Board Meeting Minutes 4/23/2024 (html)
Tuesday, April 23, 2024
LIBRARY BOARD MEETING
SILVER FALLS LIBRARY DISTRICTSilver Falls Library Program Room
410 S. Water St., Silverton, Oregon
Board Members Present: Staff Present:
Ingrid Donnerstag Christy Davis, Director
Dmitry White Stacy Higby
Nancy Miller
Michelle Sanguinetti Public Present:
Megan Smith Kathy Beutler
Board Members Absent:
None
CALL TO ORDER
Chair White called the meeting to order at 6:44 p.m.
REVIEW OF AGENDA
No changes
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Motion: To approve the March 26, 2024 Board Meeting minutes as amended
(Motion by: Dmitry White. Second by: Nancy Miller).
Vote: Unanimously in favor.
Megan asked a clarifying question about the budget. Why has the Beginning Fund Balance gone down every year? Stacy and Christy explained that the Board has had a goal of spending down the reserves, and that the Beginning fund Balance is a snapshot of what the District expects to have in all its accounts on July 1.
FINANCIAL REPORT, MARCH 2024
The Board received and reviewed the following reports:
Statement of Cash Receipts:
Question - Have we spent the grant money from John Henry Eldridge Jr Foundation yet? No, but Dena’s working on it. Most, if not all, of the funds will be spent before the next Board Meeting.
Check Register
Question – What is Lakeshore? – A vendor selling education supplies for K-5 children.
Question - On the Visa statement, what is the payment to Pelican Wireless? It is for the service subscription for our smart thermostats. PGE paid for the first 3 years and now we will pay annually.
Question - How does Kahoot get used? For surveys and Summer Reading Program activities.
Motion: To approve the MARCH 2024 Financial Report as presented, including checks #17639 through and including #17671, and all EFTs, for a total of $94,704.11.
(Motion by: Nancy Miller. Second by: Dmitry White).
Vote: Unanimously in favor.
PUBLIC PRESENTATIONS
No comment.
OLD BUSINESS
1. Parking Lot and Building Lease
Dmitry recapped a meeting with City Manager Corey Misley and Jason Gottgetreu last week to look at where the new property line could possibly be drawn. We looked at the backside of the building, the slope, the trails, etc. and discussed easements for fire code and to allow access to the north parking lot. None of the issues looked deal-breaking, but the District does not want to assume responsibility for the trails or sloped area behind the building. There is a flat lawn behind the Teen Room, which extends along the side of the parking lot. We could add mowing that grass to our landscaping maintenance, but the slope would be cost-prohibitive to maintain and needs blackberry abatement already. The trail system for the park was supposed to connect to the parking lot, and there was a plan for it to be landscaped and hardscaped, but the area washed away at some point, and the City decided not to encourage people walking up to the parking lot from the park, so they fenced it off and stopped maintaining the area. It makes sense for that area to remain part of the park, rather than become part of the Library parcel.
Jason Gottgetreu pointed out that changing the entry/exit of the north parking lot would have to be approved by ODOT (Oregon Department of Transportation) as Water St. is part of the state highway system.
Corey expects that the issue will be discussed during the next City Council Work Session in early May. Lease discussions will be paused until the partition process is completed. There is no plan to release the draft statement from the City and the District, but it will be the basis for an eventual press release. The Board agrees to send the draft statement to the City for their input.
2. Solar Grants
Christy gave a recap during the Budget Committee Meeting earlier. Megan and Nancy met with Christy to review the application, which was very helpful. It is due May 10. Christy will send more questions to Nancy and Megan, so they can help even more. The CREP office hours on Monday and Wednesday afternoons have also been helpful, and they seem to appreciate Christy’s attendance.
3. Review Public Board Meetings Policy Edits
In Section 4.2, change “The following general order shall be observed” to “The following general order should be observed”.
Motion: To approve the Board Meeting Policy as revised.
(Motion by: Dmitry White. Second by: Ingrid Donnerstag).
Vote: Unanimously approved.
NEW BUSINESS
1. Policy review of employee vacation benefit accrual and payout schedule
If the Library seeks to avoid large and unexpected lump-sum payouts, could the payout amount be capped? Or could employees be allowed to cash out a certain amount each year? Yes, but that would need to be budgeted. Does a payout before separation get reported to PERS? We are not sure, but we think it’s only upon severance of employment. For new employees, can we set a policy that lowers the cap? Yes, but that would not solve the larger cost concerns.
The idea of a gradual drawdown seems effective while allowing employees with a lot of hours accrued to use it before they lose it. For example, this is the last year you can accrue 24 months and beginning July 1, 2025, you should get down to 21 months or you’ll lose it. Then, by July 1, 2026, you should get down to 18 months or you’ll lose it. A combination of a gradual drawdown and allowing a partial cash-out may be even better. A grace period could let you cash out up to 40 hours, or half the distance to the goal cap in the first 3 months between July 1, 2024, and September 30, 2024.
The intent of vacation leave is not to accrue as much as possible for an eventual payout, but to encourage a healthy work-life balance for employees by providing paid time away from work. Incentivizing using the vacation time by offering cash payouts in combination with scheduled vacation time will result in more accrued hours being used. For example, if you take a minimum of 5 days off, you can take a payout of up to 2.5 days, so a 5-day vacation decreases the amount accrued by 7.5 days.
Christy will ask other library directors for ideas. We would like to give employees notice after the May meeting if possible, so having proposals to vote on at that meeting would be ideal. Christy and Stacy will calculate the fiscal impact of partial payouts for employees who are close to their caps, or those who are currently over. Stacy will also find out how to show leave accrual on employee paystubs, rather than post it publicly.
Related issue – We will amend the Vacation Leave policy to cap accrual using the average hours worked per week times 24 months for employees working fewer than 20 hours per week, until such time as the Board approves a lesser maximum accrual.
LIBRARY DIRECTOR’S REPORT
Director Davis reported on the following:
Good things:
ITEMS NOT ON AGENDA OPEN TO PUBLIC, BOARD & STAFF PARTICIPATION
Megan mentioned the recent SDAO newsletter that Christy sent to the Board regarding the Baker County Library’s revised book challenge policy. We revised our policy last year, but will review it again in June.
AGENDA SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE MEETINGS
1. Adopt 2024-2025 District Budget
2. Review policy about book challenges
ADJOURNMENT
Motion: To adjourn the meeting at 8:53 p.m.
(Motion by: Dmitry White. Second by: Michelle Sanguinetti).
Vote: Unanimously in favor.
__________________________________________
The next Library Board meeting is scheduled for Thursday, May 30, 2024, at 5:30 p.m. in the library program room.
Approved: _________________________(date)
_______________________________________
Dmitry White
Chair, Library Board of Directors
Silver Falls Library District
LIBRARY BOARD MEETING
SILVER FALLS LIBRARY DISTRICTSilver Falls Library Program Room
410 S. Water St., Silverton, Oregon
Board Members Present: Staff Present:
Ingrid Donnerstag Christy Davis, Director
Dmitry White Stacy Higby
Nancy Miller
Michelle Sanguinetti Public Present:
Megan Smith Kathy Beutler
Board Members Absent:
None
CALL TO ORDER
Chair White called the meeting to order at 6:44 p.m.
REVIEW OF AGENDA
No changes
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
- On Page 3, Old Business #2 – The “lease is up in April” should be “lease is up for discussion in April”.
- On Page 5, #2 – The last sentence is a non sequitur. Move it to the parking lot discussion under Old Business.
Motion: To approve the March 26, 2024 Board Meeting minutes as amended
(Motion by: Dmitry White. Second by: Nancy Miller).
Vote: Unanimously in favor.
Megan asked a clarifying question about the budget. Why has the Beginning Fund Balance gone down every year? Stacy and Christy explained that the Board has had a goal of spending down the reserves, and that the Beginning fund Balance is a snapshot of what the District expects to have in all its accounts on July 1.
FINANCIAL REPORT, MARCH 2024
The Board received and reviewed the following reports:
- Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Fund Balances (as of March 31, 2024)
- General Fund Statement of Cash Receipts (as of March 31, 2024)
- General Fund Statement of Cash Disbursements (as of March 31, 2024)
- Check Register – Citizen’s Bank (March 1-31, 2024)
- LGIP Account Statement (as of March 31, 2024)
- Purchase Order – Visa (closing date February 21, 2024)
- Journal Entries (as of March 31, 2024)
Statement of Cash Receipts:
Question - Have we spent the grant money from John Henry Eldridge Jr Foundation yet? No, but Dena’s working on it. Most, if not all, of the funds will be spent before the next Board Meeting.
Check Register
Question – What is Lakeshore? – A vendor selling education supplies for K-5 children.
Question - On the Visa statement, what is the payment to Pelican Wireless? It is for the service subscription for our smart thermostats. PGE paid for the first 3 years and now we will pay annually.
Question - How does Kahoot get used? For surveys and Summer Reading Program activities.
Motion: To approve the MARCH 2024 Financial Report as presented, including checks #17639 through and including #17671, and all EFTs, for a total of $94,704.11.
(Motion by: Nancy Miller. Second by: Dmitry White).
Vote: Unanimously in favor.
PUBLIC PRESENTATIONS
No comment.
OLD BUSINESS
1. Parking Lot and Building Lease
Dmitry recapped a meeting with City Manager Corey Misley and Jason Gottgetreu last week to look at where the new property line could possibly be drawn. We looked at the backside of the building, the slope, the trails, etc. and discussed easements for fire code and to allow access to the north parking lot. None of the issues looked deal-breaking, but the District does not want to assume responsibility for the trails or sloped area behind the building. There is a flat lawn behind the Teen Room, which extends along the side of the parking lot. We could add mowing that grass to our landscaping maintenance, but the slope would be cost-prohibitive to maintain and needs blackberry abatement already. The trail system for the park was supposed to connect to the parking lot, and there was a plan for it to be landscaped and hardscaped, but the area washed away at some point, and the City decided not to encourage people walking up to the parking lot from the park, so they fenced it off and stopped maintaining the area. It makes sense for that area to remain part of the park, rather than become part of the Library parcel.
Jason Gottgetreu pointed out that changing the entry/exit of the north parking lot would have to be approved by ODOT (Oregon Department of Transportation) as Water St. is part of the state highway system.
Corey expects that the issue will be discussed during the next City Council Work Session in early May. Lease discussions will be paused until the partition process is completed. There is no plan to release the draft statement from the City and the District, but it will be the basis for an eventual press release. The Board agrees to send the draft statement to the City for their input.
2. Solar Grants
Christy gave a recap during the Budget Committee Meeting earlier. Megan and Nancy met with Christy to review the application, which was very helpful. It is due May 10. Christy will send more questions to Nancy and Megan, so they can help even more. The CREP office hours on Monday and Wednesday afternoons have also been helpful, and they seem to appreciate Christy’s attendance.
3. Review Public Board Meetings Policy Edits
In Section 4.2, change “The following general order shall be observed” to “The following general order should be observed”.
Motion: To approve the Board Meeting Policy as revised.
(Motion by: Dmitry White. Second by: Ingrid Donnerstag).
Vote: Unanimously approved.
NEW BUSINESS
1. Policy review of employee vacation benefit accrual and payout schedule
If the Library seeks to avoid large and unexpected lump-sum payouts, could the payout amount be capped? Or could employees be allowed to cash out a certain amount each year? Yes, but that would need to be budgeted. Does a payout before separation get reported to PERS? We are not sure, but we think it’s only upon severance of employment. For new employees, can we set a policy that lowers the cap? Yes, but that would not solve the larger cost concerns.
The idea of a gradual drawdown seems effective while allowing employees with a lot of hours accrued to use it before they lose it. For example, this is the last year you can accrue 24 months and beginning July 1, 2025, you should get down to 21 months or you’ll lose it. Then, by July 1, 2026, you should get down to 18 months or you’ll lose it. A combination of a gradual drawdown and allowing a partial cash-out may be even better. A grace period could let you cash out up to 40 hours, or half the distance to the goal cap in the first 3 months between July 1, 2024, and September 30, 2024.
The intent of vacation leave is not to accrue as much as possible for an eventual payout, but to encourage a healthy work-life balance for employees by providing paid time away from work. Incentivizing using the vacation time by offering cash payouts in combination with scheduled vacation time will result in more accrued hours being used. For example, if you take a minimum of 5 days off, you can take a payout of up to 2.5 days, so a 5-day vacation decreases the amount accrued by 7.5 days.
Christy will ask other library directors for ideas. We would like to give employees notice after the May meeting if possible, so having proposals to vote on at that meeting would be ideal. Christy and Stacy will calculate the fiscal impact of partial payouts for employees who are close to their caps, or those who are currently over. Stacy will also find out how to show leave accrual on employee paystubs, rather than post it publicly.
Related issue – We will amend the Vacation Leave policy to cap accrual using the average hours worked per week times 24 months for employees working fewer than 20 hours per week, until such time as the Board approves a lesser maximum accrual.
LIBRARY DIRECTOR’S REPORT
Director Davis reported on the following:
Good things:
- Christy read aloud a very complementary email Dena received from a patron with children who love Dena and Shelly and who regularly attend Storytime.
- The first thing I want to mention is how supported we felt by the board last week. It was an unusual week in that it’s the first I ever remember of every board member coming by during a non-board-meeting week. Michelle came in and gave Stacy some tips and tricks for QuickBooks, Dmitry was here to interact with Israel Sanchez from Woodburn IT and help me make some decisions. Both Nancy and Megan met with me and Stacy to work through the questions on the Oregon Community Renewable Energy Program Planning Grant, and Ingrid stopped by to say hello and check in and later was here to meet Israel. Michelle, Nancy, and Megan all got hands-on help from Israel for the email migration as they were here the same day he was.
- Our local author fair this past weekend featured 10 local writers and had about 45 attendees. We do this event every 2-3 years as it often works better than single-author events.
- Our Summer Reading Program kicks off this year with registration starting on June 4th, with programs starting the following week. It goes through August. The Oregon Garden really wanted us back for another season, so Dena is going there on the second Wednesday of the month during good weather. She went for the first-time last week and there were over 150 people at the program. This summer, all CCRLS libraries are participating in a read and roam program where participants are given a booklet to go on a library road trip. Families that visit at least 6 of the 19 libraries over the summer are entered into a prize drawing. Each library has a small token prize for those who come to have their road trip log stamped.
- The primary challenge I am having right now is trying to complete the grant application for the Oregon CREP. I have been availing myself to their online meetings on Mondays and Wednesdays to ask questions and listen in. Today, one of the required pieces was accomplished with Chris Walker, an Energy Specialist from PGE coming for the consultant visit that must be documented for the grant application. We had a good talk and walk-around and he was impressed that we’ve availed ourselves to both the LED and smart thermostat programs as well as re-roofing both sections of our building, insulating the youth services side, replacing our HVAC units with dual heat pump units as the old ones fail, and for replacing our old water heater. He hopes we get solar array and battery system and says he thinks we’re doing more than most entities of our size to be energy efficient.
- The City of Salem’s budget committee met last week and decided on no further staffing cuts for the library for one year. They are funding the operations with tourism monies as a stop-gap measure.
- Christy can share the communication she sent to a recent disgruntled patron. The intent was to give the patron the benefit of the doubt, wipe the slate clean, and offer them more strategies for reporting damages to staff. However, if the patron has issues with damaged items in the future, they will be charged.
- CCRLS sent out what is called an RFI – Request for Information – to vendors who provide automated materials handling (AMH) machines and systems. This is the first step in moving towards a central sorting operation to be housed at the Chemeketa campus. This week CCRLS also purchased and deployed RFID inventory wands. Our library will have its own. The wands can detect the information regarding materials on carts before they are shelved to make sure that all books are checked in before being reshelved. Also, the wand can be used over sections of shelves to find out of place or missing books.
- Our job posting for a part time assistant in the adult services and reference area was placed last week and closes this Friday. The scoring of applications will take place early next week and interviews should start by the end of next week. The goal is to provide two-weeks overlap with training so that the person can start working independently in June.
- As already mentioned, and experienced by all of you, the Microsoft email migration has taken place and we’ve now moved from a third-party vendor to a Microsoft non-profit account for our 20 licenses for Office.
- Director’s time off for March was: 4 hours vacation and 4.5 hours sick leave
- Director will be gone from the library from May 15 through May 27, returning late afternoon of the 28th.
ITEMS NOT ON AGENDA OPEN TO PUBLIC, BOARD & STAFF PARTICIPATION
Megan mentioned the recent SDAO newsletter that Christy sent to the Board regarding the Baker County Library’s revised book challenge policy. We revised our policy last year, but will review it again in June.
AGENDA SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE MEETINGS
1. Adopt 2024-2025 District Budget
2. Review policy about book challenges
ADJOURNMENT
Motion: To adjourn the meeting at 8:53 p.m.
(Motion by: Dmitry White. Second by: Michelle Sanguinetti).
Vote: Unanimously in favor.
__________________________________________
The next Library Board meeting is scheduled for Thursday, May 30, 2024, at 5:30 p.m. in the library program room.
Approved: _________________________(date)
_______________________________________
Dmitry White
Chair, Library Board of Directors
Silver Falls Library District