Brown Memorial Library Secretary’s Draft Report
Wednesday, 1 August, 2018, 7pm at Brown Memorial Library
Present: Ellen Barselle, Seth Benowitz, Patty Furness, Jason Grey, Nola Jordan, Annette Leonas, Connie Scheffy, Sandy Wadlington.
Secretary’s Draft Report: The draft minutes of 7/11/18 were reviewed and accepted as read.
Treasurer’s Report: Nola presented the revenue/expenditure report for July 2018. The figure for donations reflected the 6/30 Independence Day celebration book/plant sale and $100 prize for Best Rockin’ Float in the parade. Nola also drew up a budget comparison and expenditure report covering 2017 to current 2018. She noted that in thinking ahead to next year’s budget, we should expect fuel prices to be higher. Staff salaries are down by comparison due to new staff being ineligible for vacation time as yet. Nola requested that we all become aware of budgetary issues in preparation for discussion of the 2019 budget next month.
Librarian’s Report: Ellen reported that total circulation was up, along with program attendees and patron numbers. The Summer Reading Program was a tremendous success, and enjoyed by all. BML Friends will sponsor a Japanese drumming exhibition by Hokuto Taiko Dojo on Saturday, 11 August at 2pm, and a request was made for snack donations (cookies and lemonade), as well as goodies for the weekly children’s reading and play group.
LED Lighting Subcommittee Report: Seth reported on his extensive investigative work on possible lighting fixtures and input from meetings with various electricians. There are 2 options to be pursued; the first is to remove the ballasts and replace existing fluorescent bulbs with LED bulbs, using the existing architectural grade fixtures. This was successfully done for one fixture by one of the contacted electricians yesterday. The second option is to replace all current fixtures with LED fixtures. In consideration of budget, the fixtures would necessarily be a lesser grade, and wiring and hanging would be complicated. Discussion ensued, and there was overwhelming support for replacing bulbs in our current fixtures. Fixtures and placement would remain the same in the main library, but in the stacks section a new layout was suggested by the subcommittee which would require additional fixtures. Seth volunteered to visit NE Electrical in Concord to get pricing for new fixtures of similar style. When decided, we will get a quote from the electrician for bulbs, labor for conversion, and installation of any new fixtures in the stacks area. The subcommittee also considered basement lighting, and determined that it would be addressed at a later date, at which time LED fixtures would be added in the many dimly lit areas. This project would be much simpler and far less complicated.
Substitute Position: Ellen addressed the need to hire a dependable person to act in an as needed substitute position, and also work 1-2 Saturdays each month. In addition, this individual would perhaps be needed winter evenings when the library is open. She stressed that this position would be replacing rather than adding any additional hours to the payroll. It was suggested that notification of this opening be put on the BML Website as well as Facebook page. Ellen will post the position.
With no further business to attend to, the meeting adjourned at 7:05pm. The next meeting will be Wednesday 5 September, 2018 at 6pm at Brown Memorial Library.
Respectfully Submitted,
Sandy Wadlington, Secretary