Haverhill Public Library
Board of Trustees
Minutes of April 20, 2023
The regular monthly meeting of the Trustees of the Haverhill Public Library was called to order at 9:00 a.m. on Thursday, April 20, 2023 in the Donald C. Freeman Whittier Room. In attendance were Trustees Bresnahan, Coletti, Klueber, Rurak, Sheehan and Veasey-Sirois. Also in attendance was Director, Sarah Moser and Assistant Director, Jane Lemuth.
Secretary’s Report
The trustees were given copies of the minutes dated March 16, 2023. After perusing the minutes, a motion was made and then seconded to accept the minutes. The minutes were approved.
Treasurer’s Report
Business manager, Josh, presented the financial statements for March. Highlights included:
- The portfolio was up slightly and mostly stable.
- Reader’s Fund gifts are still coming in. The total number of gifts is just below that of last year and the average gift has increased.
- We received a large unrestricted donation.
- The state aid money is here and with the City right now. It is $38,000 more than budgeted.
- The auditor is finishing the 2021 audit and will start working on 2022 immediately following.
Director’s Report
A copy of the director’s report was given to the trustees. Sarah discussed the highlights and other director’s news:
- In March, the library was closed for 16 hours due to snow, which is low compared to other years.
- Andre Dubus is coming in for a book talk for Haverhill Reads.
- Comic Con is scheduled for May 13.
Old Business
Sarah met with the Mayor in February to discuss the FY24 budget but has not received any follow up. The budget is going up $26,000. Sarah discussed the increases with the trustees stating that we need money for teen special events, youth print and programs, database price increases, and auditing and portfolio management fee increases.
Staff Updates
- A new page was hired.
- Sarah is still hoping that the Mayor will upgrade the position previously held by Suzanne to 40 hours.
- We began interviewing for the two vacancies in children’s.
Building Updates
- We are waiting for Uptack to get the parts for the HVAC then they can schedule a time to do the work.
- The water heater died and will be replaced when the company has the staff to do it.
- The awning was supposed to be installed but they said the roof supports were installed backwards. Sarah contacted the roofing company to fix it.
New Business
Jane stated that the event calendar is being updated and should be implemented soon. It is more user friendly and she is hoping that it will be easier to reserve meeting rooms.
We received a large, unexpected gift. Sarah spoke with the lawyer handling it. She will also work on writing a press release to announce it. Trustee Coletti made a motion to put the money into a fund. Trustee Rurak seconded the motion. All were in favor. They also discussed possibly using it for a new teen space.
The trustees discussed getting quotes from other auditing firms.
There being no further business to discuss, a motion was made and seconded to adjourn. The meeting ended at 10:00 a.m.
Sincerely,
Kathleen Bresnahan