HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Ames Public Library Board of Trustees Minutes of the Regular Meeting 02/27/2014Ames Public Library Board of Trustees
Minutes of the Regular Meeting
February 27, 2014
The Ames Public Library (APL) Board of Trustees met in regular session on Thursday, February
27, 2014, in the City Council Chambers, 515 Clark Avenue, with Acker, Budd, Manus, Meier,
and Stow in attendance. Bradley, Briese, Campbell, and Eason were excused. Multivista Iowa
Managing Principal Russ Bollig, Circulation Supervisor Tracy Briseno, Library Director Lynne
Carey, Outreach Supervisor Valerie Donnell, and Construction Advisor Brad Heemstra were
also present.
Call to Order: Board President Stow called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
Consent Agenda:
Moved by Manus, seconded by Meier, to adopt a resolution approving the following
items on the consent agenda:
1) Donations
a) From Edna Ackerman ....................................................................................... $50.00
b) From Delhi Public Library in thanks for Interlibrary Loan assistance ................... $5.00
c) In memory of Gretchen Triplett from the Story County Genealogy Society ....... $25.00
From the following donors to match Lalo’s donation for children’s books:
d) Anonymous (3 donors) ..................................................................................... $58.59
e) Denise Benda ................................................................................................... $25.00
f) Susan Besco .................................................................................................... $18.59
g) Geraldine Biondolillo ......................................................................................... $20.00
h) Jeanne Bohlke .................................................................................................. $18.59
i) Sarah & Rob Bohlke ......................................................................................... $18.59
j) Tracy Briseño ................................................................................................... $20.00
k) Lynne Carey ..................................................................................................... $18.59
l) Val Donnell ....................................................................................................... $18.59
m) Alissa Dornink ................................................................................................... $18.59
n) Tom Dotz .......................................................................................................... $18.59
o) Mark Harris ....................................................................................................... $18.59
p) Jerri Heid .......................................................................................................... $20.00
q) Martha Lincoln .................................................................................................. $18.59
r) Mary Logsdon ................................................................................................... $20.00
s) Sherry Meier ..................................................................................................... $18.59
t) John Monroe ..................................................................................................... $18.59
u) Linda Montet ..................................................................................................... $20.00
v) Patricia Schwarz ............................................................................................... $18.59
w) Peter Stickney .................................................................................................. $20.00
x) Kevin Stow ....................................................................................................... $18.59
y) Jeanne Wiebke ................................................................................................. $18.59
z) Jennifer Williams .............................................................................................. $20.00
2) Minutes of the regular meeting of January 16, 2014
3) Payment of Claims 1/1/2014 – 1/31/2014
Vote on Motion: 5-0. Motion approved unanimously. Resolution adopted.
Public Forum: None.
Agenda Item 2
Ames Public Library Friends Foundation Report: Trustee Acker praised the Teen Advisory
Group, which had 175 in attendance at its Harry Potter-themed Yule Ball, and has been very
active planning a Valentine’s Day event, bake sales, give-back nights, a superhero event in
April, and another walking dead fundraiser in May. She also spoke about the following
Foundation Board activities: the organization’s accounting is being moved back in house in
order to improve efficiency and reduce cost; several successful small sales have taken place
and a garage sale is being planned in conjunction with the library’s move back to its permanent
building; the holiday giving solicitation netted $31,000 and this year’s annual campaign brought
in $24,000.
Staff Report: Director Carey updated the trustees on the following activities:
• 13 teams that are tackling major, system-wide initiatives;
• 17 committees that are working on specific tasks;
• The library’s budget presentation to the City Council, which was well received on
February 5;
• Staff Development Day, during which Stow presented staff service awards and staff
engaged in activities related to the building project, communication skill-building, and the
kick-off of a 13-month-long City initiative called Bringing Our Values to Life;
• A norovirus outbreak that resulted in closure of the library for two days while testing for
carbon monoxide and infectious disease was conducted and cleaning crews were
mobilized. Carey offered accolades for Valerie Donnell, who worked hard to notify
people, work with the City, handle the media, get the word out to the community, and
start the cleaning process. Carey distributed the feedback she had received and stated
that both the City and the Library were reviewing the incident and taking lessons from it.
• The start of profiling and customizing the new library software that began in the midst of
the health dilemma with Polaris representatives who came from New York;
• Purchases of technology for the new library, including a new server that just arrived; and
• Changes to the organizational structure that are underway:
o Recruitment of a three-quarter-time Client Support Technician to help with
Information Technology.
o Transition of the Bookmobile staff into the Customer Account Services workgroup,
Project Smyles employees into Youth Services, and training of Adult Services staff to
take over Home Delivery.
o Planning for staff to take on the new Library Aide and Call Center duties as soon as
Polaris is installed.
Trustee Manus said she felt the norovirus outbreak had been handled well, but wondered if the
Library had a policy for recovering from disasters. Carey said that the disaster recovery plan is
very old and the issue has been referred to a one of the new committees. The effort will be put
into planning for the new facility. Manus said she felt it would be useful to create a template of
the actions that were taken so that someone else could step in and take over if another situation
were to arise. Stow urged those who were involved to write down what they did before too much
time passed.
Carey also spoke about legislative lobbying day at the Iowa Capitol on March 5 and the issues
coming up this session; the Nevada Public Library’s recent open house, and the rescue of a
stray cat from the library construction site by Ames Animal Control Officers.
Library Building Project Update:
Agenda Item 2
Construction Update: Construction Advisor Heemstra said there are about 50 workers on the
library’s site on a typical day. From the exterior, one can see metal panels that are being
installed, as well as a mock-up of the pre-cast panels that will be used along the alley. Inside,
drywall installation and mechanical and electrical rough-in continues, and the elevators are
almost done. Heemstra said painting of the second floor ceiling and hanging of the ceiling grid
will take place soon.
Heemstra went on to say that the temporary rubber roof is currently covering the 1940 roof; the
new metal deck and the permanent roof system will be installed as weather permits. Work on
tile and terrazzo is scheduled for the first week in March and on cabinets and countertops in
April.
Bids for furniture and custom millwork are due in March. Staff hopes to bring the results to the
Board on March 20; however, two of the bids are not due until the 19th. Carey said that as much
information as possible would be included in the March Board Packet; the rest would be
provided as soon as it is available from the Purchasing Division.
Project Cost Summary & Renovation Project Financial Report: Heemstra pointed out that
nearly $8 million worth of work had been completed through January. In the next few months,
more accurate information will be known about the owner costs and the budget can be re-
evaluated. Stow was pleased to see that there are only $15,000 outstanding in pledges.
Asked about work place safety, Heemstra said the Samuels Group has now completed 422
working days without lost time due to accidents. He had high praise for the construction
supervisor, who takes safety very seriously and removes workers from the site if he finds that
they are not following proper protocol.
Multivista Photographic Documentation Demonstration: Stow said that Multivista’s
photographic documentation services had been recommended by the Building Project
Committee, and Russ Bollig, the firm’s Managing Principal, was present to show what services
are being provided.
Bollig said that his firm had set up a website that shows the building plans and the location from
which photos are taken. A photographer familiar with the construction industry is sent to the
project site on scheduled dates and when important construction activities are taking place. He
then indexes and links the photos to the architectural plans. About 34 or 35 individuals presently
have access to the APL files from anywhere they have internet access. He said the Samuels
Group, the architect, and the contractors are actively using the information to remotely review
installations and assess progress.
Bollig showed some of the progress photos, noting that it is possible to select a specific date
and “walk around” the site or select a specific shot and see how it changes over time. The
photographic documentation package purchased by APL includes:
1- A site survey, showing the sidewalks, streets, curbs, and everything prior to construction
2- Pre-construction exterior of the building
3- Pre-construction Interior
4- Major milestones (such as waterproofing)
5- Exterior progress every two weeks
6- Interior progress, which includes shots of every wall as soon as the studs are installed
and provides a perfect history of how everything was built.
7- Elevation photos
Agenda Item 2
Bollig explained that the documentation can be used as quality control because anything that
wasn’t done properly can be pinpointed exactly. In the future, the information will be useful so
that facilities maintenance staff can see exactly where wiring and plumbing is installed and what
is behind each wall.
Stow asked about documentation of the roof. Bollig said that was not included in the APL
contract, but could be added. Heemstra said there is less need for photos of the roof because a
person can go up and actually see it.
During conversation with the trustees, Bollig mentioned that 15,186 photographs of the project
had been taken to date. Heemstra added that photos of all the historic windows had been taken
to make accurate information available to bidders on the restoration contract.
Recommendation for New Bookmobile:
Moved by Budd, seconded by Acker, to adopt a resolution authorizing the Library
Director to work with Fleet Services and representatives of OBS, Inc. to negotiate the
terms of a contract for the purchase of a new bookmobile based on the proposal
dated January 24, 2014.
Valerie Donnell, Outreach Supervisor, spoke about the bookmobile replacement fund, the work
she and the staff in Outreach Services did in preparation, and the efforts of the committee that
was charged with looking into the purchase of a new vehicle. She said a wealth of information
was gained from various conferences and contact made with other librarians and bookmobile
drivers. Expertise was added by members of other City Departments, including Purchasing,
Fleet Services, and Cy-Ride.
Donnell said that four vendors responded to the Request for Proposal and all team members
independently evaluated the responses. The highest compiled score was received by OBS, Inc.
of Canton, Ohio, and the team recommends moving forward with contract negotiations.
Stow asked about the life span of a bookmobile and Donnell said that Fleet Services
recommended depreciating it over 10 years. Carey noted that the current bookmobile is older
than that and problems are increasing; it would not be wise to wait to replace it upon failure
because it takes so long to research and design and order a new one.
With respect to pricing, Carey said it was hard to estimate the exact cost at this point because
some items in the proposal were included as options and the layout has to be determined first.
She expected the total would be between $260,000 and $280,000.
Manus asked if the Library had considered trade-in. Donnell said most of the proposals invited
trade in, but the offers were not very good and Fleet Services advised against it. As for
operating expenses, Donnell said mileage per gallon is low, but Carey noted that staff expenses
are the greatest cost. All in all, the improved design, stability, lighter weight, and other features
of the new bookmobile will be a great improvement.
Meier was interested in the timeline for delivery after the contract is signed. Donnell said she
would like to have a celebration early next spring, but the delivery time will be part of the
negotiation.
Manus asked if the company would provide training with the new vehicle. Donnell said that the
Agenda Item 2
manufacturer included training, but the drivers’ licenses will not have to be changed.
Acker and Meier suggested that the motion should state that the contract price
should not exceed the balance of the bookmobile depreciation fund. Budd accepted
the friendly amendment.
Vote on Motion as amended: 5-0. Motion approved unanimously. Resolution adopted.
Budd commended Donnell and the rest of the Bookmobile Team for the extensive preparation
and thorough approach to the process of purchasing of a new vehicle.
Proposed Renewal Plan for 2014-2015:
Moved by Meier, seconded by Manus, to adopt a resolution adopting the Ames Public
Library Renewal Plan 2014-2015 as presented/amended.
Carey said the plan is a representation of the team work that was discussed at the November
retreat, with the addition of the list of new committees that are currently at work. Essentially
being a task list with goal statements, the document can be used as a tool. Stow agreed that it
was not strategic, but will serve as a guide through the next few months.
Carey said she expected that the Board, the library staff, and the community would work
together on a strategic plan once the library has returned to its permanent facility and Manus felt
that approach made sense.
Vote on Motion: 5-0. Motion approved unanimously. Resolution adopted.
Presentation of Slate of Officers: On behalf of the Nominating Committee, Trustee Meier
announced the slate of candidates for next year’s offices: Kevin Stow, President; Jane Acker,
Vice President; and Sherry Bradley, Secretary. Election and installation will take place in March.
Director Evaluation Committee: Stow said the committee membership was being reconfigured
and the members will be Sherry Meier, Tyler Eason, and himself.
Trustee Comments: The trustees said they were excited with the progress on the building.
They were also pleased with the handling of the norovirus attack. They expressed appreciation
for the consideration given to the welfare of staff and the entire community, and for resuming
service as quickly as possible.
Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned by consensus at 8:00 p.m.
The next regular meeting will be on Thursday, March 20, 2014, at 7:00 p.m., in the City Council
Chambers, 515 Clark Avenue.
____________________________________
___________________________________
Karen C. Thompson, Administrative Assistant Jane C. Acker, Board Secretary
Agenda Item 2