Haverhill Public Library
Board of Trustees
Minutes of May 17, 2018
The regular monthly meeting of the Trustees of the Haverhill Public Library was called to order at 8:40 a.m. on Thursday, May 17, 2018, in the Donald C. Freeman Whittier Room. In attendance were Trustees Klueber, Veasey, Bresnahan, along with Director Sarah Moser. Trustee Rurak joined by telephone until approximately 9:15. Trustee Sheehan joined by telephone from 9:15 until approximately 9:40. Trustee Coletti was absent.
The first order of business was to vote on the FY2019 trustee’s budget. A motion was made and seconded to accept the budget. The budget was so approved.
The next order of business was to vote on extending Dana Gee’s contract. Dana has agreed to the same terms. A motion was made and seconded to accept the contract extension. The extension was so approved.
Secretary’s Report
The trustees were given copies of the minutes dated March 15, 2018 and April 19, 2018. After taking a few moments to peruse them, a motion was made and seconded to accept the minutes. The minutes were so approved.
Treasurer’s Report
Perry Frankston, Business Manager, provided copies of the April financials for the trustees to examine. He stated that we have done well with investment income year to date but due to market volatility last month we lost a good bit of market share. The market will continue to be up and down. Donations were light in April. A motion was made and seconded to approve the reports. Approval was unanimous.
Director’s Report
A copy of the Director’s Report was given to the trustees. Highlights included that Comic Con is this Sat., May 19. It is expected to be busy. Rebecca Reed was promoted to Division Head in Reference. Steve Berezansky announced his retirement. Sarah would like to make the IT position 40 hours instead of 30. She will continue discussing it with the Mayor.
Friend’s Shop
Cindy Cavallaro presented the final plans and cost for the Friend’s shop renovation. The total needed is about $25,000 including an interior designer to be here when Friend’s staff can’t be. Trustee Klueber suggested to increase the budget by 10% to account for unforeseen costs and made a motion to accept $27,500, which was seconded by Trustee Veasey and a vote was made in favor of accepting the budget and to move ahead with the renovation.
Old Business
A down payment was made for the van logos. Sarah is hoping the wrap will be done in time for the summer reading program kickoff event.
The bathroom tiles, except for countertops, have been chosen. Sarah went over the chosen colors with the trustees. The bathroom remodel seems to be on schedule.
A vote was made to accept the quote by Maroney for installation of two large scale dehumidifiers in the basement. A motion was made and seconded to accept the quote and move ahead with the installation. Maroney will install them for a cost of $8857. Joe Piantedosi was contacted and he felt these are the right kind of dehumidifiers. This is necessary to decrease moisture to help control mold.
A1 Foundation wasn’t able to fill in cracks on May 15, as scheduled, due to rain. It is now scheduled for Sat., May 19.
Discussion on the preservation and digitization of the oversized aerial photos of Haverhill continued. If we digitize them, our database won’t be able to store them so just preserving them now might be a better option. The cost is $12,000. Trustees Rurak and Veasey would like to see them first, if possible. Sarah will contact NEDCC.
Roof repairs have been completed for the season.
New Business
The Union is going on its second year without a contract. No one on staff has received salary increases. This is concerning because without increases, our highly educated staff may look elsewhere for employment.
There being no further business to discuss, a motion was made and seconded to adjourn. The meeting ended at 9:50 a.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Kathleen Bresnahan Secretary