HomeMy WebLinkAboutMin - LB - 1987.06.16 BURLINGAME PUBLIC LIBRARY
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
MINUTES
JUNE 16TH, 1987
CALL TO ORDER:
A duly noticed regular meeting of the Burlingame Public Library Board
of Trustees was held on the above date in the California Room of the
Burlingame Public Library. The meeting was called to order at 4 : 30pm by
Secretary Carol Mink.
Trustees Present: MINK, HARRISON, CANNON AND SOMMER
Trustees Absent: BLEVINS
Staff Present: MRS. JUDY GLADYSZ, LIBRARY SECRETARY
MR. ALFRED ESCOFFIER, ASST. CITY LIBRARIAN
BILLS:
M/S/C (Harrison/Cannon) unanimously to approve the payment of City
checks in the amount of $28 , 677 . 20. M/S/C (Harrison/Sommer) unanimously
to approve the payment of the Trustees Special Fund in the amount of
$423 . 14 .
MINUTES:
Minutes of the Regular Meeting of May 19th, 1987 were approved.
CORRESPONDENCE AND COMMUNICATIONS:
Acknowledgements : a. Letter to Friends of the Library from President
Blevins thanking them for their continued support.
b. Letter to Board of Trustees of the SMUHSD asking
them to consider continuing the "Reading Break"
program. Trustee Harrison said the Committee and
Superintendent are recommending continuing
Reading Break to the Board and adding 5 minutes to
the present "Break Time. "
c. Letter to Iry Amstrup informing him that the
Library had framed an old map of Burlingame to be
displayed with the other historic pictures. Funds
from his gift to the Library had been used to pay
for the framing of same.
d. Letter from Morning Glory Nursery School thanking
Cathy Somerton for the excellent job she is doing.
e. Library Spectacles for June was distributed.
REPORTS:
a. City Librarian: Librarian Bergsing said Councilmen Pagliaro and
Amstrup are interviewing for a new Trustee for the Library Board to
replace Trustee Sommer. She said the appointment will probably be made at
their July Council meeting.
Secretary Mink said she wanted the minutes to reflect that she too
had attended the Tom Lantos Breakfast meeting.
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Secretary Mink gave a brief description of a 12 hour video program on
the Bicentennial that is available for loan from the High School District.
,he said it is a series of tapes starring prominent national leaders
,...iscussing constitutional issues . Trustee Mink is suggesting that various
PLS libraries show the video tapes followed by a discussion moderated by
selected community leaders . Mrs . Bergsing said it is presently being
shown on channel 9 if anyone wishes to watch it.
There were some questions regarding the calculations and
reimbursements for non-residents. Librarian Bergsing explained the
process . Some discussion followed.
Al Escoffier had prepared statistics showing the number of registered
borrowers . These were distributed to the Board members and explained.
Secretary Mink thanked him for the figures.
System Advisory Board - Blevins: Tabled until the next Board meeting.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS:
Library Budget 1987-1988 and Cataloging/Processing Backlog: Mrs.
Bergsing stated that Councilman Pagliaro had expressed concern about the
small increase in next year ' s book budget. She explained that the book
budget had increased from $108, 950 last year to $165 ,670 requested for
next year. This represents a $56 , 720 increase. She added that if the
book budget were much higher it would require more staff and compound the
backlog in processing because of the current staff vacancies. Councilman
Pagliaro said he wanted the Trustees to be aware of this situation and
Mrs. Bergsing said she would express the concern to the Commissioners.
Trustee Cannon asked how large the backlog is. Mrs . Bergsing
explained at the moment there are probably about 1 , 000 books which could
be caught up by July or August. Trustee Cannon asked how long to process
a book from the time it is received to the time it gets on the shelf .
Mrs . Bergsing replied that it varies from one day to two weeks depending
on the subject matter.
Librarian Bergsing stated that they were actively recruiting for both
the Library Assistant and the Librarian position, and they would be
recruiting at A.L.A. next week. In the meantime, they are reassigning
duties among current staff to help cope with the "backlog. "
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The Board had several suggestions regarding recruiting possibilities,
and Secretary Mink said the Board members are very concerned about the
staffing issue and support Mrs . Bergsing' s efforts . Discussion followed.
A.L.A. Conference - June 27th-July 2nd: Trustee Cannon said she
would be attending the American Library Association Conference that will
be held in San Francisco next week. Secretary Mink expressed an interest
in attending the exhibits as did Trustee Sommer.
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Update on the 75th Anniversary Celebration: Mrs. Bergsing said
everything for the celebration is moving along very nicely. All of the
entertainment has been obtained and the printing is almost finished. Some
iscussion followed. Trustees Harrison and Blevins will be at the Library j
'--ny 1 : 00 on the 12th of July for the opening ceremonies . E
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NEW BUSINESS•
nnesty on Fines of the Trustee Harrison made a motion to approve
`75th Anniversary amnesty on July 12th for all fines . Trustee
Sommer thought however that it might encourage
people to keep the books, while Trustee
Harrison felt that it encourages people to dig
into their closets and return the books they' ve
had for so long. Trustee Sommer said that had
never occurred to him and then seconded the
motion which passed unanimously.
Geac Update and System Mrs. Bergsing told the Commissioners that
Questions a company named "Helix Investments Ltd. " has
recently invested $20 million in Geac. This
should help their recent financial crisis.
Trustee Mink asked if there was anything the
Board should do regarding the circulation
system. Mrs. Bergsing said that at the moment
they just needed to be informed and she would
keep them up to date on developments. Trustee
Cannon asked about the cost effectiveness of
the automated circulation system, why it was
better than a manual system, and why we were
looking toward a larger system. Mrs. Bergsing
replied that a committee of PLAN was proposing
written answers to these and the other
questions distributed to the Board. She also
said that some of the answers were contained in
a pamphlet on the circulation system that was
available. Trustee Cannon asked what a
"deletion process" was. Mr. Escoffier
explained. Brief discussion followed.
San Mateo County Fair: Mrs . Bergsing asked if any of the Board members
were interested in working the PLS booth at the
Fair. Trustee Cannon said she would fill out
an application since her hours are more
flexible during the summer.
Miscellaneous : Secretary Mink said she ' s concerned about the
ceramic art work that' s falling apart
throughout the City. She asked if there was
anything to replace them? Mrs . Bergsing said
she would check with Rich Quadri to see if he
has any suggestions.
The Board members thanked Trustee Sommer for
serving on the Board. Secretary Mink said it
was their pleasure and privilege to have him on
the Library Board. After he left she made a
suggestion to present something to Herb. The
Board members concurred. Brief discussion
followed.
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ADJOURNMENT:
The meeting of June 16th, 1987 was adjourned at 5: 50pm with the next
-ieting scheduled for July 21st in the California Room.
Respectfully submitted,
Patricia M. Bergsing
Clerk of the Board
PMB/jg
06/17/87
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