat June 13
• Nov/Dec B&N fundraiser if we get a coordinator (Meena can't do it this time)

Chuck said he could do this. There's is also another possible volunteer.

• Odd Fellows roast beef dinner?

Chuck will arrange

10. Next Meeting June 2 2009; includes reorganization (election of officers)

Motion to adjourn (8:20), MAC1, WLR2, passed unanimously