Approved Minutes - 2015-04-08 CITY OF LAKE OSWEGO April 8, 2015
Library Advisory Board Library
Present: Maria Meneghin, Fred Baldwin, Jessie Halligan, Alan Laird,Nancy Niland, Cliff Perigo,
David Short, Radhika Subrahmanyan
Staff Present: Bill Baars, Cyndie Glazer
Others: Councilor Skip O'Neill, Joanne Haynes
The Library Advisory Board meeting was called to order by Chair Maria Meneghin at 7:00 p.m. on
April 8, 2015.
1. Call to Order and Roll Call
2. Introductions
None
3. Approval of Minutes
Nancy Niland made a motion, seconded by Fred Baldwin, to approve the minutes of the
March 11, 2015 meeting. The motion passed unanimously.
4. Public Comment
Haynes said that the 50+Advisory Board is pleased that they are seeking out someone from the LAB to
attend their meetings.
5. Director's Report
Bill Baars gave the Director's Report as follows:
a) Mayor's "State of the City" report and Library implications
Mayor Kent Studebaker delivered his State of the City Address to the Lake Oswego Rotary Club on
March 23. Baars was able to play the speech for the LAB on the Mondopad from YouTube. The
Mayor reviewed and gave an update on the 2014 Council Goals. Although the Library was not
included in those goals, the overall City budget does include the Library budget which is expected
to remain stable. The City continues to address FTEs (Full Time Equivalent). The Library is
already operating with less FTEs than over the last few years due to attrition. As the City Manager
is focusing on continuous process of improvements, the Library is looking at its tasks and the way it
is operating.
A question from the audience asked if the goals still include doubling the size of the library in the
North Anchor Project rather than adding a second library on the west side of the City. The Mayor
said that a larger library is not part of the plans for North Anchor and coming up with money for a
second Library is the issue. He said they are trying to accommodate the needs of the Westside by
adding drop boxes. The biggest need is more meeting rooms and they are exploring ways of
creating more meeting rooms in the Boones Ferry project and perhaps in the new LOCOM building.
Baars said he is surprised that people still think the Library will have a presence in North Anchor.
• Both the Library and the Booktique have storage at the West End Building (WEB). Currently the Library
has about 3,000 cataloged books stored there. As the WEB is for sale, O'Neill said there will be a study
session within the next few days to make plans for City storage needs that are now accommodated at the
WEB.
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• The Library has a contract with Hennebery Eddy Architects for plans to redo the workroom. The first
phase will soon be finalized which includes assessing the work flow, circulation processes and the public
circulation desk area. This redo will be done in concert with fixing the spalling on the floors.
• Andrea Milano, the newly hired Youth Services Manager, started on Monday.
• The search continues for a new Circulation/Technical Services Manager.
• Next week the Oregon Library Association Conference will be in Eugene and Baars will be attending.
• The final agreement with the Heritage House has been signed.
• Tomorrow will be the dedication of Stafford Grove Park on Sunningdale Road.
• The Library received notice that it will lose two parking spaces in the alley because of the new houses that
are being built adjacent to the alley.
• Graham's Book and Stationery was the title sponsor of this year's LO Reads. Paul Graham has been on the
LO Reads Steering Committee since the beginning and has hosted the art unveiling and other events. They
have announced that the store will be closing the end of May after almost sixty years in business. Both
Paul and Teri Graham plan to continue their involvement with LO Reads.
6. Chair's Report
Maria Meneghin gave the Chair's Report as follows:
• FAN/Forest Hills Neighborhood association, of which the Library is part of, have recently done a survey of
the 1,200 plus households. The survey results will be presented at the annual meeting on May 14, and LAB
members are invited to attend. As there is a lot of new construction in the area, one of the trends seen in
the survey is that people are supporting increasing the amount of on-site parking for these new houses so
that not as much parking is pushed out onto the streets. The Association is also working with various other
groups to raise money to have a William Stafford Standing Stone installed at the new Stafford Grove Park,
if anyone would like to make a contribution towards that effort.
a) Liaisons to other Boards & Commissions
Nancy Niland attended the Sustainability Advisory Board as a LAB representative and she has
agreed to continue attending their regular meetings. Niland hasn't had a chance to attend a 50+
Advisory Board meeting. Meneghin acknowledged that attending both of these meetings is a lot to
ask of Nancy and asked if anyone else has an interest in attending the 50+meeting to let her know.
b) LAB Budget Testimony
Meneghin asked if there were any changes or comments on the budget testimony that she sent out to
the LAB members and plans to present to the Budget Committee. Perigo thought the testimony
should include asking for something. Meneghin said Baars thought it was more important at this
time to try and maintain the Library budget rather than ask for more as no department will be
getting an increase. Perigo suggested asking for more money to cover the increase of FTEs
needed for a Lake Grove Library presence. Baars said as it is unknown what a Lake Grove
presence would include at this time and it is premature to decide if more FTEs would be needed.
7. LO Reads Report
Cyndie Glazer gave the LO Reads report as follows:
• LO Reads 2015 was the Library's best community reads event yet and was the most heavily attended.
Glazer shared pictures from many of the programs and gave a brief overview. A highlight was having the
author, Anthony Doerr, visit. He was very impressed with the details of LO Reads, including the art, the
Braille book 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, and the World War II displays. The 70th anniversary of the
end of WWII Reception packed the Library with over 1,500 people stopping by to hear the speakers and
music and enjoy the food. Baars read the thank you note received from the author. Glazer expressed her
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Library Advisory Board Library
gratitute for the sponsors and said that tomorrow there will be a thank you ad in the Lake Oswego Review
acknowledging these sponsors. The total attendance for all of the programs was over 16,900.
• The work has already begun on LO Reads 2016. As this will be the tenth anniversary, the Steering
Committee looking for a special book. Fred Baldwin is helping in the search for a new title sponser.
8. Friends' Report
Nancy Niland gave the Friends'Report:
• At the March Board meeting the Friends approved giving the Library$26,000 in grant money. The Board
also decided to approve grant requests once per year for approximately$50,000 rather than meeting twice
per year, starting in September 2015. This should make it easier for both the Library and the Friends as
many of the grants are renewals.
• The Booktique will now give teachers a 25% discount.
• The new website should be up and running by April 10, and hopefully by the first of May the entire website
will be functional.
• The Booktique Volunteer Appreciation luncheon will be held on May 4.
9. Council Update
Councilor Skip O'Neill gave the Council Update:
• There will be a study session about the WEB and up for discussion will be that when the building sells
where will Parks and Rec go and where will storage room and meeting rooms be found.
• Eleven offers have been received for purchase of the WEB and the Council has narrowed it to five. More
details will come out possibly as soon as May.
• The City expects to hear next week from the Land Use Board of Appeals on the Wizer Block decision.
• More information will be coming out about the North Anchor Project in the next 30 to 60 days. The City
made an offer on the corner lot but has not gotten a reply.
10. New Business
Meneghin will represent the LAB and give testimony to the Budget Committee on April 23. She
encourages other LAB members,representing themselves, to give testimony on what the Library means to
them on a personal level. She said it is important for the Committee to hear how important the Library is to
this community especially at a time when saving money and cutting FTEs is in discussion.
11. Adjournment
The Library Advisory Board meeting adjourned at 7:55 p.m.
Respectfully submitted
Beverly Ross
Recording Secretary
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