II. PUBLIC COMMENTS: None.

III. MINUTES: Motion was made by Mrs. Thomas and seconded by Mr. Reyher to approve the Minutes of the regular Board meeting of February 23, 2005, as presented. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

IV. FINANCIAL REPORTS:

A. Financial Reports: The Statement of Receipts and Disbursements for the month ending February 28, 2005, shows an Operating Fund balance of $478,712.74, and a total funds balance of $2,596,754.62. The Operating Fund received in February $8,322.41 and expended $193,919.34.

B. Approval of Bills: Motion was made by Mr. Ramion and seconded by Mrs. Thomas to approve the List of Warrants of March 30, 2005, as presented. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

C. Mid-Year Program from Indiana Bond Bank: It was reported that tax bills will once again be sent out late this year and with the delayed distributions, it will be beneficial to the library to participate in the Indiana Bond Bank=s Mid-Year program again. The interest rate has not been set but it is estimated to be in the area of 2.5%. Motion was made by Mr. Reyher and seconded by Mr. Armstrong to move ahead with the application process. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

D. Other: No report.

V. CORRESPONDENCE: Dr. Rottman reported that Mr. & Mrs. Lee Brockway donated to the Endowment Fund in memory of Mr. George Rogers; former board member (as was his grandfather). The correspondence will be filed in the office.

Page 2

VI. OLD BUSINESS: No report.

VII. DIRECTOR=S REPORT: Mr. Smith reported to the Board this month=s occurrences for Mr. Glossinger who was unable to attend this meeting. Mr. Smith invited the Board to look around the Youth Services Department as the new counter is in place.

The Board members received a sample of our stationery with the new logo that was designed by Mr. Lucas and agreed that it looks outstanding.

A patron who is working on a PBS documentary called AFrom Moccasins to Main Street, a History of the Old Chicago Road@ was very complimentary of our resources and assistance.

We received great news this past month that our Circulation staff have been invited to speak at the American Library Association=s annual conference about their intensive training program. In addition, Tech=s own Marilyn Eddy has also been asked to present the program she started with our shelving staff modeling the program the Circ staff have been conducting. This is a very high honor for our library to make a presentation at the official national conference of ALA. The conference runs from June 23-29, 2005 in Chicago. Mr. Reyher suggested they present their program before the Board for a trial run. Mr. Smith will make the arrangements. This report will be filed with the Minutes.

VIII. COMMITTEE REPORTS:

A. Building and Grounds Committee Update: Mr. Ramion reported that the committee met on March 16 to discuss a contract proposal to hire Fanning/Howey Associates to act as project manager for the carpeting and shelving replacement. The scope of the work is to develop specifications and bid documents, advertise and review bids, and supervise the project with the cooperation of library administration. We are expecting installation of both carpeting and shelving to take place between October and December, 2005. Motion was made by Mr. Ramion and seconded by Mr. Reyher to accept the proposed contract, in the amount not to exceed $8,250, to hire Fanning/Howey Associates as project managers for the replacement of the library=s carpeting and shelving. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

Mr. Ramion reported that the library received a quote to replace the two stages the library currently uses for programming. The idea of replacing both stages is to offer flexibility in the various sizes of staging required for programming. They can be easily handled and put up by a single person. We plan to use them for more programming in Youth Services, larger performances in the meeting room, and special programs held in the lobby. Funds are available in the furniture and equipment line to purchase the stages. Motion was made by Mr. Ramion and seconded by Mr. Reyher to accept the quote from StageRight, in the amount of $3,290, to purchase two new portable stages to replace the existing stages. Both of the old stages will be given to the Friends and sold. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

Page 3 (Continued from VIII. Committee Reports)

B. Personnel Committee Update: No report.

C. Friends of the Michigan City Public Library Update: No report.

D. Policy and Procedures Committee Update: No report.

E. Finance/Budget Committee Update: No report.

F. Technology Committee Update: No report.

G. Ad Hoc Art Collection Committee: Mrs. Marilyn Besse reported that the committee met on March 16 to discuss the Art Collection and its future in the library. The committee discussed the recommendation of divesting the library of the entire collection through various auctions and putting the proceeds into the Endowment Fund. Mr. De Young stated he enjoys the collection and would like for it to remain at the library. Mr. Reyher and Mr. Ramion stated that although they also enjoy the collection, the library is not an art gallery and this is an opportunity for us to put money in the Endowment Fund for increased services and programs for the community. A general consensus was arrived at to divest the library of the entire Art Collection, with the exception of the portraits of W.W. Vail and Mrs. Georgina T. Vail, which will remain in the library=s Indiana Room. It is recommended the divestment will be done in 3 phases. The national interest paintings to be sold by a national auction-house(s); regional paintings to be sold at regional venues; and the local paintings to be sold by auction at the library. It is also recommended that Mr. Besse and Mr. Glossinger work together to handle the details of the sales. Per State Board of Accounts regulations, all auction proceeds will be placed in the Endowment Fund, which was the Fund used in the purchase of the collection.

Motion was made by Mr. Reyher and seconded by Mr. Ramion to divest the library of the Art Collection in its entirety, the execution of which to be coordinated by the Director and Mr. Besse, with all proceeds to be placed in the Endowment Fund. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

IX. NEW BUSINESS:

A. Approval needed to Request Permission to Destroy Certain Public Records: Motion was made by Mr. Ramion and seconded by Dr. Rottman to approve the list of public records as presented to be destroyed. This list of records has reached or gone past the required time frame. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

X. PUBLIC COMMENTS: None.

XI. BOARD COMMENTS: Mrs. Kostielney thanked the Board for their support and generous donation on her mother=s passing.

Mrs. Thomas said she is glad to be associated with this library with all the positive changes.

Page 4

XII. QUORUM DETERMINATION: All Board members that are present today will be able to attend the next regular Board meeting on Wednesday, April 27, 2005, at 2:00 P.M.

XIII. ADJOURNMENT: Motion was made by Mr. Ramion and seconded by Mr. Reyher to adjourn this meeting. All yea. No nay. The meeting adjourned at 2:19 P.M.

February 23, 2005    [To The Top]

MINUTES OF THE MEETING

I. CALL TO ORDER: The Michigan City Public Library Board of Trustees= meeting was called to order by Mr. Joseph Ramion, Vice President, on Wednesday, February 23, 2005, at 2:00 P.M. This regularly scheduled meeting was held in accordance with the Indiana Open Door Law.

Mr. Ramion expressed his condolences on behalf of the Board to Mrs. Jan Kostielney on the passing of her mother.

II. PUBLIC COMMENTS: Mr. Earnst, at this time, presided over the Oath of Office that was taken by Mrs. Hazel Thomas. Mrs. Thomas was then congratulated for her reappointment to this Board.

III. MINUTES: Motion was made by Mr. Reyher and seconded by Mrs. Thomas to approve the Minutes of the regular Board meeting of January 26, 2005, as presented. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

IV. FINANCIAL REPORTS:

A. Financial Reports: The Statement of Receipts and Disbursements for the month ended January 31, 2005, shows an Operating Fund balance of $664,309.67, and a total funds balance of $2,817,418.82. The Operating Fund received $665,289.65 in January which included the TAW loan from the Indiana Bond Bank and also included CVET taxes from 2004. The Library=s operating expenditures for January were $255,374.24. The cash flow statement was included in the packet for review.

B. Approval of Bills: Berglund Construction requested partial payment for the public bathrooms remodeling project in the amount of $39,175.15. This is listed under LIRF and will be paid upon acceptance by the engineer, and Don Glossinger. Motion was made by Dr. Rottman and seconded by Mr. Armstrong to approve the List of Warrants of February 23, 2005, as presented. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

Page 2 (Continued from IV. Financial Reports)

C. Other: It was reported that the tax bills will be late again this year so next month we will include on the agenda the mid-year loan program from Indiana Bond Bank.

V. CORRESPONDENCE: Dr. Rottman reported on the many donations we received in memory of Mr. Rudy Hart. The correspondence will be filed in the office.

VI. OLD BUSINESS: No report.

VII. DIRECTOR=S REPORT / STATE OF THE LIBRARY: Mr. Glossinger presented the State of the Library. He reported that most of our statistics have increased; circulation is up 1% and traffic is up 4%. The library=s space utilization is now complete with some minor adjustments in Youth Services. The major goals were the roof and the public washrooms. The roof is complete and, with the new membrane, there is no trouble with leaks. The public washrooms project will be complete on March 4. Mr. Glossinger reported on the many community partners this library has worked with this past year. He also briefly covered the many programs that were either sponsored by the library or hosted by the library. Mr. Glossinger also reported on the many programs that are available and that were used for staff development. Mr. Glossinger reported on the budget and 2005 goals (shelving and carpeting are slated for October and November). Another goal is to create a AWhat You Can Do For Your Public Library@ documentary. This report will be filed with the Minutes.

VIII. COMMITTEE REPORTS:

A. Building and Grounds Committee Update: Mr. Ramion reported that the committee met at 1:30 today to discuss the proposal for a custom built Youth Services counter. Motion was made by Mr. Reyher and seconded by Mr. Armstrong to accept the bid from Exhibiteam, Inc. in the amount of $15,396.00, to custom build a new service desk for the Youth Services Department, to match the style and colors of the other new counters in Reference and Circulation. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

Mr. Ramion read a resolution to the Board that recommends the Board approve a warrant, in the above amount, to be paid to Exhibiteam upon the successful installation of the Youth Services counter and with the approval of Administration that the work is satisfactory. Motion was made by Mr. Reyher and seconded by Mr. Armstrong to accept the resolution as presented. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

Mr. Ramion reported that the public washrooms will be completed on March 4.

The Youth Services project is progressing well and on schedule.

Page 3 (Continued from VIII. Committee Reports)

C. Friends of the Michigan City Public Library Update: Mr. Glossinger reported that the Friends annual luncheon is April 23.

D. Policy and Procedures Committee Update: No report.

E. Finance/Budget Committee Update: No report.

F. Technology Committee Update: No report.

G. Ad Hoc Art Collection Committee: A meeting is scheduled for March 16 at 2:00 P.M.

IX. NEW BUSINESS: No report.

X. PUBLIC COMMENTS: Sarah Redden said she has been here for 23 years and people have asked her why she has stayed so long. Her answer is that the library is a great place to work. Mrs. Redden thanks Don Glossinger and Andrew Smith for working with her at work and while she attends school.

XI. BOARD COMMENTS: Mr. Reyher thanked Mr. Glossinger, the staff and Dept. Heads for a great job last year.

XII. QUORUM DETERMINATION: All Board members that are present today will be able to make the next regular Board meeting on Wednesday, March 23, 2005, at 2:00 P.M.

XIII. ADJOURNMENT: Motion was made by Mr. Ramion and seconded by Dr. Rottman to adjourn this meeting. All yea. No nay. The meeting adjourned at 2:45 P.M.

January 26, 2005    [To The Top]

MINUTES OF THE MEETING

I. CALL TO ORDER: The Michigan City Public Library Board of Trustees= meeting was called to order by Mrs. Kostielney, President, on Wednesday, January 26, 2005, at 2:00 P.M. This regularly scheduled meeting was held in accordance with the Indiana Open Door Law.

Mrs. Kostielney called for a moment of silence for Rudy Hart, a good friend of the library=s and former board member.

II. OATH OF OFFICE: Mr. Earnst presided over the Oath of Office that was taken by Ms. Cheryl Bohlim. Ms. Bohlim was then congratulated for her reappointment to this Board.

III. APPOINTMENT OF TREASURER: Motion was made by Mr. Ramion and seconded by Mrs. Thomas to appoint Beth Thiede as Treasurer of the Board. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

IV. ADJOURNMENT: Motion was made by Mr. Ramion and seconded by Mrs. Thomas to adjourn this regular Board Meeting in order to call the Board of Finance to order. All yea. No nay. Meeting adjourned at 2:05 P.M.

1. Call to Order: The Board of Finance was called to order by Mrs. Kostielney at 2:05 P.M.

2. Elect President and Secretary: Motion was made by Mr. Reyher and seconded by Mr. Ramion to elect Mr. Armstrong as President of the Board of Finance. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

Motion was made by Dr. Rottman and seconded by Mr. Reyher to elect Mr. Ramion as Secretary of the Board of Finance. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

Page 2 (Continued from Board of Finance)

3. Report on 2004 Investments: The following investment report is dated December 31, 2004. The Library=s general checking account has a balance of $989,975.45. Horizon Bank is the financial institution for this account. The Library=s Business Savings Account held at Fifth Third Bank has a balance of $489,108.94.

Horizon Trust holds both the Library=s Investment Accounts: Endowment Investment with a balance of $401,346.33 and Platt-Coffin Estate Investment with a balance of $439,008.61. We also have money in the Unity Foundation Fund and the Library=s portion is $96,842.46. The investments as of December 31, 2004, total $2,416,281.79.

4. Set Investment Policy: There were no changes in the Investment Policy. Motion was made by Mr. Reyher and seconded by Mr. Ramion to approve the Investment Policy as presented. All yea. No nay. Motion carried

5. Designate Depositories: Motion was made by Mr. Reyher and seconded by Mr. Ramion to stay with Horizon and Fifth Third as the Library=s depositories as recommended. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

6. Board of Finance Adjournment: Motion was made by Mr. Ramion and seconded by Mrs. Thomas to adjourn. All yea. No nay. Board of Finance adjourned at 2:11 P.M.

I. CALL TO ORDER: The regular Board of Trustees meeting was called to order again at 2:11 P.M. by Mrs. Kostielney, President.

II. PUBLIC COMMENTS: Mrs. McFerron introduced Mrs. Agnew as the new Reference Librarian. She was welcomed by the Board.

III. MINUTES: Motion was made by Mr. Reyher and seconded by Mr. Ramion to approve the Minutes of the regular Board meeting of December 15, 2004, as presented. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

IV. FINANCIAL REPORTS:

A. Financial Reports: The Statement of Receipts and Disbursements for the month ended December 31, 2004, shows an Operating Fund balance of $254,394.26. The Library received in December $1,132,633.44. The Library received all of its property taxes, excise taxes and cagit in December. The Library=s operating expenditures for December were $534,058.22 which includes $320,000 transfer to LIRF.

Both Endowment and Platt/Coffin showed increases in book value this year. The Endowment Investment Fund total increase in book value is $17,382.95 and Platt/Coffin Investment Fund total increase in book value is $49,569.71.

Page 3 (Continued from IV. A. Financial Reports)

The Library=s 2004 loan was repaid and the interest rate for 2005 came in at 2.52%.

B. Approval of Bills: Motion was made by Mr. Ramion and seconded by Dr. Rottman to approve the List of Warrants of January 26, 2005, as presented. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

C. Other: No report.

V. CORRESPONDENCE: Dr. Rottman reported on the many donations we received in response to our Dec. 1 letter in which we are in the process of setting up a partnership with Purdue North Central students and our Literacy Program. The total donated to the Literacy Fund is $1,550.00 and $50 was donated to the Library=s Endowment Fund this month. The correspondence will be filed in the office.

VI. OLD BUSINESS: None.

VII. DIRECTOR=S REPORT: Mr. Glossinger spoke highly of Mr. Rudy Hart and the many good things he did for the library.

Mr. Glossinger showed the Board the new library card with our new logo. The cards were well received.

We applied for the 2005-2006 Universal Service Fund grant and the amount that we should receive is between $9,000 to $11,000.

Mr. Glossinger reported that Technical Services processed almost 20,000 new items for the library=s collection and the Reference Department has 13 people using our homebound service.

An attorney was here all day on Martin Luther King Day and it proved to be a needed service.

The statistics show the Library=s main traffic was up 4%, circulation was up 1% or 478,296 items circulated, and we had 96 more programs this year.

VIII. COMMITTEE REPORTS:

1. Appointment of new Committee members: Mrs. Kostielney said the committees will remain the same as they were last year.

Building and Grounds: Joe. Ramion (Chairman), Jack Armstrong, Rob Reyher and Hazel Thomas as the alternate.

Budget and Finance: Jack Armstrong (Chairman), Ken Rottman, Joe Ramion, and Cheryl Bohlim as the alternate.

Page 4 (Continued from VIII. 1. Appointment of Committee Members)

Policy and Procedures: Hazel Thomas (Chairwoman), Cheryl Bohlim, Rob Reyher and Jack Armstrong as the alternate.

Personnel Committee: Cheryl Bohlim (Chairwoman), Joe Ramion, Jack Armstrong and Ken Rottman as the alternate.

Technology and Information Systems: Ken Rottman (Chairman), Hazel Thomas, Cheryl Bohlim and Joe Ramion as the alternate.

The Friends representative is Joe Ramion and the Literacy Advisory Board representative is Hazel Thomas.

A. Building and Grounds Committee Update: The committee met on January 12 and Mr. Ramion reported that the new Circulation counter has been installed.

Mr. Ramion also reported that demolition on the public washrooms is complete and the work is progressing according to schedule.

The roof membrane appears to be a success after the heavy rains and melting snow, we have had no leaks. We are still waiting for the paperwork from E.C. Babilla in order to make final payment.

Mr. Glossinger presented new information regarding the replacement of the windows and this information now leads us in the direction of not replacing the windows at this time. The only leaks in the building are now from the seals around the clerestory windows. Additional research on the seals will be done to determine how many need to be replaced.

Mr. Glossinger also reported that the new storage building plans are to be a replica of the library building. There will be more details on this as they become available.

The library is going to proceed with new carpeting and shelving this year. We are aiming for an installation time of October through early December of this year.

Mr. Ramion reported that plans will begin this summer for the replacement of the library=s exterior Kal Wall, to be installed in the summer of 2006.

The interior of the duct work has been cleaned. This was the first total cleaning since the building opened.

Plans for a new Youth Services counter, matching the design and materials of the Reference and Circulation counters, are in the works.

Page 5 (Continued from VIII. A. Building & Grounds Committee Update)

There is a need for additional office space to accommodate the new staff in the Youth Services Department. Therefore, it is proposed to build two new offices along the south wall of the department and use part of the existing work room to build a new room for patrons using the Ellison dye cut machine. Motion was made by Mr. Ramion and seconded by Mr. Reyher to accept the bid of Henry-CAP Construction, in the amount of $3,550, to build these two new offices and a partition wall in the former Youth Services Supervisor=s office. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

B. Personnel Committee Update: No report.

C. Friends of the Michigan City Public Library Update: Mr. Ramion reported that the Friends discussed their budget for the year and the items that Mr. Glossinger requested have been approved.

D. Policy and Procedures Committee Update: No report.

E. Finance/Budget Committee Update: No report.

F. Technology Committee Update: No report.

G. Ad Hoc Art Collection Committee: Mr. Glossinger reported that the meeting was canceled as Mr. Besse had an accident. It will be rescheduled when Mr. Besse is better.

IX. NEW BUSINESS: A new person needs to be appointed to the Literacy Advisory Board. Motion was made by Mrs. Thomas and seconded by Mr. Ramion to appoint Kay Melton to the Literacy Advisory Board. All yea. No nay. Motion carried.

X. PUBLIC COMMENTS: None.

XI. BOARD COMMENTS: Mr. Reyher remembers when he joined the Board that LIRF was only $26,000 and now it is over one million, he congratulates the administration and Board on this increase so that now improvements to the building can and are being realized. The endowment increased by $103,000 and we had $36,000 disbursements, this is an overall growth of 9%. This was not the best of years but we=ve had some strong investments in Platt/Coffin and Mr. Reyher thinks our investment plan is right on target.

Mr. Glossinger reminded the Board that a meeting with the endowment people will be at 2:00 on February 9 and three Board members can come.

Mr. Ramion echoed what Mr. Reyher said. When he came on the Board the LIRF had 15,000, money was tight and there was a freeze on hiring. Now we can make improvements without going into debt. He congratulates the staff and Board on good fiscal management.

Page 6 (Continued from XI. Board Comments)

Mrs. Thomas read an article in the newspaper that said that VITA will not be offered at any Indianapolis/Merrion County public libraries this year. This is a hardship for those who are used to getting this service from the libraries. There will be other sites available.

Mr. Glossinger reported that this library=s program will be beginning shortly. We are waiting for our volunteers to get certified. It is quite a challenge for libraries this year from preparing the taxes in paper and pencil to now having it computerized. Dr. Rottman suggested getting a tax program for public use. This will be investigated.

XII. QUORUM DETERMINATION: Mr. Ramion may not be able to attend the next regular Board meeting on Wednesday, February 23, 2005, at 2:00 P.M.

XIII. ADJOURNMENT: Motion was made by Mr. Reyher and seconded by Dr. Rottman to adjourn this meeting. All yea. No nay. The meeting adjourned at 2:40 P.M.