LAB Minutes 09/19/2018 Naples, Florida, September 19, 2018
LET IT BE KNOWN that the LIBRARY ADVISORY BOARD met on this date in regular session at 10:00
a.m. in the Headquarters Library with the following members present:
CHAIR: Loretta Murray— District 1
VICE-CHAIR: Connie Bettinger— District 3
SECRETARY: Joy White —District 4
Marjorie H. Gagnon — District 5
Lynne Nordhoff— District 2
ALSO PRESENT: Tanya Williams, Library Director
Karen Tibbetts, Administrative Assistant
Louise Franck, Vice-President, Friends of the Library
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Mrs. Murray asked for additions or corrections to the minutes of August 8, 2018. One minor correction
was noted. Mrs. Nordhoff moved to approve the minutes with the correction. Ms. Bettinger seconded
and the motion was carried unanimously.
REPORT OF THE FRIENDS
• Mrs. Franck reported that the Friends of the Library issued a check in the amount of$15K for
Library branch enhancements.
• She encouraged everyone to attend the Library events celebrating Friends of the Library Week
October 21-27.
• Mrs. Franck distributed flyers for the Nick Linn Lecture Series and Non-Fiction Author Series. She
added that tickets for these events are selling fast.
REPORT OF OFFICERS
• Ms. Bettinger reported that she noticed two posts on her Facebook account regarding the Library.
o A homeschool parent commented that she was unable to get into the children's programs due to
many of them being overbooked.
o A Library patron noticed that the flag at one of the Library locations was not at half-mast on
September 11. She commented that the Library staff member that she spoke to about this
matter was unaware that there was a flagpole.
• Ms. Bettinger will send a screen shot of the postings to Ms. Williams so that she can look into this
matter.
• Ms. Williams stated that when the County notifies each Department about the flags, the Library
drivers generally adjust them. However, some of the more remote locations do not receive daily
deliveries, and she will make certain that Library staff at those locations are able to adjust the flags.
COMMUNICATIONS
a—Written — None
b— Personal— None
PUBLIC COMMENTS— None
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
1) Physical & Exterior Use of Library Facilities Policy - Update
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• LAB members received draft revisions to the Physical & Exterior Use of Library Facilities
policy in the packet mailed to them in order to give them time to review the information.
• Ms. Williams displayed the policy on the large screen monitor as members discussed the
revisions.
• Ms. Williams stated that Library staff reviewed and clarified the language to remove repetitive
language and make it easier to understand.
• Each Library location has a designated area for exterior use, with considerations made for
elections in order to follow Florida statutes.
• As the Library is a limited public forum, it must have recognized areas for groups exercising
their first amendment rights.
• Ms. Williams is asking for legal guidance from the County Attorney regarding requiring proof of
501(c)(3) status of eligible groups.
• During the recent early voting, a resident wanted to campaign for the County's storm water
issue, and was instructed to lobby outside the 100 foot mark from the Library.
• Mrs. Murray stated that the Poll Deputy is provided with an aerial view of the premises and
monitors to make certain that people adhere to the regulations.
• Ms. Bettinger made a motion to accept the Physical & Exterior Use of Library Facilities policy
as amended. Mrs. White seconded and the motion was carried unanimously.
• Ms. Williams stated that the amended policy will be sent to the County Attorney for legal
review before being presented to the BCC for approval.
2) Room Use, Rental, and Fines/Fees Schedule— Draft Review
• LAB members received draft revisions to the Room Use, Rental and Fines/Fees Schedule in
the packet mailed to them in order to give them time to review the information.
• Ms. Williams reported that she wanted feedback from LAB members regarding exemptions for
tutors at the Library.
• The current Meeting Room Use policy states that tutors with Literacy Organizations are not
charged to use Library rooms.
• Ms. Williams stated that many of the tutors that charge for their services meet in various areas
of the Library and do not use private rooms.
• Some locations are finding that the tutors are taking up much of the Library space.
• Mrs. White stated that it's a fine line of distinction between tutors vs. running a business as
Libraries are considered to be learning/teaching environments.
• Ms. Williams stated that the County Manager has inquired about tutors at the Library.
• Ms. Bettinger suggested separating the verbiage pertaining to Literacy Organizations from
that of paid tutors.
• Ms. Williams reported that she is requesting for all Library staff to become certified crowd
control managers.
• She added that some large groups will have a Fire Marshal in attendance at their meeting if
they anticipate going over room occupancy.
• Discussion ensured regarding Civic Associations and Homeowner's Associations having to
pay for room usage. Better clarification is needed.
• By definition, a Civic Association is casual, with by-laws and rules governing the election of
officers, their duties, when meetings are and other types of issues. Residents may have to pay
dues to join and vote, however, membership is completely voluntary and dues are not
mandatory for all residents in the neighborhood.
• By definition, a Homeowner's Association has a little more authority. An HOA will have an
elected Board of Directors responsible for setting the budget, maintaining the grounds, and
enforcing ground rules for living in the development. Dues are generally mandatory for all
residents.
• Discussion ensued regarding extending after hours meeting room use to other Library
locations, such as Rose Hall at Marco Island and the hiring of security guards, which is listed
at the bottom of the fines/fees schedule.
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• After discussion of a program presenter's request to have a key to Rose Hall in order to teach
chess on Sunday afternoons without Library staff in attendance, members agreed to limit after
hours room use to South Regional Library.
• Members agreed that an explanation of after-hours room use and security guards should be
incorporated into the Meeting Room Use policy.
• Ms. Williams stated that no motion is needed at this time, as further revisions will need to be
made, which she will present to members at the October meeting.
3) Donation Policy— Still in revision
• Ms. Williams reported that the Library's donation policy is still under review. She will provide
updated information at the October LAB meeting.
NEW BUSINESS
1) LSTA Innovation Grant-$4,000
• Ms. Williams reported that the Library received notification of a $4K grant supporting a new
"Adulting 101 Makerspace" movement for Libraries to teach fundamental home-economic type
skills.
• The Library had a four week turnaround to send the State Library an idea for a course
supporting this movement.
• The Library submitted the purchase of sewing machines that would be portable to be used
system-wide.
2) Shreve Estate
• Ms. Williams provided copies of an article entitled "Looking back on the vibrantly artistic life of
Anne Shreve" by Douglas Imbrogno.
• Mrs. Shreve and her husband named the Collier County Public Library as a beneficiary to their
Charitable Trust, which amounts to $53K.
• The Library is also listed as a beneficiary of the Shreve Estate, however the amount will not
be determined until sometime next year.
• Ms. Williams stated that the money will be placed in a fund, and there will be no restrictions on
the use of the money.
3) Mobile Printing
• Ms. Williams reported that the Library beta tested Mobile (Wi-Fi) Printing at the Headquarters
Library during the month of August.
• Within three weeks, over 700 documents were printed using mobile printing.
• This remote printing allows for patrons to send a printing request to the queue, which is held
for 24 hours. And patrons are able to pay and pick up their printed materials more efficiently.
• Ms. Williams will work with the County's IT Department to implement this service system-wide
beginning FY2019.
• The Library is a Wi-Fi hot spot and Wi-Fi statistics continue to increase rapidly.
• The FY2018 revenue the Library collected on colored and black &white printing amounts to
approximately $54K, which is up $3K from FY2017, and up $13K from FY2016.
• Ms. Williams reported that many libraries are eliminating the computer use fee for people that
do not have a library card.
• Currently the Collier County Public Library charges $5, however, it may be a deterrent for
usage of computers.
• Ms. Williams will discuss the financial implications of removing this fee with Steve Carnell and
report back on this in October.
• The Library's Evanced reservation system automatically limits computer usage to two hours
per session. However, if there are no other holds for computer use, a patron can request to
continue for a longer session.
GENERAL CONSIDERATION - None
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DIRECTOR'S REPORT
1) Staffing Update
• Ms. Williams reported that Ronney Cox retired from the Library in August. She worked with
the Library for 26 years. Emilio Feijoo resigned from the Vanderbilt Library to study abroad in
Cambridge, England.
• There were four promotions of staff and seven new hires, including three new LEAP students.
• Four open positions are pending interviews.
• Pending approval of the Library's FY2019 Budget by the BCC on Thursday night, the Library
will have two expanded positions added. A Library Technician will be added to East Naples
and a Library Assistant will be added to Immokalee.
• The Library will be discussing expanding hours of operation at some branches, dependent on
more morning, evening, weekend or a combination of hours, varying on each location.
2) FY 19 Budget Update
• The FY2019 Budget Hearing is scheduled for 6:05 pm on Thursday, September 20 in the BCC
Chambers.
3) 2018 Annual Update & Inventory Report(AUIR)
• Ms. Williams distributed copies of the Library's AUIR.
• She explained that this report is done annually by the County based on Florida Statutes to
provide a long range planning perspective.
• This report looks at the square footage of each Library location and the number of items in the
collection.
• The standard level of service determines the course of direction needed to take place in the
next ten years.
• Currently the Library's building facilities show .33 sq. ft. per capita based on peak season
population numbers with a unit cost of$263.41 per sq. ft.
• The current values reflect that more libraries are not needed in Collier County for the next five
years at this time.
• This report includes the Library's debt service of$5.2 million for construction of HQ, SR & GG.
• The report includes considerations based on the Library's Community Assessment and
Strategic Plan.
• The Chart/Spreadsheet projects population growth over the next ten years, and shows that
the Library has adequate square footage to accommodate the growth.
• The report includes a map of all Library locations.
• The Library collections level of service standard is calculated to be 1.87 items/capita,
however, the Library's current level is at 1.29.
• The unit cost for Library materials is $25.84 per volume.
• The Library has approximately 570K items in its collection, which should be at 900K in 5
years.
• The estimated revenue needed to get to the level of standard is $8.6 million.
• The Library will not receive any monies from impact fees for materials due to its $8.2 million
debt.
• The Library Operating Statistics reflect a five year period and include notes of explanation of
any occurrences that may have caused a decline or increase in statistics, such as Hurricane
Irma. Some locations were closed for 5 days, others 2 weeks, and Everglades City was closed
for 5 months.
• The report shows that Library visits are down from FY16, virtual visits and registered borrows
and Wi-Fi statistics are up, circulation statistics are down, which is a nationwide trend.
• Meeting room use was down, partly due to the fact that the Sugden Theater at the
Headquarters Library had technical equipment which was not operational for several months
in 2017.
• There was a decline in in-house internet usage, which may be contributed to the non-card
user fee.
• There was an increase in program attendance.
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• The decline in volunteers may be contributed to Hurricane Irma, the County's process of
employment may be a deterrent, and some volunteers are aging out. The Library does not
have a full-time volunteer coordinator to bring in quality and quantity of volunteers.
• Discussion ensued regarding the County's process of background checks and fingerprinting of
employees.
• Volunteer assignments vary at each location. However, volunteers cannot perform duties that
replace staff.
4) 2018 Status of Community Assessment Presentation
• Ms. Williams distributed handouts of the PowerPoint presentation on the 2018 status of the
Community Assessment results she created and shared with Library staff and the head of the
Public Services Department.
• The presentation reflects what the Library has done in FY2018 and recapped the Community
Assessment information for new managers.
• The top three key findings and additional improvement opportunities were addressed.
1. #1 Longer Hours / More Days Open
2. More Materials
3. Technology
4. Programs (1. Youth, 2. Adult)
5. More Tables/ Study & Reading Spaces
6. More Staff
7. Update Facilities
• The 10 Key Recommendations to Drive Current & Future Needs were discussed:
Staffing, Open Hours & Days, Computers & Internet, Technology, Hub Libraries, Marketing,
Quiet Space, Children to Young Adult, Collections, Programming Balance
• The FY2018 Progress on Recommendations was discussed:
• The recommendations addressed in FY18 were: Staffing, Computers & Internet, Technology,
Marketing, Quiet Space, Children to Young Adult, Collections, and Programming Balance.
• Items to be addressed include Open Hours & Days and Hub Libraries.
• Hub Libraries are locations that provide unique needs based on the community, such as a
career center, etc.
• Currently, the newest Library location in the system is 10 years old. Each building would need
to be retrofitted to accommodate any space modifications, which would require an architect.
The Library will need to develop a Master Plan for future libraries and possibly find donors to
underwrite or sponsors to help redesign library space for other purposes.
• The bottom line is that longer open hours alone will not translate to success unless there are
the appropriate staff, programs users are seeking, technology to support them, facility
functionality, and the collections desired.
• The Library has expanded its use of Qualtrics surveys to ensure continued public involvement
in meeting recommendations.
• Ms. Williams is soliciting a Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) team to identify trends,
how to address concerns, and provide directives to resolve any issues.
• The Library released its first monthly electronic newsletter recently.
• Ms. Williams showed LAB members how they can sign up to automatically receive the
newsletter. She will send members an email with the current issue.
• Ms. Williams will look into archiving previous issues.
• Ms. Williams reported that exercise programs at South Regional Library and throughout the
system will be transitioned into programs that meet the needs of non-served or under-served
residents and are not offered by other agencies in the County.
• One of the technology enhancements included a 3D printer that the Friends of the Library
provided funding for the Golden Gate Library to purchase.
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ADJOURNMENT
Mrs. Murray asked if there was any more business to discuss. There being no further business to come
before the Library Advisory Board, the meeting was adjourned at 11:45 a.m.
The next LAB meeting will be held on Wednesday, October 17, 2018 at the Headquarters Library, 2385
Orange Blossom Drive, Naples, FL 34109, (239) 593-3511.
NOTE: The meeting will be held in the Staff Training Room (across from the Staff Lounge).
Approved by:
Loretta Murray, Chair
Library Advisory Board
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