Minutes for July 11 2022 Trustees Meeting

The meeting convened at 7 p.m. inside the library. Present were Cindy Binzen, Melissa Strayton (librarian), Marty Frank, Miriam Newman, Curt Albee, Rachel Kurland, Diane White (for the Friends), Denise Cote (for the Friends) and Carol Wilson.  

Minutes for the June 2022 trustees meeting were accepted.

Friends: Diane White told the trustees that she didn’t yet have final results to share but that this month’s book sale was a success. A lot of new people volunteered to help and several expressed interest in joining the Friends organization. Discovery Books came on schedule and took away the remaining books — and were quite easy to work with. Denise remarked that this year’s book sale made her realize that the sale was important not just as a fundraiser but also as a community event that many look forward to. All trustees agreed that the sale went particularly smoothly this year and thanked Diane and Denise for all the work they did. 

Librarian’s Report: Melissa reported that the children’s summer reading program is underway. Six families totaling 19 people attended the kickoff event. All the parenting books we intended to buy with the funds provided through the first ARPA grant have been purchased, and the Bose sound system arrived. Melissa plans to prepare the grant report this week and submit it to the state. Meanwhile, the struggle to acquire an identifying number from the federal government to qualify for the second round of ARPA money continues. It has been a frustrating, time-consuming ordeal.

An order for adult books has just been put in and Melissa plans to put together an order for children’s books soon. At least 21 kids have signed up to maintain reading logs this summer. The children’s section of the website has been updated and includes a schedule of summer programs. A new application for the Turrell grant needs to be prepared this month. 

The trustees decided to continue requiring masks inside the library.

Treasurer’s Report: Rachel reported we’re doing well with the budget. We’re spending more on programming, which is good. She’ll send out the most recent profit and loss statement to the trustees. She’ll contact Chrissy Coburn to determine if Rhymes will offer a pre-buy program this year for our heating oil. She had nothing to report on our tax filing.

Other Business: The trustees decided to inform Stuart Saunders Smith that they don’t feel comfortable yet hosting an indoor event. Curt said Sean Ward is scheduled to come Monday to dig up the water line to figure out what’s causing the leak in the basement. 

Kevin Lynch has volunteered to do some post-book sale cleaning up in the basement.

Curt and Rocky met with someone from Rodd Roofing to take a look at the slate roof to determine what needs to be repaired or replaced. He hasn’t heard anything since then and will make a follow-up call. Rachel is exploring the possibility of getting some other paintings cleaned. Curt expressed his reservations about pursuing the idea of adding a separate structure for children’s programs and book storage. He has doubts about whether we would be able to get a permit for it if it were built on the Homestead side of the property and questions whether it would be worth the expense of having it built correctly. 

Melissa reported that Simone Pyle has begun meeting with the Dungeons and Dragons group every other Thursday. The Council on Aging followed through on their intention to hold an informational session for seniors at the library, although no one attended.

Marty reported that he contacted Geoff Hansen and Jim Taylor about taking on the website improvement project. Geoff estimated it would cost between $300 and $1,000. Jim said he would charge his discounted rate ($30/hour), and estimated a total cost of between $1,000 and $2,000. Jim has asked the library trustees to look at other library websites and identify one that they regard as particularly good. Carol, Melissa and Marty will do that and get back to him. Marty will forward his and Geoff’s proposals once they’re both in hand.

The Personnel Committee will meet with Melissa in August.

Our next meeting will be Aug. 8 at 7 p.m. at the library.

Submitted by Marty Frank