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Boston Public Library Meetings Board of Trustees |
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March 26, 2002 A Regular Meeting of the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston will be held on Tuesday, March 26, 2002 at 3:00 p.m., to be held at the Egleston Square Branch Library, 2044 Columbus Avenue, Roxbury, MA. Respectfully yours, Jamie McGlone
Order of Business for a Regular Meeting as a Corporation on
Hon. Angelo M. Scaccia 2. Presentation by Ms. Deborah Thomas, President, Friends of the Egleston Square Branch Library Hon. Angelo M. Scaccia 3. Approval of Minutes for the Regular Meeting of January 15, 2002 Hon. Angelo M. Scaccia 4. Approval of Room Use Requests
Mr. Bernard A. Margolis 5. Trustees' Finance Committee Report The Trustees' Finance Committee has reviewed and recommends to the Full Board of Trustees approval of the following additions to the existing Trust Funds in the General Investment Account, the Transfer of Funds earmarked for the Allston Branch Library, and a resolution to revise the Trustees' Investment Policy:
Mr. William O. Taylor 6. Trustees' Collections Committee Report Mr. William O. Taylor 7. Trustees' Capital Projects Committee Report Hon. Angelo M. Scaccia 8. Trustees' Education Committee Report Update on Urban Libraries Council Conference: Partners for Success: Urban Children, Youth and Families. Boston, MA, April 19 - 21, 2002. Ms. Pamela Seigle 9. President's
Report
Mr. Bernard A. Margolis 10. The City-Wide Friends of the Boston Public Library
Hon. Angelo M. Scaccia 11. Other Business Hon. Angelo M. Scaccia 12. Recess of Corporate Meeting Hon. Angelo M. Scaccia 13. Executive Session (after adjournment of Administrative Agency Meeting) Hon. Angelo M. Scaccia Order
of Business for a Regular Meeting as an 1. Approval of Minutes for the Regular Meeting of January 15, 2002 Hon. Angelo M. Scaccia 2. Award of Contracts The Trustees' Finance Committee has reviewed and recommends to the Full Board of Trustees approval of the following award of contracts for the Procurement of Library Books, Window Cleaning, Insect Control Program, and Examination of Building Levels.
Mr. William O. Taylor 3. Other Business Hon. Angelo M. Scaccia 4. Adjournment Hon. Angelo M. Scaccia
Minutes
of Meeting In Board of Trustees Present at the meeting were Trustees William M. Bulger, James Carroll, V. Paul Deare, Donna M. DePrisco, Berthé M. Gaines, Joseph E. Mullaney, Angelo M. Scaccia, Pamela Seigle, and William O. Taylor. Also present were Library President Bernard A. Margolis; Alice Hennessey, Special Assistant to Mayor Menino; Mark Sweeney, First Assistant, Corporation Counsel, City of Boston; Deborah Thomas, President, Friends of the Egleston Square Branch Library; David Vieira, President, City-Wide Friends of the Boston Public Library; members of the Library administration, staff, public and Friends' Groups. Chairman Angelo M. Scaccia presiding. The first item on the order of business was the approval of Minutes for the Regular Meeting of January 15, 2002. On a motion duly made and seconded, the Minutes for the Regular Meeting of January 15, 2002 were approved. President Bernard
A. Margolis provided background information on four proposed award
of contracts which the Trustees' Finance Committee had reviewed
and recommended to the full Board of Trustees for approval. The
proposed award of contracts are all standard and regular contracts
which have been bid under the required Following discussion, on a motion duly made and seconded, and on the recommendation of the Finance Committee, it was
There being no other business, the Meeting of the Administrative Agency adjourned at 3:15 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Jamie McGlone Minutes
of Meeting In Board of Trustees
Present at the meeting were Trustees William M. Bulger, James Carroll, V. Paul Deare, Donna M. DePrisco, Berthé M. Gaines, Joseph E. Mullaney, Angelo M. Scaccia, Pamela Seigle, and William O. Taylor. Also present were Library President Bernard A. Margolis; Alice Hennessey, Special Assistant to Mayor Menino; Mark Sweeney, First Assistant, Corporation Counsel, City of Boston; Deborah Thomas, President, Friends of the Egleston Square Branch Library; David Vieira, President, City-Wide Friends of the Boston Public Library; members of the Library administration, staff, public and Friends' Groups. Chairman Angelo M. Scaccia presiding. The first item on the order of business was a presentation on the Egleston Square Branch Library followed by introductions of Branch Library staff by Joseph Wisniewski, Egleston Square Branch Librarian. The Egleston Square Branch Library was built in 1953 and houses a collection of over 30,000 volumes containing 35,000 items, including extensive audio-visual materials as well as access to online computer and Internet services. Mr. Wisniewski noted that the full-time Branch staff of five serves a very interesting population that is linguistically and culturally diverse and which also includes significant African-American and Hispanic communities. This diversity is reflected in the resources, outreach services, and programming provided by the Branch Library. Ms. Cynthia Dye, Egleston Square Branch Children's Librarian for over eleven years, provided an overview of the Library services available to children at the Branch, including outreach services to five neighborhood schools and several day care centers. The children's collections at the branch reflect the adult collections that include significant Spanish language materials and resources that help to familiarize new arrivals with English content materials. Trustee James Carroll inquired about what is the biggest change Ms. Dye has seen at the Branch in the past eleven years. Ms. Dye said that she has observed significant improvements to the reading levels of children along with improvements to the quality of homework assignments given to the children. Ms. Deborah Thomas, President, Friends of the Egleston Square Branch, noted that she had been a user of the Branch for many years and attributed her involvement in the Friends' Group to a speech given at the Branch by former Senate President William M. Bulger nearly twenty years ago when the Branch was being re-opened after having been closed in light of diminishing economic times and heightened crime activity. Ms. Thomas said that it has been a joy to see the positive changes in the Branch over the past twenty years and thanked the Trustees for their interest and for holding the Board meeting at the Library. Ms. Thomas also paid tribute to President Margolis for the significant improvements to the Branch during his tenure and said that the Friends' Group continues to flourish and support the activities of the Branch through the wonderful efforts of the Branch Librarian and the Library staff, particularly the current goal of restoring the Branch grounds. Ms. Thomas also expressed appreciation to Trustee Berthé M. Gaines for being a mentor to her over the years. Mrs. Gaines shared with the Board that in two days she will have served on the Board of Trustees for eighteen years. At the suggestion of Trustee Carroll, on a motion by Trustee Bulger and seconded by Trustee Carroll, it was
Mrs. Gaines noted that Trustee William M. Bulger has served on the Board longer at nineteen years. At the suggestion of Mrs. Gaines, on a motion duly made and seconded, it was
The next item on the order of business was the approval of Minutes for the Regular Meeting of January 15, 2002. On a motion duly made and seconded, the Minutes for the Regular Meeting of January 15, 2002 were approved. President Bernard A. Margolis provided background information on two proposed room use requests. The first request was a carryover from the previous Trustees' Meeting from William Barry of Shepley, Bulfinch, Richardson and Abbott, Inc. for use of Library space in conjunction with the National Historic Resources Committee of the American Institute of Architects which will be holding a conference in Boston. The second request was received from the Office of the Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for use of Library space on Friday evening, September 27, 2002 in conjunction with the national gathering of legislative leaders being held in Boston. Following discussion among the Board, on a motion duly made and seconded, it was
Mr. William O. Taylor, Chairman of the Trustees' Finance Committee, provided background information on the proposed recommendations for approval by the Finance Committee for the regular disbursement of gifts and royalties to their appropriate funds; the transfer of funds to the City of Boston of $5,000 received from the Genzyme Foundation; and the revision of the current investment policy to include Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) in the Small Cap portion of the endowment. Trustee V. Paul Deare inquired whether the revision to the investment policy which would include REITs would be capped at 5%. The CFO said that the Small Cap investment managers have been instructed not to exceed the standard benchmark measure, the Russell 2000 Index, which presently is weighted at 5% and is adjusted annually. Following further discussion, on the recommendation of the Finance Committee, it was
Mr. William O. Taylor, Chairman of the Trustees' Collections Committee, reported that the Committee held a meeting prior to the Trustees' Meeting to review the progress being made toward the acquisition of property on Hampden Street, Roxbury, MA for the purpose of building a new state-of-the-art consolidated storage facility to be called the Boston Heritage Center. Mr. Taylor reported that discussions are ongoing with City Officials and the property owner to acquire the Hampden Street site in which completion of this property would provide for appropriate storage conditions for the Boston Public Library's and City Archives' archival and retrospective collections as well as providing convenient public access within the City to these vast collections. Meanwhile, Mr. Taylor noted that the Library has undertaken a lot of significant work at the Charlestown Service building paring down the collections in anticipation of vacating the site and the eventual move from the Charlestown Service Building. In addition, on a parallel course, cost estimates are being prepared for packaging and relocating the collections and materials from the Charlestown facility. Further, the Boston Athenaeum has offered the Library a gift of shelving units which would be installed at the Norwood site to accommodate the relocation of the Jordan Collection of Children's Literature presently housed at the Charlestown site. In the interim, on the financial front, the Chairman reported that the Committee continues to explore a host of financing strategies for the project, including public, private sector, and other national and local foundation sources. With regard to a timetable, the Chairman said that the Committee is cautiously optimistic that a site for the development of a new storage facility would be acquired within the next two months. Trustee Deare inquired
whether the Committee has tabled the earlier recommendation by Trustee
Bulger to explore the further development of and expansion to the
Library's storage site in Norwood as a potential future site in
light of the Hampden Street site continuing to be considered as
an option. The Chairman said that the Committee has not ruled out
any sites or options for the development of a storage facility but
noted that the Hampden Street location would be the most desirable
because of the location and size of the plot in order to meet the
needs of the Library and the City Archives. The Honorable Angelo M. Scaccia, Chairman of the Trustees' Capital Projects Committee, reported on the highlights from the last Committee meeting which was held on March 1, 2002. The Chairman stated the Committee reviewed the Trustees' Policy on Use and Rental of Public Rooms and Spaces and recommended continuing with the present policy to consider requests for space rental on a case-by-case basis. Trustee Seigle noted that when the Board visited the room use policy issue in the past, the Board had expressed the desirability of revisiting it after two years to undertake a review of the policy in light of reports on how the policy was working along with associated issues around the policy, including staffing needs to support an effective program. Trustee Bulger suggested a review of the present policy for future expansion with a view to its feasibility as a revenue generating source for the Library. President Margolis said that information on the implementation of the use and rental of space at the Boston Public Library has been collected which he would share with the Board in advance of the next Trustees' Meeting along with a recommended room use policy proposal for the Board's consideration based on the Boston Consulting Group study previously undertaken for the Library. Mrs. Gaines requested that copies of BCG study also be distributed to the Board. Following further discussion, on a motion duly made by Trustee Seigle and seconded by Trustee Carroll, it was
Chairman Scaccia reported that the McKim Restoration Project, Phase IIB (Courtyard/McKim Roof) is nearly 100% finished and construction bids for McKim Phase IIC were reviewed on February 28, 2002 in which Lee Kennedy Company was the successful low bidder at $14.297 million. Construction is expected to commence in May 2002 and the project is slated to be completed by Spring 2004. McKim Phase IIC scope of work includes restoration of the original Trustees' Room, the Cheverus Room, the Abbey Room and the Sargent Gallery. On the financial front, the Chairman reported that total funding for the McKim Phase IIC project is in place totaling $20.4 million including the transfer of the $7.5 million from the State-funded match as a result of the City's advance of $1.2 million. The budget also includes funding for architectural fees provided by Shepley, Bulfinch, Richardson & Abbott, Inc., signage, artwork restoration, furnishings and a contingency fund. On a separately related McKim financial issue, the President reported on the results of a meeting with the City's budget officials which was held on March 4, 2002 on the complexities of the financing and budgeting processes for the McKim project. The Library successfully conveyed its request that unexpended non-City monies donated or provided by grants to the project can be applied to future phases of the project rather than turned over to the City's general operating funds because they had distinct purposes attached to them. In other capital projects, the Chairman reported that the Committee also heard progress reports on the status of the ongoing McKim Flood Recovery effort, the Johnson Building Chiller project, and on the significant progress being achieved on two siting studies underway for the Mattapan and Uphams Corner Branch Libraries by the architectural firm of Schwartz, Silver. The Capital Projects Committee also reviewed the Boston Public Library FY 2003 Capital Budget Request which was submitted to the Office of Budget Management on January 4, 2002 and includes nine prioritized capital projects totaling $51,660,000. In addition, the Boston Public Library has received two $100,000 grants from the Massachusetts Historic Commission earmarked for the restoration of the Faneuil and Jamaica Plain Branches. Ms. Pamela Seigle, Chair of the Trustees' Education Committee, provided an update on the activities of the Education Committee. The Chair reported that at the last Education Committee meeting held on February 12, 2002, the Committee focused on the Academic Assistance Initiatives program funded by the Boston Public Library Foundation. To further that end, the Branch and Children's Librarian at the Mattapan Branch Library reported on the successes in bringing to fruition the Harvard Online Tutoring and tutor.com programs along with a discussion on maximizing their usage system-wide through outreach efforts, including a City-wide billboard campaign launched by Communications Officer P.A. d'Arbeloff. The Harvard Online Tutoring program is a newly instituted, innovative, and free homework assistance program run by Harvard students for Boston school children and is available at every Branch of the Boston Pubic Library. The program launched its own website this Fall, tutor@tutor.eecs.harvard.edu, which is dedicated to helping high school students online with their academics vis-à-vis the Boston Public Library Branches or from any Internet connected computer anywhere in the world. The tutor.com homework assistance support program is also offered free throughout all the branches of the Boston Public Library and is accessible through the BPL Homepage. The Education Committee also heard reports from the Executive Directors of the Boston Higher Education Partnership and the Higher Education Information Center. The Boston Higher Education Partnership is a consortium of twenty-eight colleges and universities working in partnership with the Boston Public Schools to improve the quality of teaching and learning and is very eager to support the work that the BPL Trustees' Education Committee is undertaking particularly with the aforementioned tutoring initiatives. The Higher Education Information Center, which was established in 1985 and is located on the Concourse Level of the Boston Public Library at Copley Square, assists young people and adults to explore career options and access educational opportunities beyond high school level. The Chair noted further that preliminary discussions are underway focusing on the possibility of establishing satellites of the Center at four of the BPL Branch Libraries which would include collections of the Higher Education Information Center's materials and publications as well as being staffed by career counselors. In other educational initiatives, the Chair reported on the upcoming Urban Libraries Council Conference Partners for Success: Urban Children, Youth & Families which is co-sponsored by the Honorable Mayor Thomas M. Menino and the Boston Public Library to be held in Boston April 19th through 21st. The conference will feature tours of the Boston Public Library and its Branches and is expected to attract City Mayors, Library Trustees and Directors, Foundation representatives as well as librarians and educators involved in youth programs. President Bernard A. Margolis, in his report to the Trustees, reported on a variety of programs and activities underway at the Library. On the public services front, the President reported that circulation has increased including Website usage totaling over 6 million hits recorded last month. On the capital projects front, the contractor for the McKim Restoration Project, Phase IIC has proposed significantly reducing the timetable for the project completion date from an original schedule of 104 weeks to 72 weeks. The Boston Public Library's newest technology initiative toward implementing a new "integrated library system" is well underway and which will upgrade and incorporate the whole range of Library services, including acquisitions, serials, cataloging, circulation control, the Online Public Access Catalog, and various personnel and financial systems. On the budgetary front, the President reported that the Library has made substantial cuts in the proposed FY2003 City operating budget to absorb a cut of $1.5 million while the Library's State funding budget could be impacted by a proposed reduction of $2.5 million. To further that end, the challenge from the City's budget officials is to develop a Library program meeting the criteria in which there would be neither staff layoffs nor reductions in public service in conjunction with providing more convenient public service hours. On the development front, the President reported that the Boston Public Library has been named as the chief beneficiary of the estate of writer, author, and poet David McCord, including correspondence with famous artists and authors such as Robert Frost and the copyrights from all of his books many of which are still in print. The Library received the estate gift through the advocacy of the Reverend Peter Gomes, Harvard University. Mrs. Gaines stated that David McCord was also very active in the Boston Public Library and worked very closely with former Assistant Director Jane Manthorne. Also on the gift side, the President reported that Mr. Norman Leventhal has issued a challenge that has been accepted by the BPL Foundation to provide $350,000 earmarked for the revitalization of the Library's map collection, including funding to support a Curator and some support staff. To further that end, the BPL Foundation's Executive Committee has agreed to match the $350,000 grant on a three year timetable and to seek added money to support the map enterprise, which includes one of the country's finest map collections of over 250,000 items. On the entrepreneurial side, the President reported that he and Systems Officer Patrick Cafferty have been working collaboratively with a corporate support group enlisting their support for the development of the eBPL or virtual library in an effort to improve access to the 33 million items in the Boston Public Library's collections. The group is eager to bring corporate resources to enable the Library to explore technological avenues to improve access to the vast array of the BPL collections many of which are uncataloged and completely unavailable to the public. In other activities, the President reported that the Kirstein Business Branch public service hours have been expanded, including Saturday and earlier service hours every week day. In addition, the Boston Public Library Foundation's Annual Gala has been scheduled for May 10, 2002 and the Harleston Parker Award for the "Best Renovated Building in Boston" will be awarded at the McKim Building on June 7, 2002. Ms. Kathleen Kirleis, Chief Financial Officer, updated the Board on both the Fiscal Year 2003 Operating and Capital Budgets. The CFO reviewed a re-cap of the BPL's proposed FY 2003 Operating Budget request reflecting a proposed seven point plan to meet a budget target of $28 million as requested by the Office of Budget Management and in order to bridge a budget gap of $1.5 million. In a review of the
budget plan, the CFO provided further background information on
the proposed plan to meet the budget target, including use of general
trust fund support totaling $140,000 to balance the City's budget
appropriation earmarked for non-personnel items. Trustee Mullaney noted that the Library annually uses a significant amount of general trust fund money to supplement the City budget to provide for additional services and programs offered by the Library. The CFO said that for FY 2003 the Library anticipates a general trust fund distribution of $2.3 million to support the City's non-personnel appropriation target. Mr. Mullaney requested a copy of the Boston Public Library's total FY 2002 budget which identifies all sources of Library funding. Mrs. Gaines noted also that the vacant positions to be permanently eliminated from the BPL budget have been traditionally left in the Library's budget in the hopes of being filled during better economic times. The CFO said that the proposed vacant positions to be eliminated in order to help successfully meet the budget target reflect those positions that would have the least adverse impact on direct service to the public. The Chief Financial Officer reviewed background information pertaining to the Library's new Pay for Print program which is part of the Library's FY 2002 budget and expected to be launched this Spring. The program is designed to provide patrons with state-of-the art technology in the area of computer printing on a cost recovery basis as well as control the increasing costs of printing supplies and paper and the maintenance and replacement of equipment. Ms. Katherine Dibble, Supervisor of Public Services, reported on Branch staffing noting that there is one Children's Librarian vacancy which is in the process of being filled and the West End Branch Librarian's position has been posted internally for which interviews have been scheduled next week. In addition, Ms. Dibble acknowledged the outstanding work that the Mobile Library Services staff performed in preparing for the relocation of the unit from the Charlestown Service Building to the Copley Square Library. Mrs. Gaines inquired why the Library administration decided to appeal the arbitration decision regarding the Children's Librarian position at the Mattapan Branch Library noting that the position otherwise should have been posted for everybody in the system that had comparable qualifications to bid on. The President replied that the City of Boston's Office of Labor Relations formally appealed the arbitration decision based on a flawed arbitrator's decision. Mr. David Vieira,
President, City-Wide Friends of the Boston Public Library reported
on the ongoing activities of the City-Wide Friends, including the
co-sponsorship of a lecture on March 24, 2002 by artist Ellen Lanyon
celebrating the hanging of her mural Notable Women of Boston
in the Johnson Building Lobby. There being no other business, the
Meeting of the Corporation adjourned at 5:45 p.m. Jamie McGlone
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