Approve/modify agenda: No changes to agenda. Public comment: Kathie Wilson announced the Friends are selling bumper stickers which are available at the Circulation Desk. Regan Robinson, Public Services Manager for WCLS, introduced herself. Minutes approved: Faye Hill made the motion to approve the April 20, 2010 regular meeting minutes. Marilyn Mastor seconded. The motion carried. Trustee education: Summer Reading Program: Bethany Hoglund announced the theme of the Children’s Services Summer Reading Program: “Make a Splash, Read.” The average child loses 3 months of reading ability over the summer. It is important to read and maintain reading skills. Many school libraries will be closed this summer and are telling the children to come to our library. The summer reading program will have a kick-off party on June 12 with entertainers, Brothers with Different Mothers. The challenge will be to read or listen to 15 books. Reluctant readers are encouraged to listen to audio books. The children will receive a penny for each book read to throw into the fountain. Prizes include a free book from the Friends and a yard sign, “A Summer Reading Superstar lives here.” Club Splash is for birth to 3 years. A brochure lists 20 ideas for parents to support the six skills needed to be reading ready. Programming continues with 82 events this year compared to 102 last year because of staff reductions. There is something nearly every day on the calendar. Reader recognition ceremony is August 13. Beth Farley explained the adult summer reading program. Participants are asked to write a review of the book they read. There will be a drawing for prizes. The theme is “Water Your Mind.” Jennifer Lovchik said the teen summer reading program theme is “Make Waves at the Library.” There are incentives to read or listen to a book and write a short review. There will be weekly drawings for prizes. Jennifer has solicited ideas for prizes from the teen advisory group. Fine forgiveness will be offered to teens. The library averages $50 to $100 in fine forgiveness each summer. Programs consist of movies, anime, games, and a flash mob in August. Public Library Association (PLA) Conference Report: Beth Farley, Jane Lowrey and Jennifer Lovchik attended the PLA conference in Portland. Beth reported it was a great opportunity to meet with publishers, vendors and other librarians; and see what is going on in the library world. A major theme of the conference program was how do we insure the future of public libraries, stay relevant and reinvent ourselves. Beth attended programs on creating spaces that are more interactive or thematic for quiet, studying, games, or programs. Contemporary library catalogs and websites are designed to be more interactive, useful, and friendly. Jennifer stated she heard the theme to sell the library with merchandising, programs and presence. Everything is beta; we are constantly changing to meet demand, and we have to adapt to the changing generation. A benefit of attending the conference is that you can see how other libraries handle programming; our teen programs are awesome. We can be using Face book, U-Tube, and other social media more. Financial reports: Claims: April 2010 general fund $63,140.48; gift fund $9,162.46; Capital Maintenance fund $3,201.44. Rachel Myers made a motion to approve the April 2010 claims. Faye Hill seconded. Motion carried. 2011 budget: John Carter, City Finance Director, reviewed the City of Bellingham 2010 financials to date with summary slides. Tax receipts are down 6%, utility rates increased 7%, and grants are down 7%. The City’s operating expenses are down 3%. All departments are at or below their budget. The budget assumed an increase of 1.8% for projected revenues. We will be using $1.8 million of reserves. The City is cautious about the up-tick in real estate sales. Personnel costs add up to 70% of the General Fund. The basic function of the City is public safety. Public Works have specific revenues. Sixty positions were removed over the last year through retirement, attrition, and layoffs. The trend lines show continued revenue decline. A deficit of $2 million is projected for 2010. Decisions will need to be made in May or June whether budget adjustments need to be made. The City will try to maintain in 2011. There will be no new money for capital projects. Pam shared the Library budget calendar which is in the packet. It incorporates budget deadlines, Board meetings, management meetings, and staff meetings. Deadline for capital requests is June 1 and payroll is June 15. Rates and fees are scheduled for July and the line item budget is scheduled for the August Board meeting. A draft of the Library capital requests is in the packet. With our requests, we will be making the library’s needs known, even though there will be very little capital funding for 2011. Requests from city departments will be assessed by these priorities: public safety, maintenance of existing assets and whether a project is grant-funded. 2009 annual reports: Washington Public Libraries annual report to the State is interesting to look at and compare one year to the next. The loss in borrowers is a result of a regular purge of inactive cardholders. There are 46,000 people who have library cards. The Bellingham Public Library 2009 Annual Report is in the packet. Pam Kiesner will share the report, and give a mid-year 2010 report to City Council. Pam will explain the impact of budget and service reductions to the Council. Christine Perkins stated there is an omission in the Annual Report of Kathie Wilson’s name as President of the Friends. Kathie was President for most of the year. Library performance & activity measures: Marilyn Mastor made the motion to approve the April performance and activity measures. Faye Hill seconded. Total circulation is up 3%. Central is up 7% . We continue to puzzle over the impact of budget reduction and closures on Fairhaven Branch. Total visits are down 23%; this may be partly from Sunday closures. Website visits are up 24%. The motion carried. Communications: None. Library Board Member report: Faye Hill attended the WCLS Board meeting. Fay learned about the WCLS’ library services to the jail. Faye Hill took a trip to Massachusetts. She visited the oldest public library in the United States. The town named itself Franklin in 1790 and asked Ben Franklin to donate a bell for the church. Ben preferred to donate a library of books for public use. City Council Liaison report: Michael Lilliquist said he may have to leave the upcoming special session early and asked what he could report back to the Council. Pam Kiesner will let him know of any decisions. Library Director: Pam Kiesner spoke with Joel Douglas about his letter regarding the property east of Fairhaven Branch. Joel is interested in developing the land and allowing for library parking. The LUKE pay stations are being installed around the library block. They will be operative on June 1. Parking Services has installed one more disabled parking spot in front of the library at our request. Library staff will keep track of interactions with public about the pay stations. Pam attended the Public Development Authority (PDA) meeting today, as did J. Gordon. Dave Christensen’s sketches of the Army Street development, including a new library site will not be made public until Jim Long, PDA Executive Director, has met with the property owners. Pam thanked J. for working on an engineering question for the library. Can we put the oversize stacks closer together to create additional space? J. researched and discovered that we are at our weight limit. We cannot move the stacks closer, but could try a different arrangement. Pam and J will meet to discuss. Gladys Fullford has announced her retirement. Her last day will be July 16. Next Regular Library Board Meeting – June 15, 2010 in the Library Lecture Room, Lower level - will begin at 4:00 p.m. Meeting adjourned at 6:00 p.m.