P.I. City Council Presentation,

The mission of the Mark & Emily Turner Memorial Library is to provide quality materials and services in a comfortable, open environment. We strive to enhance lifelong learning and personal growth while fostering a community connection. Mark & Emily Turner Memorial Library Est. 1908

Core Values Influenced by…
Mission Statement, goals & objectives, Vision, Statement, Trustees, patrons and staff feedback and professional judgment
Council/City Manager Direction
Maine State Library, Maine Library Association, and American Library Association Standards and Ethics
Professional development and workshops
Intellectual Freedom principles
Tradition and community demographics
New library and information science theory

Hours Open
During the summer, the library is open for a total of 47 hours per week.
In the winter, 52 hours per week
Other factors that lengthen hours open:
Nonprofits that need the meeting room beyond closing time
Children not picked up after hours
Programs and special events

Departmental Priorities
Build, maintain & preserve collection and building.
Create services & programs
Analyze community needs, evaluate services, modify collection, manage change in information needs as our community or interests shift.
Policy, Procedures, Reports to local and state government, funding streams, and advisory board
Encourage literacy and lifelong learning
Improve information services
Organize materials for easy retrieval and posterity
Patron service and confidentiality
Advocacy and training

The “Collection”
Approximately 60,000 items in a variety of formats
Cataloged 4,007 materials in 2005
Derived from print, electronic, or audio/visual materials that are reviewed, identified, selected, and acquisitioned (purchased) for the library.
Gifts, memorials, and donations – books or multimedia donated that fit into our collection development strategy and then cataloged.
Electronic databases provided by Maine State Library and Library Web site.

Patrons
Library card holders
Visitors
Remote users
Students
Our patrons represent many nationalities, socioeconomic levels, ages, political and religious affiliations, philosophical ideas, and experiences.

Not Only for the Books…
Employment seeking
Tax forms and information
Email and word processing
Legal matters
Real estate or apt. hunting
Stock market & business
Meeting room
Fax machine, photocopier, stamps, printing
Interlibrary loan
Tutoring
Gaming
Recreational reading
City Ordinances & State Statutes
School assignments
Genealogy questions
Local history
Personal subject research
Health related Info
Programs offered
Financial aid information
Multimedia
Relaxation

Grants, Revenues and Memorial Donations Over past three years, our department has had an 80% increase in grant money. Approximately, $60,000 received in money or goods Memorial Donations and revenues increased by 40% Trustees have donated a total of $76,494.00 Since 2003

Budgetary Trends Over past three years, our budget increased 15% 12% of this increase is a result of the Salary study This leaves a 3% average increase for operations in three years. Unpredictable fuel costs make projection for line item nearly impossible

Underserved Patron Populations
Young Adults
People with disabilities temporary or permanent
Non-users
Remote users
The visually and hearing impaired

Cost-saving Measures
Outsource 60% of processing (book jackets, labels, etc.) and some “copy cataloging”
Purchase fewer books and materials than the previous year
Use Maine State Library delivery van service
Utilize volunteers and work-study students
Progressively seek funding to reduce overhead costs
“ Blurring” of roles where all staff contribute to all areas of service (increases risk of staff burnout)

Inflation in Collection Costs
Magazine cost increase annually:
10%
(EBSCO, 2006)
Average book prices from 2000 to 2005 rose
14.4%
(School Library Journal, 2005)

Current Staff
Librarian
Assistant Librarian
Secretary - fulltime
Cataloger
Reference Librarian
Library Technician
Computer Technician
Children’s Assistant
Library Clerk

Volunteers
Contractual – cleaning, grounds keeper
Community service Volunteers
Work-study students
Seniors
Trustees
Garden Club
Parents
Other departments
Genealogy Volunteer
Computer networking and repair volunteer

Library Trustee Activity
45 Second Street Asbestos abatement and demolition
Planning a paved parking lot
Consulting architect to develop a plan
Fund most serials: magazines, newspapers, and microfilms annually
Funded ADA Survey by AlphaOne
Provide continuous advisement
Managed Investments and Charitable Trust
Evaluate policy developed by Librarian
Volunteer

Resource Sharing
Reciprocal borrowing – interlibrary loan
Maine State Library delivery service (CD&L)
Caribou Public Library and our library hosted Maine State library and Maine Library Association training eliminating one workshop travel expenses
Librarians share policies and procedures statewide
UMPI for work-study, art exhibits, and guest speakers to reduce costs.
Other departments work cooperatively and help when they can – share travel cost, RFP’s, etc.

Vision for the Future
Equipped with staff for Web site management either in the library or another department
A leader in innovative technology
In a building with adequate space for storage, programs, and growing collection
Provide equity of access and a fully accessible building
Find “Green” or energy efficient projects
Greater community presence and involvement
Target services to youth no longer interested in Children’s Services but differ in information-seeking behavior and library use than adults.

Trends in Services
Rise in Internet and Web site use, book borrowing, interlibrary loan, reference questions and most areas of service
Demand for new services and book requests rising
Email reference questions rising
Meeting Room space utilized almost daily as opposed to 3 or 4 times per year
Computers are consistently inadequate for demand

Overview of Last Three Years
Total circulation has increased by 21% in three years
Internet use increased by 24%
Meeting room space by 95%

Internet/Computer Usage
2002-2005 Statistics

Web Site Usage

Reference Questions
Reference questions are posed in several ways:
Telephone the library and staff at home.
Email library and staff.
Faxes to the library
Walk-ins
By postal mail

The library answered 7,749 reference questions in 2005

“ Knowledge is brought to bear in the challenges the organization faces. Management of that knowledge increases its power.” ~Arlene G. Taylor, Librarian Challenges

Challenges in Physical Facility
Inefficient use of energy – heating/cooling/lighting
Space - Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction’s Public Library Space Needs Planning Outline indicates a need for 19,969 square feet to house our collection and provide programming at the current level
Inadequate Parking and too few handicap spaces
No alarm system for library and outdated security cameras
Aging systems (plumbing) and windows require frequent maintenance
Unanticipated repairs to building and equipment

The Library is 12,500 square ft. Most shelves are filled to capacity.

Recent Projects
New shelving and signage in children’s
Purchased bronze statue
Installed Wireless connection
Web site updated daily and contains more value for the time invested
Developed Disaster Readiness Plan
Purchased fireproof safe
Painted book trucks
Updated internal accounting system
Added the Burleigh/Steere Classics Collection

Summer 2006 Projects/Events
Converting existing fixtures with efficient lighting
Paving to increase stalls by 15 – Trustee Includes a “green space” with benches and new trees.
Painting small shed in 45 Second Street lot
Funding sought for audio/visual shelving, alarm system for front and back doors
Summer Reading Program (funded by grant)
Author book signings and Art show

Future Projects
Add 7,000 square feet to the library on the north side as funding allows
Install alarm on front and back doors and motion sensors and update video camera equipment
Address ADA issues – entrance, signage, elevator
Consolidate two ground floor bathrooms to one family bathroom that is handicap accessible
Replace roof
Provide a place for young adults and increase young adult collection
Projects that fit into funding stream criterion

Procedural & Policy Updates
Disaster Readiness Plan
More frequent cost analysis on expenditures
Collection Development Selection Policy revision
Vision Statement, goals & objectives, and short and long range planning under development
Need to align our statistics and procedures more closely with Maine State Library statistics.
Fee revisions that reflect inflation

Working Together…
Remain aware of and follow the progress of Trustee plans to expand library and address ADA issues.
What the library can do: Provide Council with information and updates on challenges, deficiencies, and how those things are being addressed.

Any Questions?

P.I. City Council Presentation,

by Sonja Plummer Morgan

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