MEETING MINUTES-Corrected
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
SCARBOROUGH PUBLIC LIBRARY
March 18, 2021
4:30 PM - Video Conference
Meeting called to order at 4:30 PM by Bill Donovan.
Attendees:
Nancy Crowell, Director of Scarborough Library, Catherine Morrison, Asst. Director of Scarborough Library, Bill Donovan, Board of Trustees President, Bill Onorato, Peter Hatem, Audra Sinclair, Emily Ward, Joyce Clark, Friends of the Library Liaison, Susan Powell, Lenore Rapkin, Anne Janak, Judy Johnson, Jon Anderson, Liaison to Town Council
Adoption of Minutes, February 18, 2021
Motion to adopt minutes made by Anne Janak and seconded by Judy Johnson. Motion passed unanimously.
- Treasurer's Report
- Library Director's Report
- Town Councilor's Remarks
- President's Remarks
Consent Calendar:
- Building Expansion Committee Minutes, 3/1/2021
- Community Relations/Development Committee Minutes, 3/1/2021
- Personnel, Nominating, Governance Committee, Minutes, 3/4/2021
- FOSL Board Notes, 3/16/2021, not yet available
Motion to adopt consent calendar made by Lenore Rapkin and seconded by Anne Janak. Motion passed unanimously.
Unfinished Business:
Fundraising Feasibility Study- Status report-Bill Donovan
Discussion on the Downs Downtown District as the possible Library location
- All three sessions were different, with a nice mix of people
- It is incumbent on us (the Board) to get the design team to do an analysis so we can know sooner rather than later our options
- The Simons architects are doing a study for us so that we can see what our options are
- We don't want to be in a position to need to come back to the town in 10 years if we can't expand beyond the land, we have now, so there are some benefits to the Downs location
- Library currently sits on the municipal campus and has excellent accessibility. We don't want to be placed in an area in the community that doesn't have high accessibility
- There is a concern that if we located the library expansion at the Downs that we would not be accessible
- The present Library serves the portion of our community that is more diverse in the area; a lot of people who walk in those communities
- It will be good to consider how we connect the Downs to the Library if we stay where we are now
- The town is getting ready to form more specific sub-committees where they might be able to address some of the issues of connectivity and transportation between the current municipal area and the Downs development
- BEC committed is exploring three options with Simons Architects to come up with a fact-based analysis of those three options
- Current site with a 2nd-floor option
- Grandstand Option (not likely to work)
- Another spot in the Downs
- The Demont study will be affected by the fact that we aren't yet sure what our options are because we are still exploring sites
- Jon Anderson opened up the idea that there might be other areas that we could have available to us in Scarborough.
Motion to approve the Simons proposal to do a study for $8,500 made by Susan Powell and seconded by Peter Hatem. Motion passed unanimously
Report from Finance and Investment Committee online of credit application - Bill Onorato
- Application was approved
Discussion on formation of Citizen Campaign Committee and PAC (Political Action Committee)
- Tabled until next month
Discussion on land acknowledgment sub-committee work
- Ready to present to the Maine Wabanaki REACH
- We will send it to the tribal group at Maine Wabanaki REACH for reading and review
- This will be on the agenda next month for review
New Business:
Discussion on endorsing a fine-free policy -Library Director
- Nancy recommends it as a social equity issue; we would like to remove any negative connotations around borrowing because you might have a fine, any stigma for our clientele
- Local libraries, including Portland, have gone fine-free
- We will also wipe out the records of anyone who has a fine on the books
- If someone has a book for over three weeks, they will receive a bill for it, but if they return the book, there is no fine
- This change has full staff approval
Motion to endorse the Fine Free policy and waive the second reading for the Scarborough Public Library made by Peter Hatem and seconded by Susan Powell. Motion passed unanimously.
Presentation of FY2022 Budget -Library Director
- During one fiscal year, the PPP was a loan, during the second fiscal year, it was a grant, so we have access to some of that money
- We have additional funds available due to prudence during the shutdown ($164,300)
- All of that is applied to the revenue line before the amount of money we request from the town
Motion to accept the budget made by Susan Powell and seconded by Peter Hatem. Motion passed unanimously. Jon Anderson abstains.
Discussion on potential candidates for Board upcoming vacancies -PNG, Emily Ward
- The Board has two vacancies; when this Board ends, Audra Sinclair and Peter Hatem will be leaving, but Emily Ward and Bill Donovan will remain
- They received three strong candidates, Emily Ward interviewed one candidate yesterday, and notes have been forwarded to the committee
- If the Board approves all three applicants, there will be just one seat vacant
Board self-assessment -PNG Committee
- This has been sent out and are due to Lenore by April 18
- The Skills Inventory has been sent via a web-based form, and that will be reviewed in the April meeting
Items for next agenda:
- Update on the Land Use Statement
- Slate of Board Members
- Review of Assessments
Trustee Comments
- Emily Ward wanted to recognize the work the library staff has done during COVID to keep the Library going
- Nancy shared a story of a young woman using the Library as a transient with her mom. She separated from her mother, found an apartment on Route 1, and walked to her job. We were able to provide her with a gift certificate, a headlamp, and a safety vest. This was about a year and a half ago, and she came back today and returned those items.
Adjournment
Motion to adjourn made by Lenore Rapkin and seconded by Susan Powell. Motion passed unanimously.
The meeting adjourned by Bill Donovan at 6:02 PM.
Recorded by Audra Sinclair, Secretary