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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 01 16 25 LABMinutes 01 16 2025 LAB Library Advisory Board January 16, 2025 Minutes Assembly: The Library Advisory Board met in Regular Session on Thursday, January 16th at 1:30 pm at the Main Library. Board Members Assael, Shaun Present Carbone, Liz Present Clinton, Ann Absent Colin, Emily Present Dodd, Scott Present Haragan, Ellen Present Kozik, Lynn Present Lawler, Patricia Present Miles, Linda Excused Niggl, Paul Present Salter, Tiffany Present Smith, Harriet Excused Staff Members & Board Reps. Conners, Dana Present Jessica Loeper (Asst. Cnty Mgr) Present Zimmer, Ronna (Foundation Rep) Excused Petcovic, Monica (Friends Rep) Present Mays, Yvette Present Rider, Jimi (MN Branch Mgr.) Present Welcome Patricia Lawler convened the meeting at 1:32 pm. The board welcomed new board member Paul Niggl and the new Friends of the Library Representative, Monica Petcovic. Database Spotlight Main Library Branch Mgr., Jimi Rider presented Freegal Music. Create playlists, stream songs and albums and download up to 5 songs a week to keep. Access through the library’s website or download the Freegal app. Public Comment No public comments. Agenda Review Approved as written Minutes 01 16 2025 LAB Approval of Previous Minutes The minutes from the last board meetings on November 21, 2024, were sent to the board prior to the meeting for review. Motion: Lynn Kozik MOVED, SECONDED by Emily Colin, to accept the minutes of the 11/21/24 meeting as written. Upon vote, the MOTION WAS CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Correspondence None received. Friends of the Library Monica Patcovia reported the Friends held their meeting this past Monday. They reflected on this past year’s successes, such as: LEAD Awards to Library staff, Williston Middle School & Rotary bags, program sponsorships, library walking tours, Storywalks, and the Cape Fear Book Festival. Currently, they are preparing for the upcoming Book Sale. Friday, Jan 24th is the Friends member preview night, 5:30pm – 9pm. If you are not already a member, you can sign up at the door. Free admission dates are as follows: Saturday, Jan 25th, 10am – 5pm Sunday, Jan 26th, 1pm – 5pm Monday, Jan 27th, 3pm – 7pm Friday, Jan 31st, 10am – 5pm Saturday, Feb 1st, 10am – 5pm Sunday, Feb 2nd, 1pm - 5pm Library Foundation The board will meet again in February. Director’s Report Dana Conners reported the following: Project Grace The exterior is almost completed. Construction continues to be on schedule for July 2025 completion. We will close the current main library in August and reopen the new site in October. The museum will open in May 2026. Minutes 01 16 2025 LAB In preparation for the move, the Main library has been doing extensive weeding of our collection. Six submissions for public art are being reviewed. The public art piece to be displayed outside of the new Public Library and Cape Fear Museum as part of the Grace District in downtown Wilmington. If you’ll recall from our last meeting; the vision for this public art would be to honor Michael Jordan and the Jordan family, and pay tribute to their local, national, and global impact in a public space for all to see. Currently, there is no other public statue or artwork honoring Michael Jordan in Wilmington, so this will be a unique centerpiece in the community that is long deserved. Northchase This site will open later than expected, in February 2026. Our book vendors are preparing “opening day” collections that we can add & remove books from. Staff We are happy to announce that we are currently fully staffed. Programs The library held their first Spanish language story time with 31 people in attendance. We will hold these monthly. Hoopla We have stopped carrying Hoopla due to their unsustainable pricing model and have moved to Libby. The money we saved has allowed us to add Freegal for Music streaming and Kanopy for movie streaming services. Booksale See dates above in FOL report. This sale typically raises approximately $75,000. Hispanic Needs Assessment Dana presented the needs assessment summary prepared by Casa Interpretation & Translation. The data they gathered identified the need for Hispanic services and their recommendations to meet those needs immediately and into the future. We currently have three bilingual staff members who will be beneficial as we move forward. Budget Requests Dana submitted a handout of the library’s budget enhancement requests for fiscal year 25-26. The main requests are in preparation for Project Grace and the Northchase libraries. The NHC Budget team will be hosting informal conversations about the county’s budget process and for the public to share their ideas on funding priorities. The next four dates will be as follows: Jan 22nd @ 10am, Grinders Café - 890 S. Kerr Ave. Jan 24th @ 10am, Pine Valley Library – Osprey room Jan 28th @ 10am, The Vault – 612 N. Lake Park Blvd Minutes 01 16 2025 LAB Jan 29th @ 10am, Northeast Library – Pine room Patricia Lawler stated the LAB should like to send a letter to the County Commissioners in support of the library’s requests. Motion: Liz Carbone MOVED, SECONDED by Scott Dodd, to draft a letter to the County Commissioners in support of the library. Upon vote, the MOTION WAS CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Patricia will draft the letter and send it out the board for a final approval. The public can attend any County Commissioner meeting and sign up to speak. Meetings are held at the NHC Courthouse @ 24 N. 3rd Street, room301. The February meetings will be as follows: Monday, Feb 3rd @ 4pm and Monday, Feb 17th @ 9am New Business None Old Business None Adjournment The board adjourned the meeting at 2:42 Next Meeting on February 20, 2025, at the Main Library We hope to be able to tour Project Grace before our meeting. Please note that the above minutes are not a verbatim record of the Library Advisory Board meeting.