BM 2010 02-11 LB
WILLIAM T. COZBY PUBLIC LIBRARY
LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES
February 11, 2010
February 11, 2010 Library Board meeting was canceled due to inclement weather.
MEMORANDUM
TO:
Library Board
FROM:
Kathleen P. Metz Edwards, Library Director
DATE:
February 4, 2010
SUBJECT:
February’s Report for Library Board
Library Board will meet on Thursday, February 11, 2010 in the Library Program Room at 7:00
p.m.
Workload Indicators:
January continues the trend toward increased circulation – 10% overall
and 18% for books. Gate count decreased slightly – we have discussed how the laser counter is
impacted by many factors. At the end of the day, circulation continues to be the most consistent
statistic. Program attendance for the past three months is up slightly. Holds’ requests are up 7%.
Interlibrary loans have decreased which is actually a “good” statistic. We have made a concerted
effort for the collection to meet most of our users’ needs. There will always be the need to
borrow the more esoteric items. WiFi usage continues to increase.
Loan Star Libraries:
The computers have been delivered. Library staff and IT staff are
working together to set an identical “image” that can be deployed to all computers. These are
public computers which have a higher level of security. They must be “locked down” yet
function as desktops. We need to make sure this is right. We are targeting the end of February
for deployment.
2009 Texas Public Library Survey:
Tom Dwyer will need to sign the Texas State Library and
Archives Commission annual report. This report contains compiled statistics the Board received
in FY 08/09. It also reports the audited City funding of the library.
Library Board Chair’s Report to Council
: The Library Board Chair’s report to council is
scheduled for February 23, 2010. An agenda item will include discussion of input.
Joint Council Work Session with Library and Park’s Boards and Library Expansion
Feasibility Study:
A joint work session with the City Council and the Library and Park’s
Boards will be held on Thursday April 8, 2010. This item will be placed on the February
Agenda for discussion. The City Manager has tentatively requested that Denelle Wrightson,
PSA/Dewberry architect be prepared to discuss study findings. The study is also on the February
agenda. The City Manager has also requested that I obtain additional information from local
libraries regarding recent projects which I will have for the March meeting.
501 C3 Foundation:
There were two follow-up items from the January meeting. The first, is it
ok for board members to serve on the library board and the library foundation or was this a
conflict of interest? City Attorney David Dodd’s response: The people can serve on both
boards. No conflict exists as long as the individuals do not gain a personal benefit from either
board. The second question, are the Foundation meetings subject to the Open Meetings Act?
David Dodd addressed the open meetings act question in 2006. The Foundation meetings are not
subject to the Open Meetings Act.The Foundation is not a City department.
eBranch:The meeting is scheduled for the
Time permitting, we will have the eBranch demo.
library program room so that we can use the overhead projector.
Comments and Suggestions:
Suggestions relating to the acquisition of new books, movies and
periodicals are given to Public Services staff for evaluation and follow-up. Appropriate items
are ordered or interlibrary loan is offered for those not appropriate for the collection.
1-14-10 – I love your library! In particular, you have the BEST selection of up-to-date movies
for a library I have ever come across! There is really only 2 suggestions I can think of: I am
currently a grad student and I like to study at your library and I prefer your quiet reading room,
but the past few times I’ve been in there, I have ha to leave due to it being SO COLD! And also
people working on their laptops in there Is really distracting. I am unable to study in any other
part of the library due to people just being so rudely loud and little kids screaming and running
around. Other than this, you are all doing a great job and thank you. TeraS..Vicki Chiavetta’s
response:
I want to let you know that we are aware that the quiet room is frequently cooler than the rest of the library.
The reason for it is that the room is at the opposite end of the building’s cooling and heating unit and
consequently is one of the most difficult to regulate. Also, during the last few weeks, we have had
mechanical problems with our boiler which unfortunately occurred during some of the coldest days we’ve
had this year. This resulted in very cold temperatures throughout the building. We have been working to get
the system regulated again. All I can recommend at this time is for you to consider using a table near the
back windows, where it is usually warmer, or dressing in layers to use the quiet room. We regularly
monitor the building’s temperatures and attempt to maintain as comfortable an atmosphere as possible.
However, the quiet room temperature will always be one of the most difficult to stabilize.
I also want to let you know that using laptops in the quiet room is not allowed. It is clearly posted outside
the room that no electronic devices are allowed in the room. If we are aware of someone using such
devices, we will ask the person to either leave the room or discontinue using the device. The staff does
walk around and watch for such activity but if you would let the librarian at the information desk aware of
any problems in the room, we will address it immediately. We want the quiet room to be used for the
purpose for which it is intended.
We are currently working on an expansion feasibility study as the result of the Coppell 2030 - A Family
Community For A Lifetime process, which recommended expanding the library and providing separation
between research and high traffic areas. I see that you live in Irving. Until the library is expanded, you may
find the Valley Ranch Library on MacArthur, which does not have the traffic that we have in Coppell, to be
more conducive to research.
Again, thank you for taking the time to complete the survey.
Post Script – the boiler has been fixed.
1-24-10 – I do not disagree with the 4 day hold policy but I suggest that you create a mechanism
that would allow a patron to notify the library that they need a couple extra days t o pick up the
hold. Some of your patrons (myself included) have jobs that require travel and at times it is
impossible to pick up books in the 4 day window. Thanks EllenW.Chiavetta’s response:
Thank you for taking the time to complete a Compliments and Suggestions Survey and to give me your
contact information. I really appreciate having the opportunity to explain the Holds decision and why we
had to make the change in the retention time.
The decision to reduce the holds period from 7 days to 4 was not made lightly. In FY09, the library
processed 70,609 Holds – 12% of circulation. Ten years ago, the library processed approximately 5,000
Holds per year. These are generally new, high demand items and leaving them on the shelves for up to a
week takes them out of circulation. During those ten years, the library’s materials budget has not
increased, but circulation has more than doubled. The decision to reduce the Holds’ time to four days was
based on budgetary issues.
Before we changed the Holds’ period, we surveyed other libraries and found that they were not holding
materials for a week. Some libraries have started limiting or eliminating holds altogether. Other libraries do
not allow Holds on new items. We did not want to implement these kinds of restrictions as our users really
appreciate the Holds’ service.
I appreciate your suggestion that we create a mechanism that would allow a patron to notify the library that
they need a few more days to pick up their hold. Unfortunately this would defeat the purpose of keeping
materials available and we do not have the staff to answer phones and process additional items. Until the
City decides to expand the library, staff will work to provide the best service we can within the resources
we have. I understand that not all our users will be satisfied.
We do have one holds feature you may be interested in. If you’re going to be away for an extended period
of time, you can access your library account and suspend your hold requests. This will maintain your place
in the queue but keep holds from generating during the time you select for suspension. Staff at the
Information Desk are happy to show you how to do this. You may manage your Holds from any computer
but suspending them must occur before they move to Being Held status.
With the challenging economic times, we have seen an increase in circulation and in Holds’ demand. We
understand that our citizens rely on the Library for services. We also understand that increasing the Library
budget is not an option at this time.
Again, thank you for taking the time to complete the survey.
Post Script – the response to this letter is slightly different as the suggestor requested a
“mechanism” to basically allow her the 7 days. Vicki explained how to manage Holds.
However, once the Hold is triggered and on the shelf, it’s too late. We do not have the staffing
to manager last minute requests. While I wish we did, we simply do not.
in the program room.
See you on Thursday