Board of Directors Meeting Minutes – April 18, 2017

Attention: This post is over 2 years old and the information may be out of date.Attention: This post is over 2 years old and the information may be out of date.

AGENDA

April 18, 2017, 9:00 a.m.

Edgewater Branch

6000 N. Broadway Street

  1. Welcome and History of the Edgewater Branch (info only)
  2. Approval of minutes for the March 21, 2017 meeting (action required)
  3. Schedule of Requisitions, Contracts and Licenses (info only)
  4. CPL Capital Projects and Facilities Report (info only)
  5. Commissioner’s Report (info only)
    • Special Report: Polaris
    • Quarter 2 Priority Projects
    • All Staff Institute Day – May 11, 2017
    • ChiTeen Lit Fest
    • BMO Harris Bank Grant
  6. Other Business
  7. Public Comment

 

Next Board meeting:

May 16, 2017, 9:00 a.m.

Harold Washington Library Center

400 S. State Street

Lower Level, Multi-Purpose Room

Open Session Minutes

Physically Present:

Linda Johnson Rice, Christopher Valenti, Lynn Lockwood, Patricia Gaytan Perez, Barbara Bowman,

Jodi Block, Dominique Jordan Turner,

Present by Means of Video or Audio Conference:

None

Absent:

Denise Gardner

Welcome and History of the Edgewater Branch (info only)

Joanna Hazelden, Branch Manager, opened the meeting with a brief history of the Edgewater branch library. The Edgewater Branch opened in June 2013, replacing an older branch that opened in April 1973. As one of the busiest branch libraries in the Chicago Public Library system, the Edgewater branch serves approximately 3900 patron per week. Along with hosting three story times each week, they also host book clubs and STEM programs for patrons as well. Ms. Hazelden also mentioned that the Branch has partnered with a Friends Group in the area to have a book sale at the end of the month.

Approval of the minutes (action required)

The Board voted (7-0) to approve the minutes of the March 21, 2017 meeting.

Schedule of Requisitions, Contracts and Licenses

Baronica Roberson, Deputy Commissioner of Administration and Finance, presented the quarterly report on contacts and purchases made for magazines, books, databases, periodicals and articles of educational and instructional nature. For this quarter (January 1 – March 31, 2017) a total of 917 invoices were paid totaling $1,775,998.90 to various vendors.

CPL Capital Projects and Facilities Report (info only)

Rodney Freeman, Assistant Commissioner of Central Library Services updated the Board on the progress of the Thomas Hughes Children’s Library at HWLC. Andrea Telli, Assistant Commissioner of Neighborhood Services supplied the Capital Building Projects and Facilities report on neighborhood libraries.

Projects Under Construction

  • Thomas Hughes Children’s Library – Current activity: images were presented on the current status of the THCL. As a reminder, the library closed to the public on November 5, 2016 with construction beginning on December 1st. The library is estimated to be complete by April 28th and open to the public in Summer 2017. Materials and branch staff which included three staff groups (STEAM Team, Citywide Children Services and the HWLC Children Services department) will begin to move into the space in early May.
  • Woodson – Construction Update: Contractor – Ujamaa Construction
    • Scope: new terra cotta façade with metal panels in the rear of the building with matching color; new energy efficient and insulated windows, exterior doors and entrance with automatic push pads for accessibility; new curtain wall which will bring natural daylighting into lobby and 2nd floor; film with digital images applied on glass on south and southeast elevations; new energy efficient and insulated roof; new modern interior and exterior security cameras; renovation and modification to the lobby and monumental stairway; construction of two new 2nd floor study rooms.
    • Current activity: Demolition is complete; roof work will continue and metal panel installation has begun on the east façade; exterior wall framing at the west façade continues; terra cotta installation is scheduled for May; the contractor is pricing the interior work including renovation of the auditorium and second floor restrooms, upgrade of the lobby floor to terrazzo, paint in the main lobby, new circulation desks, replacement of existing ceiling and replacement of lights in the restroom corridors and parking lot.

Major Maintenance and Repair Projects

  • Sulzer – Phase 1: exterior work is substantially complete. Phase 2: Scope – New BAS system to help control and balance temperatures in the building; interior improvements are pending funding and are being priced to include a reconfigured circulation desk, new flooring, drywall repairs, paint, lighting upgrades, staff lounge upgrade and upgrades to the community room and auditorium.
  • Legler – Scope: improvements to the children’s area from Early Learning including plaster repair and paint, new carpet, “crawl through” tunnel millwork, and new flooring. Current activity: interior repairs and renovations are nearly complete; procurement and installation of a talk tube is in progress; upgraded toilet rooms for ADA compliance and LED lighting in the historic atrium lay light are pending funding.
  • Mabel Manning – Scope: interior renovations include build out of Early Learning Area, fire alarm replacement, ceiling tile replacement and new kitchenette millwork and plumbing. Current and upcoming activity: remaining work in the community room includes installation of six exterior windows and two interior windows to allow for daylighting into the building; work is anticipated to begin in late May to early June.
  • North Austin – Scope: interior upgrades include electrical power and lighting in public areas, door repairs and replacement, window seals, tuck-pointing and repairs/refresh of the circulation desk. Current and upcoming activity: pricing is under review; construction is estimated to begin in early June.
  • Blackstone – Scope: preliminary scope will include full tuck-pointing and repair of the masonry on the exterior of the building; roofing and window repairs, repairs to water damaged areas; HVAC upgrades; new flooring and reconfiguration/upgrade of the circulation desk. Current and upcoming activity: pricing has been approved and the contractor is preparing a logistics plan and schedule for 2FM and CPL’s review.
  • Kelly – Scope: tuck-pointing, repairs to stone entry stairs, minor landscaping, window repairs, mechanical and fire alarm upgrades; restroom upgrades; build out of an Early Learning Area and a YOUmedia space for teens; new flooring and paint throughout; upgrades to the circulation desk and additional power/data connections. Current activity: preliminary pricing has been received and is under review.

Projects In Planning

  • Early Learning Spaces – Early Learning spaces have been completed at the West Englewood, Little Village, West Pullman and Legler branches; early learning spaces at Lozano, Budlong Woods, Austin-Irving and Toman branches are in progress for Q2 completion; for Q3, early learning spaces at Sulzer and South Chicago branches are in planning; planning is in place for early learning spaces at Thurgood Marshall, Woodson, Sherman Park and Kelly branches to be completed in Q4.
  • Whitney Young – Scope: Renovation and addition to the existing 10,400 sq. ft. library. Current activity: 60% of the design development drawings to be issued April 12th; anticipate closing the branch in September with groundbreaking in Fall 2017.
  • CPL-CHA Partnership – Reminder: new libraries are being built for the Altgeld, Northtown, Roosevelt and Independence branches. Current Activity: the design firms selected for each branch include Perkins + Will for Northtown, John Ronan Architects for Independence and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill for Rooselevet. CHA will select the design firm for Altgeld, site to be confirmed at the next CHA Board meeting. Estimated completion date for all 4 branches is Dec 2018.

Commissioner’s Report (info only)

Michelle Frisque, Chief of Technology, Content and Innovation, announced that CPL has selected a new Integrated Library System (ILS) which will launch across the library system this week. Over the past year, CPL has been preparing to migrate to Polaris from Innovative Interfaces Inc. (III), which will replace CARL.X, the backend system used to manage day to day services at the Library. CPL selected Polaris because of III’s robust training plan which provided staff with opportunities for hands on training to successfully transition to the new system. This new library management system provides easy to use, yet, robust administrative functions for circulation, cataloging and acquisitions (to name a few); is cloud based/hosted and seamlessly integrates with patron-facing services from third party vendors such as BiblioCommons and OverDrive. Polaris also makes new features available to staff and patrons frequently and efficiently without having to shut down the entire system for hours at a time as with the previous system. Moving to this cloud based solution additionally allowed for more flexible management as upgrades and software maintenance will be controlled through an outside client via the Polaris team.

Commissioner Bannon also gave an update on the following:

  • Projects completed in Quarter 1 consist of the Internet to Go Wind Down and Annual Library Card Campaign;  replacement of the Public Printers will be a new project in Quarter 2
  • All CPL locations will be closed on Thursday, May 11th as we host our annual All Staff Institute Day for staff at the Harold Washington Library Center.
  • CPL and Columbia College have partnered once again to host the ChiTeen Lit Fest on April 21st and 22nd. A ChiTeen Lit Fest preview event will also be hosted on April 18th in partnership with the American Writers Museum to give attendees a sneak preview of performances that will take place at the festival.
  • At a press conference on Sat, April 8th, BMO Harris Bank announced that they are providing a $1M grant to the Chicago Public Library YOUmedia program through the Chicago Public Library Foundation.

Other Business

Commissioner Bannon referenced the potential impact of President Trump’s recommended budget that was recently released. The draft included budget reductions to, and the elimination of, a number of government agencies including the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). Launched 20 years ago, IMLS is the main federal funder of local libraries and museums across the United States. It had a budget of $230 million last year. Most of this funding is distributed through a per-capita formula to public libraries through the 50 state Libraries. For Illinois, these funds are received by the Secretary of State’s office. The funds are pooled with other state funds and then distributed to public libraries in Illinois. Given this, a portion of the Chicago Public Library annual state grant could be impacted if the federal IMLS funds are eliminated. If this grant was reduced from the state, it could impact library services. We are working with the state library and City of Chicago to better understand the implications and our public message as a city and will keep you posted as we learn more.

Public Comment

None

Next Board Meeting

The next board meeting will be held on Tuesday, May 16, 2017 at 9:00 a.m. at the Harold Washington Library Center located at 400 S. State Street.

Commissioner’s Report

Special Guest: Michelle Frisque, Chief of Technology, Content and Innovation

Quarter 2 Priority Projects

Completed Projects in Quarter 1:

  • Internet to Go Wind Down: In accordance with the initial plan to wind down the Internet to Go program at the conclusion of the Knight Foundation and Google grants, CPL will begin phasing out this program in 2017. The wind down will take approximately nine months and be completed by February 2018 and will be managed in combination with citywide outreach to connect low-income Chicagoans with low cost Internet options and subsidies.
  • Annual Library Card Campaign: Coordinate a citywide campaign with CPS and others focused on youth to increase library card ownership in every household.

New Projects in Quarter 2:

  • Public Printer Replacement: CPL will replace all public printers.

ChiTeen Lit Fest

This year’s ChiTeen Lit Fest is scheduled for April 21st & April 22nd and will be held at the Harold Washington Library Center and Columbia College. The event brings together young people from across Chicago to celebrate their talents and aims to provide a safe and creative space for young adults to unlock and discover their unique voice through literary arts. The kickoff party takes place on April 21st 6pm-10pm; festival begins 10am-6:30pm on the 22nd. Chicago Public Library and partner organizations will host a ChiTeen Lit Fest Preview event on Tues, April 18th 6-8pm. We have the exciting privilege to co-host this event in partnership with the American Writers Museum at their new space at 180 N. Michigan. The preview event will give attendees a sneak preview of performances that will be part of this year's festival and an opportunity to meet our headline writers and artists who are part of this year's festival, a day packed with workshops, discussions, performances and more.

All Staff Institute Day (ASID)

The 2017 All Staff Institute Day will be held on Thursday, May 11th. All CPL locations will be closed. This year’s theme will be “Stronger Together: Celebrating our commitment and Connecting to our community”. Staff will be provided best in class training to foster innovation and creative problem solving throughout the library system; training to encompass the summer learning challenge, reader advisory, self-care and mental health resources, customer service and team building. Staff will additionally gain a deeper understanding of the community that CPL services and will be provided tools for how to work more effectively to serve and work with the community. The Keynote Speaker for this year’s event will be Tracie Hall of the Joyce Foundation.

BMO Harris Bank Grant

On Sat, April 8th, the Chicago Public Library and BMO Harris Bank held a press conference at the Albany Park Branch Library to announce the $1M grant from BMO Harris Bank to the Chicago Public Library YOUmedia program through the Chicago Public Library Foundation. As a reminder, CPL will be expanding the YOUmedia program to seven additional sites by the end of 2018 through our new partnership with the Chicago Public Housing Authority and other planned new libraries.