TOWN OF PROVINCETOWN
Public Library
Board of Library Trustees
Members Present: James Cole, Chair; Marcia Fair, Vice-Chair; Anita Berman, Secretary; Arthur Pike.
Members Absent: Maghi Geary (excused)
Others Present: Debra DeJonker-Berry, Library Director.
Call to Order: James Cole called the meeting to order at 5:14 p.m.
1. Minutes: Arthur Pike made and Marcia Fair seconded the motion to approve the minutes of January 16, 2003. The vote to approve was 4-0.
2.
Motion taken out of order: Marcia Fair made and Arthur Pike seconded
a motion to send a letter to the Zoning Board of Appeals, thanking them for
their support and positive vote of approval for the variances requested for
construction at 356 Commercial Street.
The Trustees voted to approved sending this letter 4-0. Arthur Pike agreed that he would construct a
draft of that letter.
3.
Operating Budget: A request had been received from the Town
Manager that our FY2004 610 Library Operating Budget be reduced by 5%. In response the Library Director presented a
modified budget that achieved such reduction, removing $12,261 from the
originally presented budget of $245,211 to yield a new total operating budget
of $232,950.
The first and major change was to
postpone increased open hours of the Library for the public. This pull-back in hours open made possible a
reduction in funding needed for additional On Call staff members.
The second change involved small
reductions in funding for supplies and printing costs. The third change required reduction in the
funding needed for Books/Subscriptions, a reduction that must be factored into
a formula of at least 20% Town funding if our Library is to maintain accreditation
and access to State funds. The
interplay of the reduction in open hours with the 20% rule yielded a somewhat
smaller reduction in the Book/Subscription line item than might otherwise have
been needed.
After discussion of these several
issues, Arthur Pike made and Marcia Fair seconded a motion that the Trustees
accept the budget modifications as presented by the Library Director. The vote to approve was 4-0.
4.
Other Business:
The Chair reported on the recent
meeting with the Massachusetts Historic Commission, at which the Commission
announced their difficulties with the proposed design of the addition to 356
Commercial Street. The architects from
PDR/P, who were present, offered to present some modified renderings that might
be more acceptable to the Commission.
The Library Director reported that she had notified the Commission that
the date for opening the general bids had been moved up to January 30.
The Library Director reported on the opening of the sub-bids, many of which had come in over budget. Having that information, the architects at PDR/P had urged the delay in general bid openings, so that PDR/P could reconsider details of the subcontracts so that costs could be brought closer to the estimated budget.
Next Meeting:
The next meeting has already been
scheduled for Tuesday, February 4, 2003 at 5:15 pm in the Conference Room of
the Police Station.
Adjournment:
Marcia Fair moved and Arthur Pike
seconded the motion to adjourn at 6:08 pm. The vote was 4-0.
These minutes
were approved by a vote of the Provincetown Library Board of Library Trustees
members present at their meeting on February 3, 2003 .
Respectfully
submitted:
James D. Cole Chair .
Library Board of
Library Trustees signature Title
minutes prepared
by Arthur Pike, Trustee.