Canton Public Library

•       Call the Meeting to Order

•       Call to Audience (5 min. maximum)

•       Approval of Agenda

•       Approval of General Meeting Minutes

•       Communications

•       Report of the Library Director

•       Trustee Comments

•     Unfinished Business & General Orders

•       Update on Phased Reopening

•       Fines Elimination – Factors to Consider

•     New Business

•       PULSE project presentation — Senior residents (L. Golden, L. Fawcett, T. Scott, K.
         Minshall)

•       Approval of Bibliocommons recommendation for Content Management System expenditure
        in 2021:  Website, catalog, and events

•       2022 Budget Discussion — expenditures
                 o   Healthcare plan coverage discussion — discuss expanding coverage to fully
                      comply with PPACA

•       Call to Audience (5 min. maximum)

•       Adjourn

Please note that the March meeting of the Canton Public Library Board will be held both in person and remotely, in accordance with MDHHS Emergency Order under MCL 333.2253. Members of the public who wish to participate in this meeting may either attend in person in the library’s Community Room or join the meeting via Zoom at 7:30 PM on Thursday, February 18. All in person attendees must be masked throughout. Zoom attendees will be muted automatically except for the Call To Audience portions of the agenda, where members of the public may use the "raise hand" function within the Zoom meeting application, at which point they will be unmuted for up to 5 minutes of public comment per person.

Members of the public wishing to physically attend the meeting, or needing accommodation due to a disability should contact the library director, Eva Davis, at davise@cantonpl.org.

The meeting packet is available below. The meeting will be recorded and posted following the meeting.

The Chairperson, Nancy Eggenberger, called the meeting to order at 7:30 PM.

Present: (participating remotely from Canton, MI) N. Eggenberger, M. Farell, J. Lee, A. Iqbal,

C.   Spas

Absent:            A. Watts

Also Present:  E. Davis, K. Gladden

CALL TO AUDIENCE   (K. Bounds, L. Golden, D. McHugh, M. Nicholson, C. Swanberg, K. Szymanski, A. Watkins) – Director Eva Davis introduced new Circulation Services Department Head, Kat Bounds.     

APPROVAL OF AGENDA

The agenda was accepted by unanimous consent.

APPROVAL OF GENERAL MEETING MINUTES

The minutes were accepted by unanimous consent.

APPROVAL OF CLOSED SESSION MINUTES

The minutes were accepted by unanimous consent

COMMUNICATIONS — E. Davis shared a “thank you” card from former Library Board Trustee Jane Pandit, who had received a framed drawing of the library as a parting gift.

DIRECTOR’S REPORT

The 2021 Monthly Board Meeting Agenda Planning document was again included in the packet. Davis consults with the board Chair each month, prior to presenting the agenda to the rest of the trustees, so any additions or deletions may be made at that time.

In February, Davis will present a staffing plan that she and Business Services Department Head Marian Nicholson have been working on which explores transitioning part-time positions into full-time positions, over a 2-3 year period.

In March, Community Relations Department Head Laurie Golden will do a deep dive presentation on the results from the interdepartmental Pulse Senior population project, which will replace the usual Strategic Plan.

Also in March, in the 1^st Quarter Budget Amendment the board will be asked to approve a contract for the purchase of a new website content management system (originally a project budgeted for 2020 that was pushed back due to the pandemic). An interdepartmental committee led by Web Resources Specialist Courtney Luketich tested various products and preferred one offered by BiblioCommons, which should work seamlessly to integrate our catalog with the digital products available on our website. Trustee J. Lee asked if all background information would be provided to the board. Davis stated that the committee is preparing a report which will provide context on how they arrived at their recommendation.

The township is still undecided on whether or not Liberty Fest will take place in 2021 but have tentatively scheduled it for the third weekend in June; if it does not occur, the board may wish to discuss moving the date of their June meeting back to the third Thursday. Davis will keep the board apprised.

She also informed the board that finalists for the Information Services Department Head position will be invited back to interview in the upcoming weeks; she hopes to announce a new department head soon.

Circulation Services Page Kaitlyn Minshall has accepted the position of Communication Specialist, working on digital marketing and social media projects for the Community Relations department.

Steven Bowers, the new director of The Library Network (TLN), has invited Davis to participate on the Strategic Planning Committee for the library cooperative. Davis will co-chair with Karen Knox, director of the Orion Township Public Library.

A planned upgrade to Sierra resulted in a little downtime Thursday morning.

The financials as of 12/31/2020 are not final until Plante Moran completes its audit, which will be done (mostly remotely) the week of Valentine’s Day. For now, the figures in the P&L are estimates.

Trustee Jasmine Lee questioned the increase in bank fees; Accountant Debbie McHugh explained that while the library usually earned enough credits to off-set bank fees, this had not happened in 2020 due to COVID causing a decrease in interest rates. She hopes to prevent that from happening in 2021.

TRUSTEE COMMENTS — Vice-Chair Michelle Farell reminded board members that they should keep their cameras and microphones on during the meeting.

Trustee J. Lee asked if the contract with ENGIE Services had been completed. Davis said that the Phase 1 project agreement with ENGIE had been completed in 2020; the administration and Building Manager Jim Laffey will be looking at Phase 2 projects per the plan and will bring a recommendation to the board for approval at a later date.

COMMITTEE REPORTS — None

UNFINISHED BUSINESS & GENERAL ORDERS

Update on Phased Reopening — The Plymouth-Canton schools are phasing in in-person learning; the library managers and department heads are looking at how we can manage time limits, physical distancing and other issues for students requesting study space in the library. At this time, Davis knows of no library offering study/meeting space for patrons.

Chair N. Eggenberger said that she does not want the library administration to take any additional steps toward full reopening that the staff is not comfortable with; the other board members echoed her sentiments.

NEW BUSINESS

Plante Moran Board Education: Municipal Finance and Audits — A PowerPoint introduction to municipal budgets and audit procedures was presented by Alisha Watkins, the library’s partner at Plante Moran, and Senior Manager Keith Szymanski. Chair Eggenberger spoke of the board’s trepidation about the pandemic’s likely effect on future budgets. Watkins shared that, while she thought a little shake up in commercial property values is likely, no economist expects another 2008. As construction is also ramping up, she is not planning for any huge drops in property tax income. Any such decrease would be obvious in time for the board to plan and make budgetary adjustments to accommodate such events.

Szymanski added that now is a good time to be cautious.

The board members all thanked the Plante Moran representatives for their helpful presentation.

CALL TO AUDIENCE – None

ADJOURN

The meeting was adjourned at 8:31 PM.  

The Chairperson, Amy Watts, called the meeting to order at 7:31 PM.

Present:           (participating remotely from Canton, MI) N. Eggenberger, A. Iqbal, C. Spas, A. Watts

Absent:            M. Farell, J. Lee

Also Present:  E. Davis, K. Gladden

CALL TO AUDIENCE   (K. Bounds, L. Golden, D. McHugh, M. Nicholson, R. Noble, Patron, D. Skopczynski, C. Souchock, C. Swanberg ) – None          

APPROVAL OF AGENDA

The agenda was accepted by unanimous consent.

APPROVAL OF GENERAL MEETING MINUTES

The minutes were accepted by unanimous consent.

COMMUNICATIONS — None

DIRECTOR’S REPORT

As of the end of November, the library was 92% through the fiscal year, according to Director Eva Davis.  Both income and expenditures as a percentage of budget will be addressed later in the meeting through the proposed 4^th Quarter Budget Amendment.

The proposed budget amendment will not include a request for a Fund Balance transfer. Because of the pandemic pause in operations, certain projects in the 2020 budget have been pushed off to 2021 and the appropriated funds will be returned to the Fund Balance. Those projects will be incorporated into the 2021 budget, and quarterly budget amendment requests will be utilized to fund them.

Davis reminded the board to either send a picture or arrange for a photo shoot with Community Relations Department Head Laurie Golden, so that the library website can be updated.

Michigan Senate Bill 1246 passed with changes made by the House; once it goes through reconciliation and is signed by the Governor, elected boards will be able to meet remotely through March 2021.

Davis consulted with the library’s labor attorney re: the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) and the Emergency Family Leave Medical Expansion Act (EFMLA), which are set to expire at the end of the year.  The attorney suggested waiting to see what the lame duck session brings; if either act is not renewed, the board would be able to pass a Resolution that can be made retroactive to extend protections to qualifying staff members.

Changes to the permanent staff continue. The full-time librarian position was offered to, and accepted by, part-time librarian Amy Lee. There were two additional resignations, and the administration will be looking at overall staffing across departments, with budget neutrality as a goal.

Davis congratulated L. Golden and Community Relations Program Librarian Nichole Welz, as well as Information Services Librarian Whitney Jones, for the tremendous success of Wednesday’s drive-through Winter Snow Spree.

Davis also brought to the board’s attention Item 4 of her Director’s Report, covering the planned purchase of a new website content management system, which will be brought to the board for approval in 2021. This has been an interdepartmental project, led by Web Resources Specialist Courtney Luketich.

In answer to staff queries, Davis has concluded that the library will not be mandating that staff members be vaccinated against the coronavirus. She has reached out to the State Library and to Canton Township Emergency Management Coordinator Will Hayes to find out what status library staff will have in vaccine priority, but suspects their eligibility will rest on individual status, rather than as library employees.

Since this is her final meeting as Circulation Services Interim Department Head before new Department Head Kat Bounds takes the helm in January, Davis once again thanked Denise Skopczynski for stepping in and performing two jobs for the past six months.

TRUSTEE COMMENTS — Chair Amy Watts expressed her thanks to L. Golden and her team for the Winter Snow Spree.

COMMITTEE REPORTS — None

UNFINISHED BUSINESS & GENERAL ORDERS

Update on Phased Reopening — Davis is attempting to eliminate any yo-yo effect between phases, to avoid confusion and stress for both staff and patrons.

Nomination and Election of 2021 Board Officers — Since the current officers have served in their current positions for two consecutive years and are unable to do so again, A. Watts nominated a slate consisting of: Nancy Eggenberger – Chair; Michelle Farell – Vice Chair; and A. Watts – Secretary/Treasurer.

Amina Iqbal moved and Claire Spas supported a motion to elect the slate of 2021 officers as presented.

ROLL CALL VOTE

Yes: N. Eggenberger, A. Iqbal, C. Spas, A. Watts

No: None

Abstain: None

The motion passed 20/12-17-1 (4-0-0)

NEW BUSINESS

Closed Session to Receive and Discuss Material Exempted by Statute (Library Privacy Act 455 of 1982, MCL 397.603) — N. Eggenberger moved and C. Spas supported a motion to move into closed session.

ROLL CALL VOTE

Yes: N. Eggenberger, A. Iqbal, C. Spas, A. Watts

No: None

Abstain: None

The motion passed 20/12-17-2 (4-0-0)

REGULAR MEETING RESUMED AT 8:11 P.M.

Patron Appeal 2020-12-01, Request for Reconsideration of Library Materials — To uphold or rescind the library director’s decision to retain the item in all formats — Chair Watts thanked the Patron for following procedure and for the respectful discourse during the closed session.

Trustee Eggenberger indicated that she had carefully read the material in question and found it to be interesting and thought-provoking. She felt it expressed an important viewpoint that the library collection needs to have; she would uphold the library director’s decision to retain the item in all formats.

Trustee Spas agreed, saying that while it was not easy, she too had read and enjoyed the book in question.

Chair Watts was of the same opinion. While she believed that the title could be off-putting to some people, she did not agree that the book’s main purpose was to criticize white people. While going through the exercise might be uncomfortable, she believed that that is the way we learn and grow. And her bigger concern is that the library not set a precedent of banning books which might be unpopular in some quarters.

Trustee A. Iqbal agreed with the other board members; she has heard good things about the work from many people.

N. Eggenberger moved and A. Iqbal supported a motion to uphold the library director’s decision to retain Me & White Supremacy in all formats.

ROLL CALL VOTE

Yes: N. Eggenberger, A. Iqbal, C. Spas, A. Watts

No: None

Abstain: None

The motion passed 20/12-17-3 (4-0-0)

Approval of 4^th Quarter Budget Amendment — Davis explained to the new board members that the library must have a balanced budget, and that quarterly and year-end budget amendments are generally required to do so. She thanked Business Services Department Head Marian Nicholson and Accountant Debbie McHugh for their hard work with regard to the budget and the amendment.

C. Spas moved and N. Eggenberger supported a motion to approve the 4^th Quarter Budget Amendment as presented.

ROLL CALL VOTE

Yes: N. Eggenberger, A. Iqbal, C. Spas, A. Watts

No: None

Abstain: None

The motion passed 20/12-17-4 (4-0-0)

CALL TO AUDIENCE – None

ADJOURN

The meeting was adjourned at 8:24 PM.  

•       Call the Meeting to Order — 7:30 PM

•       Call to Audience (5 min. maximum)

•       Approval of Agenda

•       Approval of General Meeting Minutes

•       Communications

•       Report of the Library Director

•       Trustee Comments

•       Unfinished Business & General Orders

•        Update on Phased Reopening
•        Nomination & Election of 2021 Board Officers

•       New Business

•        Closed session to receive and discuss material exempted by statute (Library Privacy Act
         455 of 1982, MCL 397.603)
•        Patron Appeal 2020-12-01, Request for Reconsideration of Library Materials – To uphold
         or rescind the library director’s decision to retain the item in all formats
•        Approval of 4th Quarter Budget Amendment

•       Call to Audience (5 min. maximum)

•       Adjourn

Please note that the December meeting of the Canton Public Library Board will be held remotely, in accordance with MDHHS Emergency Order under MCL 333.2253. Members of the public who wish to participate in this meeting may join the Zoom meeting at 7:30 PM on Thursday, December 17. Attendees will be muted automatically except for the Call To Audience portions of the agenda, where members of the public may use the "raise hand" function within the Zoom meeting application, at which point they will be unmuted for up to 5 minutes of public comment per person.

The meeting packet is available below. The meeting will be recorded and posted following the meeting. Members of the public needing accommodation due to a disability should contact the library director, Eva Davis, at davise@cantonpl.org.