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December 10, 2003
Minutes of the regular meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Skokie Public Library held
in the Skokie Public Library Board Room, Wednesday, December 10,2003.
CALL TO ORDER
John M. Wozniak, President, called the meeting to order at 7:33p.m.
Members present: John M. Wozniak, President; Richard Witry, Vice President; Zelda
Rich, Secretary; John Graham, Susan Greer; and Carolyn A. Anthony, Director.
Members absent: Diana Hunter, President Emerita and Eva Weiner.
Visitors present: Barbara A. Kozlowski, Associate Director for Public Services.
APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF NOVEMBER
12,2003
Mr. Witry made a motion, seconded by Mr. Graham, to approve the minutes of the
regular meeting of November 12, 2003, subject to additions and/or corrections. There
being no additions or corrections, the minutes were approved and placed on file.
After review of the Skokie Public Library 2003 closed minutes, Mr. Graham made a
motion, seconded by Mr. Witry:
MOTION:
THAT THE SKOKIE PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES
OPEN THE FOLLOWING SKOKIE PUBLIC LIBRARY CLOSED
MINUTES: MARCH 12, 2003; APRIL 9, 2003; MAY 14, 2003;
SEPTEMBER 10, 2003; AND OCTOBER 8, 2003. THE BOARD FINDS
THAT THE NEED FOR CONFIDENTIALITY STILL EXISTS FOR
THE JUNE 11, 2003 AND JULY 9, 2003 MINUTES.
The motion passed unanimously.
CONSENT AGENDA (Financial Statements; Circulation Report; Library Use Statistics;
Report(s) from Department Head(s); Correspondence; Personnel; Gifts)
Mr. Graham made a motion, seconded by Mrs. Greer:
MOTION:
THAT THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS BE APPROVED, SUBJECT
TO AUDIT, AND THAT THE FOLLOWING CONSENT AGENDA
ITEMS BE PLACED ON FILE:
1. CIRCULATION REPORT
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2. LIBRARY USE STATISTICS
3. REPORT(S) FROM DEPARTMENT HEAD(S)
4. CORRESPONDENCE: LETTER FROM THOMAS P. ENGLISH,
BOYLE, FLAGG & SEAMAN, INC. TO CAROLYN ANTHONY
DATED NOVEMBER 14, 2003 RECLAIMS; MEMORANDUM
FROM ROBERT J. NOWAK, DIRECTOR OF FINANCE, VILLAGE
OF SKOKIE TO ALBERT J. RIGONI, VILLAGE MANAGER
DATED NOVEMBER 21, 2003 RE 2003 TAX LEVY ORDINANCE;
AND LETTER FROM ROBERT J. NOWAK, DIRECTOR OF
FINANCE, VILLAGE OF SKOKIE TO CAROLYN ANTHONY
DATED DECEMBER 2, 2003 RE SKOKIE PUBLIC LIBRARY
APRIL 30, 2003 ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORT
5. PERSONNEL: TERMINATION: DEBORAH VAUGHAN, PARTTIME REFERENCE LIBRARIAN, ADULT SERVICES
DEPARTMENT, EFFECTIVE DECEMBER 31,2003
6. GIFTS: $100. FROM SKOKIE AREA CHAPTER AARP IN
APPRECIATION; AND $250. FROM GLORIA BLOOM IN
APPRECIATION
The motion passed unanimously.
BILLS
Mr. Graham made a motion, seconded by Mr. Witry:
MOTION:
THAT THE SKOKIE PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES
APPROVE THE BILLS, THE 2001 BUILDING EXPANSION PROJECT
BILLS, THE LIST OF BILLS FOR PAYMENT APPROVAL AND
INVOICE NO. 0062907 FROM O'DONNELL WICKLUND PIGOZZI
AND PETERSON FOR $7,716.67 DATED NOVEMBER 10,2003, AS
PRESENTED, SUBJECT TO AUDIT.
The roll call vote for approval was unanimous.
DIRECTOR'S REPORT
USAGE--Circulation in November was 130,748 for an increase of nearly 15% over the
same month last year. Although the strongest gains continue to be in the circulation of
audiovisual formats, Adult book circulation was up more than 8% and youth circulation
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nearly 6%. Even the gate count was up almost 8%. Additionally, there were 4 787 uses of
electronic databases to which the Library subscribes.
E-RATE-The Library received a check for $4,794.00 fore-rate payment for fiscal year
2003. We have only applied for telephone service excluding the Internet so that we would
not be bound by mandatory filtering requirements.
HOUSE CLOSING--The contract for 7929 Park A venue has been signed by all parties.
The Library paid earnest money of $20,000. The closing will occur on or before
December 19 and the residents will remain in the house until December 26.
PAYMENT FOR SKOKIENET --In the NSLS report this month, the System has decided
to charge for participation in NorthStarNet as a way of recovering some of the funds cut
by the State. NSLS maintains the servers that store and process all of the community
information compiled by participating libraries. They provide technical support for
maintenance of the files and software for formatting the entries, calendar, etc. At the rate
of .025 per capita, it will cost the Library $1,583.70 for maintenance of SkokieNet this
year. Fees for FY2004 have not been determined as yet. The cost is not unreasonable and
SkokieNet is well worth it. Nevertheless, this is an unplanned expense and a new
development in services from NSLS. We have always paid a small amount for continuing
education sessions at the System, but other services have been totally subsidized by the
State. There is discussion of modest charges for other services also.
RADIO PROGRAM--The radio program Mrs. Anthony taped for "Vantage Point", a
program ofNortheastern Illinois University, will be aired on WTMX-FM (101.9)
Sunday, December 21, at 6:30a.m. The show is on the PATRIOT Act and its impact on
public libraries. It was taped in mid-September.
LACONI PANEL--Mrs. Anthony was a panel member at a LACONI Administrators'
Forum panel on referenda November 14 at the Chicago Public Library. Her portion was
about the Cost Benefit project as a means of deriving information about the value of
library services that could be communicated to the publi~.
BRAILLE SATURDAY--While the Youth Services Department had a number of special
programs during National Children's Book Week in November, Braille Saturday was a
particularly moving occasion. Speakers included former Senator Paul Simon; Paula
Sprecher, a blind teacher from the Farnsworth School and a recipient of a 2003 Golden
Apple Award; and author Laurie Lawlor who recently published a biography of Helen
Keller Helen Keller: Rebellious Spirit. Two young blind children read excerpts from the
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Helen Keller story in Braille and a couple other students played the piano or sang. Board
President John Wozniak attended the program as did Board member John Graham.
The Board asked Mrs. Anthony to send a letter of condolence to Senator Simon's family.
MEETING WITH PARK DISTRICT--Mrs. Anthony attended a meeting with
representatives of the Park District about possible cooperation in maintenance of archives ·
of the Skokie Historical Society and other activities such as programming and research
assistance that are carried out at the Skokie Heritage Museum. Board member Dick Witry
also attended in his capacity as an active member of the Skokie Historical Society. There
will be a follow-up meeting December 17.
PHOTO FROM AUTHOR BARBARA KINGSOLVER--Ricki Nordmeyer, Manager of
Adult Popular Services, received a letter and signed photo from author Barbara
Kingsolver recently for the Library's author wall of fame. This is the first time Ms.
Kingsolver has provided a photo for display. She commented that any library that
circulates over 1,300,000 items deserves a photo.
BUILDING PROJECT
Mrs. Anthony briefly updated the Board on a few construction issues. Berglund has been
at the Library checking on punchlist items. The west parking lot is now striped and
usable. Mrs. Anthony will check on the wheelstop issue with Camosy. Connectivity is
pretty close to being finished with the fire alarm system and we are ready to schedule the
inspection. The Board suggested Mrs. Anthony contact the Mayor re the CornEd pole in
the west parking lot.
Mr. Graham made a motion, seconded by Mr. Witry:
MOTION:
THAT THE SKOKIE PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES
APPROVE THREE CHANGE ORDERS AS PRESENTED:
COMMERCIAL ELECTRIC (INSTALL FIBER CABLE)
$1,217.00
CAMOSY, INC. (FLOATING CEILING)
$2,814.00
CAMOSY, INC. (19 END PANELS)
$7,769.00
TOTAL:
The roll call vote for approval was unanimous.
$11,800.00
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APPROVAL OF TELEPHONE NOTIFICATION SYSTEM
Mrs. Anthony reported that one of the requests received most frequently is for the
opportunity to reserve DVDs and videos. We have not permitted reserves on these media
to date because we did not feel that Circulation staff could handle the call volume of
notifying patrons that their reserve was available. We have not sent notices by mail for
many years because the length of time for mail notification keeps popular items out of
circulation for an unacceptably long period of time.
Staff think that they have worked out other procedures related to the reservation of films
and will be ready to start implementation with the installation of an automated Telephone
Notification System from Innovative Interfaces. Because of the need to integrate this
system with our patron database and other components of the circulation system, we need
to purchase the product from our current automation vendor rather than accept
competitive bids.
Nevertheless, the pricing for a new and enhanced, fully graphical Telephone Notification
System is no more expensive than the old system offered by Innovative and represents
good value. Mrs. Anthony recommends the purchase of one telephone line with two
messages at a cost of $13,450. After the first year, there will be an annual 12% increment
to system maintenance to cover the cost of maintaining the Telephone Notification
System.
After brief discussion, Mr.Graham made a motion, seconded by Mrs. Rich:
MOTION:
THAT THE SKOKIE PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES
APPROVE PURCHASE OF A TELEPHONE NOTIFICATION
SYSTEM (TNS) WITH ONE TELEPHONE LINE AND TWO
MESSAGES FROM INNOVATIVE INTERFACES FOR A COST OF
$13,450.
The roll was called: Mr. Witry-no; Mrs. Greer-yes; Mr. Graham-yes; Mrs. Richyes; Dr. Wozniak-yes. The motion passed.
APPROVAL OF TELEPHONE MAINTENANCE
Mrs. Anthony presented the proposed agreement for telephone maintenance from
Nortech for 2004. The price of $9,890.00 per year as quoted reflects an increase of 5%
over last year, plus additional costs for an added digital line card and 16 ports which were
necessary for new telephone locations occasioned by the building addition.
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We have been satisfied with service from Nortech. Mrs. Anthony recommends approval
ofthe renewal ofthe annual maintenance at a cost of$9,890.00.
A motion was made by Mr. Witry, seconded by Mr. Graham:
MOTION:
THAT THE SKOKIE PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES
APPROVE THE RENEWAL OF THE ANNUAL TELEPHONE
MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT FROM NORTECH
TELECOMMUNICATIONS FOR $9,890.00 FOR 2004.
The roll call vote for approval was unanimous.
APPROVAL OF TAX RATE OBJECTION COMPLAINTS
Mrs. Anthony reported that a recent meeting of the Niles Township Property Tax
Coalition members with the Coalition's legal counsel Franczek Sullivan P.C. was
enlightening in regard to the short collections the Library has experienced in recent years.
Mrs. Anthony distributed a report about tax objections as prepared by Franczek Sullivan.
In summary, the report indicates that after the PTAB process was first opened up to Cook
County, it became increasingly popular as a means of pursuing corporate tax objection
complaints. The PTAB process requires the affected taxing bodies to be notified if a
. reduction in assessment of $100,000. or more is sought by the petitioner. Armed with this
information, the Coalition has successfully fought and minimized the tax reductions of
some of the largest corporate entities in Niles Township.
The trend now is to file a tax objection complaint in the Circuit Court of Cook County.
Taxing bodies are not notified of such filings and are represented in the aggregate by the
State's Attorney's Office. The chart at the bottom of page 3 shows that the refunds issued
by the Circuit Court represent about 80% of refunds as compared to only 20% through
the PTAB process.
Franczek Sullivan has spent time combing through print records and compiling a
database of corporations seeking property tax relief for 2001 from the Circuit Court.
(They have not done this yet for 2002 as the filing deadline will be later in December, 75
days after the property tax notices were issued). Given that it frequently takes 3-4 years to
resolve complaints, the Library will continue to experience reduced revenues due to tax
refunds for 2001 through calendar 2005.
The cumulative effect of these refunds is substantial, amounting to 3-4% or more of
anticipated revenues. The net effect is that a levy increase of 5% by the Board may yield
a revenue increase of as little as 1%. Given that a significant portion of the Library's tax
�7
collection is devoted to debt payment which is not flexible, the impact on operations is
even greater. As a case in point, the Library this month was about $80,000. short of
revenue in the debt payment fund, necessitating borrowing from the Operating Fund. The
amount of levy collection allocated to the Debt Fund is 18% as calculated by Village
Finance Officer Bob Nowak. This portion of the levy collection should have yielded an
amount sufficient for debt payment.
The Niles Township Property Tax Coalition proposes to ask Franczek Sullivan to petition
for the right to directly represent the Coalition in a limited number of cases, namely
larger cases representing perhaps at least the top three potential losses for each
participating taxing body. An exact formula for distribution of the fees has not been
determined, but fees are expected to be in the range of those experienced in the PTAB
appeals. For the Library, these fees amount to $2,000-$3,000. per year. Mrs. Anthony
recommends that the Board support continued participation in the Niles Township
Property Tax Coalition appeal process as it shifts its emphasis to pursuit of cases taken to
the Cook County Circuit Court of Appeals.
After brief discussion, Mrs. Rich made a motion, seconded by Mr. Witry:
MOTION:
THAT THE SKOKIE PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES
APPROVE SKOKIE PUBLIC LIBRARY'S CONTINUED
PARTICIPATION IN THE NILES TOWNSHIP PROPERTY TAX
COALITION.
The roll call vote for approval was unanimous.
GOALS AND OBJECTNES 2003-2004- INTERIM PROGRESS REPORT
Mrs. Anthony presented the report ofprogress in achieving Goals and Objectives set out
for this fiscal year. Whenever we compile such a report, Mrs. Anthony is impressed with
the amount of focused activity and follow through on intentions that staff has achieved.
Many of the objectives dealt with familiarizing staff and the public with new building
features and services or with realizing the service potential made possible by new spaces
and equipment. Mrs. Anthony feels confident in saying that staff and the public have
embraced and made good use of building enhancements.
LIBRARY CABLE NETWORK CHANNEL 24
The December 2003 Cable Guide was noted. Dr. Wozniak attended the 20th anniversary
event ofLCN at the Library on December 4.
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NORTH SUBURBAN LIBRARY SYSTEM
The report from Pat Groh was noted.
Brief discussion followed regarding North Suburban Library System charging a fee for
NorthStarNet participation.
COMMENTS FROM TRUSTEES
A suggestion box will be put on the west Circulation Desk for a trial period of two
months.
At 8:46p.m. the Board took a short break.
Mrs. Kozlowski left the meeting.
CLOSED SESSION
At 8:51p.m. a motion was made by Mr. Witry, seconded by Mr. Graham:
MOTION:
THAT THE SKOKIE PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES GO
INTO CLOSED SESSION TO DISCUSS A PERSONNEL MATTER.
The motion passed unanimously.
Discussion ensued.
Adjournment
At 9:06 p.m. a motion was made by Mr. Witry, seconded by Mr. Graham:
MOTION:
THAT THE SKOKIE PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES
ADJOURN FROM CLOSED SESSION.
The motion passed unanimously.
The Board resumed open session at 9:06p.m.
ADJOURNMENT
At 9:06p.m. a motion was made by Mrs. Rich, seconded by Mr. Witry to adjourn the
regular meeting. The motion passed unanimously.
r~~L~t.z;
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Ida R. Rich, Secretary
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9815a210bdc02edd0c1d8b92340d141c
PDF Text
Text
December 10, 2003
Minutes of the closed meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Skokie Public Library held
in the Skokie Public Library Board Room, Wednesday, December 10, 2003.
CALL TO ORDER
John M. Wozniak, President, called the meeting to order at 8:51 p.m.
Members present: John M. Wozniak, President; Richard Witry, Vice President; Zelda
Rich, Secretary; John Graham; and Susan Greer and Carolyn A. Anthony, Director.
Members absent: Diana Hunter, President Emerita and Eva Weiner.
CLOSED SESSION
At 8:51 p.m. a motion was made by Mr. Witry, seconded by Mr. Graham:
MOTION:
THAT THE SKOKIE PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES GO
INTO CLOSED SESSION TO DISCUSS A PERSONNEL MATTER.
The motion passed unanimously.
Personnel Matter
Mrs. Anthony explained that when the Library's health insurance coverage through the
Village terminated at the end of April, 2003, we made arrangements to have an additional
sixty days, until the end of June, for staff to file medical claims for reimbursement. We
notified Library staff of this provision and warned them that claims filed after June 30
would not be considered for reimbursement.
One staff member (the only one Gail Kay or Mrs. Anthony is aware of) had two large
claims that were denied due to late submission. The staff member, , has had
serious medical problems and multiple surgeries in the past couple years. She says that
she was aware of the filing deadline and notified her doctors accordingly. The provider,
the Illinois Bone and Joint Clinic, claimed that they filed in a timely manner. We recently
learned that the Village has refused to cover these claims, one of which is for $5,096.00
and the other for $1,274.00.
Mrs. Anthony distributed her correspondence to Village Manager Al Rigoni regarding the
extended claim period, the proof of filing as claimed by the Illinois Bone and Joint Clinic
and the letter received from Christa Ballowe, Personnel Director for the Village regarding
the Village's refusal to pay. Reviewing the evidence of claim submission, it appears that
the claim for $1,274.00 may have been filed too late, but that the larger claim of
�2
$5,096.00 was submitted electronically on May 21. Mrs. Anthony's concern is that this
expense will be a hardship for Susan Lee.
Discussion ensued.
Mrs. Greer left the meeting at 8:59 p.m.
The Board would like Library legal counsel Frank Garrett to write a letter to Pat Handley,
Village of Skokie Corporation Counsel stating that the larger claim was filed in a timely
manner and we expect prompt payment. Mr. Garrett should ask for a response back so
this issue can be resolved when the Library Board meets again in January. Copies of the
letter should also be sent to Al Rigoni, Village Manager and Christa Ballowe, Village
Personnel Director.
ADJOURNMENT
At 9:06 p.m. a motion was made by Mr. Witry, seconded by Mr. Graham:
MOTION:
THAT THE SKOKIE PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES
ADJOURN FROM CLOSED SESSION.
Rich, Secretary
Opened: 6/9/2004
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Minutes, Wednesday, December 10, 2003
Minutes -- Closed meeting, Wednesday, December 10, 2003
Contributor
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Rich, Zelda R. (Secretary)
Date
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12/10/2003
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LBM20031210.pdf
LBM20031210_Closed.pdf
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8 p.
2 p.
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Public Libraries -- Illinois -- Skokie
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Skokie Public Library. Board of Trustees
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Skokie Public Library, Skokie, IL
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PDF
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eng
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2000s (2000-2009)
2000s
Building project
Closed meeting
library board meetings