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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-21-2025-BLT-APPROVED MINUTES  CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH Board of Library Trustees Civic Center Council Chambers 100 Civic Center Drive, Newport Beach, CA Meeting Minutes Tuesday, January 21, 2025 – 5:00 PM I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Chase Rief called to order the Board of Library Trustees meeting for January 21, 2025. II. ROLL CALL Trustees Present: Chair Chase Rief, Vice Chair Antonella Castro, Secretary Dorothy Larson, Trustee Lauren Kramer, Trustee Meghan Murray Trustees Absent: None Staff Present: Melissa Hartson, Library Services Director Rebecca Lightfoot, Library Services Manager Andrew Kachaturian, Adult Services Coordinator Annika Helmuth, Branch and Youth Services Coordinator Francine Jacome, Administrative Support Specialist III. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Trustee Meghan Murray led the Pledge of Allegiance. IV. NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC - Waived COMMENTS BY CHAIR Chair Rief appointed Secretary Dorothy Larson and Trustee Murray to a new ad hoc subcommittee to explore creating a special sensitive-subject section of the Children’s Library. Chair Rief noted Secretary Larson and Trustee Lauren Kramer met with Library Services Director Melissa Hartson to discuss the upcoming budget. V. CONSENT CALENDAR Administrative Support Specialist Francine Jacome read the Consent Calendar Notice to the public. Chair Rief inquired whether any Trustees had requests to pull an item from the Consent Calendar. A. Consent Calendar Items 1. Minutes of the November 18, 2024 Board of Library Trustees Meeting Board of Library Trustees Meeting January 21, 2025 Page 2   2. Patron Comments Monthly review of evaluations of library services through suggestions and requests received from patrons. 3. Expenditure Status Report Monthly expenditure status of the library’s operating expenses, services, salaries, and benefits by department. 4. Board of Library Trustees Monitoring List List of agenda items and dates for monthly review of projects by the Board of Library Trustees. Chair Rief opened the item to public comments, there were none. Chair Rief received and filed the report. Motion made by Trustee Lauren Kramer, seconded by Secretary Dorothy Larson, and carried 5-0-0-0 to approve the Consent Calendar Items 1-4. AYES: Rief, Castro, Kramer, Larson, Murray NOES: ABSTENTIONS: ABSENCES: VII. CURRENT BUSINESS A. Items for Review 5. Internet Use Policy (NBPL 5) Staff recommends the Board of Library Trustees review and approve minor changes to Library Policy NBPL 5, Internet Use Policy. Chair Rief, with Board agreement, noted there was no need for a staff report as proposed changes are minimal. Chair Rief opened the item for public comments. Jim Mosher, a Newport Beach resident, stated this policy can be combined with the policy under review for Item 6. He stated it should not be required for internet use to require a library card number since most users have a device of their own able to connect without a library card. There also should be clarity about whether adult patrons can request removal of the filtering. Chair Rief closed public comments. Board of Library Trustees Meeting January 21, 2025 Page 3   In response to Secretary Larson’s inquiries, Library Services Director Hartson confirmed you do need a library card to log in using the Library’s devices. Staff evaluates requests on an individual basis to allow access to blocked websites for research purposes. The Library’s wireless internet adheres to the Library’s policies. Certain topics make it difficult for the Library’s filtering software to determine if the website is legitimate or not for research purposes. Motion made by Trustee Lauren Kramer, seconded by Vice Chair Antonella Castro, and carried 5-0-0-0 to approve staff recommendations on Item 5. AYES: Rief, Castro, Kramer, Larson, Murray NOES: ABSTENTIONS: 6. Rules for Acceptable Use of Wireless Internet Connections (NBPL 11) Staff recommends that the Board of Library Trustees review and approve minor changes to Library Policy NBPL 11, Rules for Acceptable Use of Wireless Internet Connections. Chair Rief, with Board agreement, noted there was no need for a staff report. Chair Rief opened the item for public comments. Jim Mosher, a Newport Beach resident, expressed confusion over how the draft policy states it has been amended today when no amendments are proposed. Chair Rief closed public comments. Motion made by Chair Chase Rief, seconded by Secretary Dorothy Larson, and carried 5-0-0-0 to approve staff recommendations on Item 6 while changing “amended” to “reviewed.” AYES: Rief, Castro, Kramer, Larson, Murray NOES: ABSTENTIONS: 7. Circulation Policy (NBPL 12) Staff recommends that the Board of Library Trustees review and approve minor changes to Library Policy NBPL 12, Circulation Policy. Adult Services Coordinator Andrew Kachaturian reported the policy serves Library patrons well. In response to Secretary Larson’s inquiries, Mr. Kachaturian advised that there are no changes to the policy at this time but noted there may be a need for some down the road. Board of Library Trustees Meeting January 21, 2025 Page 4   Some language was corrected two years ago and the pandemic-era policy modifications to delay fines have since expired. Chair Rief noted the language for this item also needs to be changed from “amended” to “reviewed.” Chair Rief opened the item for public comments, there were none. Motion made by Trustee Lauren Kramer, seconded by Secretary Dorothy Larson, and carried 5-0-0-0 to approve staff recommendations on Item 7 while changing “amended” to “reviewed.” AYES: Rief, Castro, Kramer, Larson, Murray NOES: ABSTENTIONS: 8. NBPL eBranch, Database, and Downloadable Services Update Staff will provide an update and review of the Library eBranch, database, and downloadable services. Library Services Manager Rebecca Lightfoot reported not much has changed over the past year. The database component is good with over 40 databases covering a wide variety of topics. Staff is pleased with eBook and audiobook circulation with numbers peaking during the pandemic and increasing annually since a 2021 falloff. She added the Southern California Digital Library Consortium, of which the Newport Beach Public Library was a founding member, continues to be successful, providing patrons with over $1 million worth of titles for an annual fee of just $10,000 paid by the Library. Newport Beach Public Library patrons are easily the most frequent OverDrive users. In response to Chair Rief’s inquiry, Ms. Lightfoot clarified the City’s Advantage Collection is reserved only for Newport Beach patrons and no other members of the Consortium. In response to Vice Chair Castro’s inquiries, Ms. Lightfoot confirmed the online materials are covered in the materials budget and clarified the Library spends $70,000 on its Advantage Collection while the Library’s portion of OverDrive’s Consortium Collection cost is $10,000. It is all housed under the materials umbrella in the budget. She clarified a portion of the $10,000 goes towards OverDrive’s annual costs of hosting the Libby app. She reported the Library buys new materials monthly for both the Advantage Collection and Consortium Collection responding to patron requests and noted there are a variety of challenges in balancing patron interests with publisher cost protocols. She noted the many complexities libraries have experienced in negotiating with publishing companies. Chair Rief lauded how high the City’s usage is compared to other cities, particularly when assessed on a per capita basis. He expressed concerns over forecasts for rapidly rising costs of audio books over the coming years. Chair Rief opened the item for public comments, there were none. Board of Library Trustees Meeting January 21, 2025 Page 5   Chair Rief received and filed the report. 9. Library Activities Monthly update of library events, services, and statistics. Library Services Director Melissa Hartson reported the highlights from 2024. The Central Library celebrated its 30th anniversary by hosting an Open House. She noted that the Library conducted many successful community events over the past year and added programming for all audiences and age groups. She commended how the teen summer book club continued to meet on its own even after the summer program expired with the return to school. She thanked the Library Foundation and Friends of the Library for their financial contributions enabling programming. She reported the Library’s circulation and number of library card holders are both up from 2023. She clarified the next meeting for the Board of Library Trustees will be on Monday, February 24. In response to Trustee Kramer’s inquiry, Ms. Hartson reported the Library’s staff is working with the City’s Public Works Department on the redesign of the Balboa Branch, with the potential of being ready to accept construction bids in the fall. In response to Secretary Larson’s inquiry, Ms. Hartson clarified the meetings with Public Works and other City departments about the project are internal City staff meetings. She would happily provide an update on how the meetings are going. Chair Rief opened the item for public comments, there were none. Chair Rief received and filed the report. B. Monthly Reports 10. Library Foundation Liaison Report Trustee update of the most recently attended Library Foundation Board Meeting. Secretary Larson stated she was impressed by Chair Rief’s informative and useful presentation to the Foundation Board at its last meeting, commending the interaction it generated between the Trustees and the Foundation. She applauded Foundation Chief Executive Officer Jerold Kappel’s memorandum updating the Trustees and added the Library Live and Spotlight on Science programs are proving to be successful. She reported upcoming Spotlight on Science speakers will include seismologist Dr. Lucy Jones and gene-editing expert Dr. Grant MacGregor. Chair Rief reported he has adjusted his schedule so he can attend all the Foundation Board’s Meetings. He added the Foundation is openly looking for speaker suggestions. Chair Rief opened the item for public comments, there were none. Chair Rief received and filed the report. Board of Library Trustees Meeting January 21, 2025 Page 6   11. Friends of the Library Liaison Report Trustee update of the most recently attended Friends of the Library Board Meeting. Trustee Murray reported the Friends of the Library are looking for book sale venues for 2025 due to a construction displacement. She added the organization recently received a $15,000 cash contribution and memberships are up 26% from last year. Chair Rief opened the item for public comments, there were none. Chair Rief received and filed the report. 12. Pals4pal Liaison Report Trustee update of the most recently attended Pals4pal Board Meeting. Vice Chair Castro stated there is nothing to report and noted Pals4pal’s upcoming dissolution. Chair Rief opened the item for public comments, there were none. Chair Rief received and filed the report. VIII. PUBLIC COMMENTS ON NON-AGENDA ITEMS – Three Minutes per speaker Jim Mosher, a Newport Beach Resident, clarified his lengthy comment at the last meeting about collection development policy by stating there are mechanisms in place where the Trustee Board can review the Director’s policy decisions for review without involving the public. He encouraged doing this in the future. IX. BOARD OF LIBRARY TRUSTEES ANNOUNCEMENTS OR MATTERS WHICH MEMBERS WOULD LIKE PLACED ON A FUTURE AGENDA FOR DISCUSSION ACTION OR REPORT (NON-DISCUSSION ITEM) Trustee Kramer stated the Chair’s comments regularly made at the start of Board meetings should have their own agenda section. Chair Rief agreed. Secretary Larson reported the budget figuratively passes the smell test. Mr. Kappel reported the Foundation is just $1.1 million away from meeting its Witte Hall construction commitment and anticipates reaching that goal by December. X. ADJOURNMENT – 5:41 p.m. The next meeting will be February 24, 2025. Submitted by: Chase Rief                Chair Approval of Minutes