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MILWAUKEE COUNTY FEDERATED LIBRARY SYSTEM
Board of Trustees

Regular Meeting Held Tuesday, April 18, 2005
At
Milwaukee County Federated Library System
709 North Eighth Street
Milwaukee, WI  53233

 

ROLL CALL

Present:                    Ryan McCue, Vice President
                                Ron Tays, Treasurer 
                                Mike D’Amato, Trustee
                                Richard Maslowski, Trustee
                                Dora Montoya, Trustee
                                Paul Ziehler, Trustee                               
                               
Excused:                   Martin Schreiber, Trustee                            

Staff:                        Jim Gingery, Director
                                Steve Heser, Library Systems Administrator
                                Judy Kaniasty, Business Manager/Personnel Assistant (Recorder)                               

 Others:                    Arnie Gutkowski, TAC Chair and Brown Deer Public Library
                                Donald Bulley, South Milwaukee Public Library Board                               
                                Bruce Gay, Milwaukee Public Library
                                Patrick Hartmann, City of Milwaukee Budget Department
                                Kate Huston, Milwaukee Public Library                               
                                Paula Kiely, Milwaukee Public Library
                                Mary Mulroy, Wauwatosa Public Library
                                Dick Nelson, North Shore Library
                                Bob Pfeiffer, South Milwaukee Public Library
                                Taj Schoening, Milwaukee Public Library
                                Christopher Summa, Milwaukee resident

 

I.         CALL TO ORDER.  Due to President Schreiber’s absence, Vice President Ryan McCue called the regularly scheduled monthly meeting of the Milwaukee County Federated Library System Board of Trustees to order at 9:07 a.m.

II.        APPROVAL OF MINUTES.  Trustee Maslowski moved and Trustee Ziehler seconded a motion to approve the minutes of the meeting held Tuesday, March 1, 2005 shown as Attachment A of the agenda packet.  Unanimously approved as presented. 

III.       PUBLIC COMMENT.  None 

IV.       TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE – REPORTS.  Director Gingery distributed the March and April, 2005 TAC Report at the meeting and it is shown as Exhibit 1 attached to these minutes.  Trustee Maslowski moved and Trustee Montoya seconded a motion to accept the report as presented and to place it on file.  Unanimously approved.  

V.        BOARD OF TRUSTEES – REPORTS REQUIRING ACTION. 

A.      Finance and Personnel Committee. 

1.   Financial Report – February 2005.  Treasurer Tays reported that the Finance & Personnel Committee recommends approval of the February 2005 Financial Report which is shown as Attachment B of the agenda packet.  Trustee Ziehler moved and Treasurer Tays seconded a motion to approve the February 2005 Financial Report as presented.  Unanimously approved. 

2.   Letter from Bonded Messenger Service (Delivery Service) regarding proposed increase in daily charges.  Treasurer Tays reported that during the Finance & Personnel Committee meeting prior to this meeting action was taken to recommend that the proposed increase be accepted and then in the Summer of 2006 an RFP be issued for delivery service beginning in 2007 for a couple of years with a contract drawn up as well.  No RFP has been done for quite some time.  Trustee Ziehler commented that there has not been any price increase from Bonded for a number of years.  Director Gingery commented that the price increase will be addressed in the mid-year budget revision.  Treasurer Tays moved and Trustee Ziehler seconded a motion to accept the increase as proposed through 2006 and to issue an RFP in the Summer of 2006 for delivery service beginning in 2007 for a couple of years which will include a contract document as well.  Unanimously approved. 

B.   DRAFT of plan indicating steps MCFLS will take to try to bring noncomplying libraries back into statutory compliance.  Director Gingery reported that the State requested a plan and Attachment D of the agenda packet is his draft for Board consideration.  Director Gingery noted that he understands Brown Deer will be asking for an extension of an additional week to the deadline due to the timing of their Board meeting date.  Kate Huston announced that Greenfield has asked for an additional week as well and Milwaukee will grant the same extension.  Trustee Ziehler asked whether West Allis could also get the same extension.  Director Gingery asked Mary Mulroy whether Wauwatosa also needed the extra week extension and Mary replied that their Board intended to make the final report on May 3rd.  Kate agreed to extend the extension to all four libraries.  Trustee Ziehler moved and Treasurer Tays seconded a motion to extend the deadline for the signing of the Member Agreement and the Equity Funding Grant offer to May 6th.  Unanimously approved.   

Trustee D’Amato commented that he has heard that some discussion regarding a counter-offer being developed and he feels that may not be in the best interest of those libraries that have already signed the Member Agreement.  Trustee Ziehler noted that the Board could act on anything that comes its way and that the motion on the table concerns the deadline extension only.  Trustee Maslowski commented that the communities have the ability to do anything and if something surfaces then the MCFLS Board can address that matter at that time. 

Trustee D’Amato moved and Vice President McCue seconded a motion to approve the plan as presented in Attachment D of the agenda packet.  Trustee D’Amato noted that he appreciates all the work Director Gingery has been devoting to this entire matter.  Roll Called and the motion passed on a roll call vote of 5-1 with Trustee Ziehler being the lone opposing vote.  

Trustee Ziehler commented that he voted against the plan since the plan ends on May 6th instead of further plans set.  Director Gingery responded that the plan can be amended if needed.  The State does not want to see a plan where there are penalties set if libraries remain open to the public and he has no indication that that is the plan.  Trustee Ziehler asked what the State is looking for.  Director Gingery stated that once a decision is made by the remaining libraries then MCFLS needs to plan for them remaining members or not.  

VI.             INFORMATIONAL ITEMS. 

A.  Notices of Public Hearings – 4 communities are holding public hearings in April to consider the matter of whether their public library will withdraw from the Milwaukee County Federated Library System (Wauwatosa 4/5, West Allis 4/19, Greenfield 4/20, Brown Deer 4/25)  Director Gingery reported that Attachment E of the agenda packet contains the official notices and noted that he has been attending and speaking at all hearings and Board meetings, etc.  Director Gingery summarized the hearings and feels that there was much support for libraries to remain members of MCFLS by residents. 

B.  Intergovernmental Cooperation Council (ICC) letter to Milwaukee County Executive and County Board Chair presenting two options for County to consider as long-term funding solutions to ensure stability of MCFLS.  It was noted that the ICC also passed a third resolution to the State of Wisconsin which is not shown as part of Attachment F of the agenda packet. Vice President McCue reported that the County will be addressing these two ICC options on Thursday, April 21.  Trustee Ziehler noted that he will be out of town and unable to attend that meeting and is hopeful someone from the ICC will be available for questions.  Trustee Maslowski noted that County Executive Walker made it quite clear over the weekend that the County is extremely broke.  Trustee Ziehler noted that the second option would not cost the County any money since it is just a collection and distribution proposal.  Vice President McCue noted that he has seen no details but he does know that some communities have voted on it, such as Cudahy, Greenfield, West Allis and Brown Deer.  Vice President McCue commented that the County Board may support if all communities supported it.  Jennifer Gonda (City of Milwaukee) has said that if all of the suburban communities support it then Milwaukee Mayor Barrett may look at it. 

C.  MCFLS Board Committee Appointments.  No document was distributed at the meeting; the agenda item was laid over to next month’s meeting. 

D.  MCFLS Board Meeting Schedule (2005).  Director Gingery presented the 2005 MCFLS Board meeting schedule for the remainder of the calendar year, which is shown as Attachment G of the agenda packet.  The general concept is 9 a.m. on the third Monday of each month with the exception of May.  

E.   Director’s Report.  Director Gingery reviewed his report, shown as Attachment H of the agenda packet.  Director Gingery noted that he will not be attending the IUG conference in May because of pending library issues and wife’s recent operation,  but Library Systems Administrator Steve Heser will represent MCFLS and Bruce Gay of Milwaukee will be attending.       

VII.      NEXT MEETING DATE – The next meeting is scheduled for Monday, May 23, 2005. 

VIII.    ADJOURNMENT.  With no further business to come before the Board, Trustee Ziehler moved and Trustee Maslowski seconded a motion to adjourn the meeting at 9:49 a.m.  Unanimously approved. 

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