* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [EBR Library Board of Control on October 17, 2024.] [00:00:09] GOOD EVENING. WELCOME TO THE OCTOBER 17TH, 2024 EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH LIBRARY BOARD OF CONTROL MEETING. UM, MS. KATHY, CAN YOU LEAD US IN THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE, PLEASE? PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, REPUBLIC. REPUBLIC, FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION UNDER JUSTICE FOR ALL. WILL CALL PLEASE MS. TEMPLE. HERE. MR. . MS. DOLORES WATS. MR. VIRGINIA? HERE. MS. KATHY WACOMB. HERE. MR. COLE? HERE. MR. RYAN PIERCE. HERE. LET THE RECORD REFLECT WE DO HAVE A QUORUM. NEXT ON THE AGENDA, THE APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF SEPTEMBER 19TH, 2024. DO I HAVE A MOTION FOR APPROVAL? I'VE GOT ONE CORRECTION. UH, ON THE PART WHERE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE RAILROAD, UH, PULLING BACK THEIR PART. UH, IT'S NOT CLEAR WHETHER IT'S 800, UH, DOLLARS OR, UH, $800,000. UM, IF WE COULD CORRECT THAT, THAT WOULD BE GOOD. BUT OTHER THAN THAT, I'D LIKE TO GO AHEAD AND MOVE THAT WE APPROVE THE ME MINUTES. PERFECT. SO WE HAVE A MOTION TO, UM, TO APPROVE THE MINUTES WITH THAT ONE. CORRECTION. DO I HAVE A SECOND? SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. AYE. THE MOTION IS APPROVED. THE MINUTES ARE APPROVED. NEXT ON THE AGENDA IS SPECIAL ORDERS. WE DO NOT HAVE ANY SPECIAL ORDERS AT THIS TIME. MOVING ON TO REPORTS BY THE DIRECTOR. THE FINANCIAL REPORT, FINANCIAL REPORT WOULD BE DONE BY MS. WA HAS NOT A BUSINESS MANAGER FOR 2024. OPERATING EXPENDITURES THROUGH SEPTEMBER 30TH ARE $31,940,132 AND 24 CENTS ARE 61.04% OF THE OPERATING BUDGET THROUGH SEPTEMBER. WE SHOULD HAVE SPENT NO MORE THAN 75% OF THE BUDGET CASH COLLECTIONS FROM PROPERTY TAXES FOR 2024 REMAIN AHEAD OF THOSE COLLECTED IN 2023 AS WE ARE APPROXIMATELY $172,000 AND 0.32% AHEAD OF THE SAME PERIOD LAST YEAR. DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS? THANK YOU. DO WE HAVE THE, UH, REVENUES POSTED THAT YOU SAID WE WERE WAITING FOR LAST? NO, NOELLE NOT AS OF SEPTEMBER 30TH. I HADN'T CHECKED LATELY. ALRIGHT. THANK YOU. THANKS. MOVING ON TO SYSTEM REPORTS. SYSTEM REPORTS WILL BE READ BY MS. MARY STEIN, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR. ALL THAT'S THAT DOES, ISN'T IT? YEAH. ALRIGHT. I'M WEARING THE LARGE PRINT READING SIGN TODAY. OKAY. ALRIGHT. SO LET'S START AT THE BEGINNING WITH OCTOBER. Y'ALL OCTOBER'S A BUSY MONTH, SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER. YOU KNOW, YOU THINK THE SUMMER READING IS BUSY. YOU THINK ONE BOOK, ONE COMMUNITY TIME IS BUSY. SEPTEMBER, OCTOBER. THAT'S THE TIME. UM, WE ARE EXHAUSTED. NOW, SOMETHING'S WRONG WITH THIS. IT'S NOT DOING THE RIGHT THING. IS THAT FULL ACTUAL SIZE FIT TO? HOW ABOUT THAT? OKAY. WE'LL MAKE THAT ONE DO. ALL RIGHT. HERE WE GO. FIRST OF ALL, HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH WHAT THE PUBLIC IS SEEING, THOUGH. THE PUBLIC IS SEEING THIS IN THE BEHIND THE SCENES. YOU KNOW, LOOK AT THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN KIND OF ACTION. WE HAVE BEEN TESTING THE PAGES OR THE USABILITY OF SELECTED PAGES FOR THE NEW WEBSITE. IT'S LIKE BIRTHING AN ELEPHANT BABY, A LOT OF , A LOT OF TIME, BLOOD, SWEAT, AND TEARS HAVE HAS GONE INTO THIS. AND SO WE SENT OUT MESSAGING TO MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WHO WERE USING THE CATALOG AND THE WEBSITE AND WHATEVER, AND INVITED THEM TO DO A TINY LITTLE USER SURVEY. WELL, IT'S NOT REALLY A USER SURVEY, IT'S A USER STUDY, UH, WHERE BASICALLY BEHIND [00:05:01] THE CURTAIN IT SAYS, OH, THEY CLICKED THAT AND THAT DIDN'T WORK. OR THEY CLICKED THIS, OR THEY CLICKED THESE THREE THINGS. WHAT KIND OF PATH DID THEY TAKE AS THEY WERE TRYING TO NAVIGATE THROUGH THE VARIOUS PAGES? SO THIS KIND OF SHOWS YOU WHAT THE, WHAT THIS LOOKS LIKE. IT, IT WASN'T A LIVE SITE. THIS IS NOT A TRUE BETA TEST. IT IT WAS A TEST OF SEGMENTS OF USABILITY SO THAT WE COULD LEARN HOW OUR PATRONS ARE GONNA USE THE WEBSITE BECAUSE THEY'VE BEEN TRAINED BY GOOGLE. Y'ALL. NOTHING WE CAN DO OR SAY, WE'LL ERASE THAT. UH, SO WE ARE TRYING TO MAKE OUR SITE MORE GOOGLY AND YES, THAT'S A WORD. UM, AND THIS WAS, UH, A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF THE WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS. AND ACTUALLY PEOPLE , I'M PLEASANTLY SURPRISED. PEOPLE WERE SAYING, OH YEAH, THIS LOOKS CLEAN, OR, THIS IS WAS EASY, OR, OR THEY TOLD US WHAT DIDN'T WORK BECAUSE THERE WAS SOMETHING THAT I DIDN'T THINK WORKED AND, UH, I WAS NOT ALONE. YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES IT'S NOT JUST ME, Y'ALL. UH, SO THAT WAS A REALLY IMPORTANT PART OF THE INFRASTRUCTURE OF THE LIBRARY. AUTHOR, ILLUSTRATOR, Y'ALL. OH, JERRY PILATES, LIKE MY NEW BEST FRIEND. HE, OKAY. WE, WE GOT EVERY CHAIR THERE WAS IN THE LIBRARY THAT DIDN'T ALREADY HAVE A HUMAN SITTING ON IT, CRAMMED HIM IN THIS ROOM. THE KIDS WERE IN THE FRONT ON THE FLOOR. UH, WE DID THE DISNEY THING WHERE WE, YOU KNOW, THE ADULTS KIND OF STOOD UP. THE KIDS GOT OUT, AND THEN IF YOU HAD AN EMPTY SEAT NEXT TO YOU, YOU RAISED YOUR HAND SO THAT AN ADULT COULD COME AND SIT. IT WAS JAM PACKED WITH PEOPLE WHO WERE EXCITED TO HEAR WHAT JERRY PALATA HAD TO SHARE. AND HE KEPT IT GOING, BECAUSE WITH THAT MANY KIDS IN A ROOM, YOU COULD EASILY LOSE CONTROL. AND HE WAS LIKE, HEY, KIDS, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH. HAVE YOU EVER EATEN A SNAIL? HEY, ADULTS, HERE'S A GOOD TRICK FOR THEM, UH, TO DO SOMETHING. SO ME, HE KEPT IT GOING, GOING, GOING. SO WE NEVER ONCE LOST CONTROL OF THE MANY, MANY OVER 500 PEOPLE WERE CRAMMED IN HERE. UH, LUCKILY MANY OF THEM WERE SMALL, SO I CONSIDER THAT OKAY FOR THE FIRE MARSHAL, UM, WAS WONDERFUL. SO THE DAYTIME EVENT, HUNDREDS AND HUNDREDS, REALLY THOUSANDS OF CHILDREN PARTICIPATED IN THE VIRTUAL FIELD TRIP WHERE JERRY WAS ACTUALLY UPSTAIRS IN A ROOM. BUT WE BEAMED HIM OUT TILL ANY SCHOOL THAT WANTED ANY SCHOOL OR A HOMESCHOOL PRIVATE PUBLIC, WE DIDN'T CARE. AND THEN HE CAME IN HERE THAT NIGHT, AND THEN THE NEXT DAY HAD A WORKSHOP THAT WAS A LITTLE BIT CALMER, , A LOT MORE SEATING, UH, FOR TEACHERS, LIBRARIANS, AND PEOPLE WHO JUST CARED ABOUT CHILDREN'S LITERATURE. AND WE ACTUALLY HAD QUITE A FEW HOMESCHOOLERS COME ON FRIDAY AS WELL, BECAUSE HE TALKED REALLY A LOT MORE ABOUT HIS PROCESS. BUT IT WAS FASCINATING. WE'RE SO THRILLED. AND THEN WE ANNOUNCED WHO'S COMING NEXT YEAR. AND A HUSH CAME OVER THE ROOM ON THE WORKSHOP DAY BECAUSE THEY'RE THE ONES WHO KNEW IT'S THE PINKNEY. Y'ALL WE'RE BRINGING IN THE PINKNEY. , OKAY. SOCKET, TO ME IS OFF TO A GOOD START. WE HAD SOME LOVELY MEDIA, UH, SUPPORT FOR THAT. WE'RE TRYING TO COLLECT 50,000 PAIRS OF SOCKS. THAT SEEMS LIKE AN UNATTAINABLE GOAL, BUT WE CAN ATTAIN IT. SOCKS ARE THE MOST REQUESTED ITEM FOR CHILDREN IN FOSTER CARE, CHILDREN IN CRISIS, ADULTS IN CRISIS. UH, THE CENTERS. EVERYONE NEEDS WARM FEET. SO THAT'S WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR. NEW SOCKS, SHAW NEW SOCKS. SO WE ARE COLLECTING THEM AT ALL LOCATIONS AND, AND MUSIC HAS BEEN FILLING THE AIR AT ALL LOCATIONS AS WE GET READY FOR THE MAKER FAIR. BUT IT WAS ESPECIALLY FILLING THE AIR HERE AT THE MAIN LIBRARY. YOU CAN SEE THE PHOTO OF THE BATON ROUGE CONCERT BAND OUTSIDE, JUST EVERYWHERE. EVERYWHERE. THERE'S SHEILA BELL, THEIR DIRECTOR, UM, FANTASTIC CONCERT. AND THEN YOU TURN AROUND AND DO IT AGAIN FOR THE BATON ROUGE SYMPHONY WHEN THEY DID BOC TOBER FEST. BUT I WANNA DRAW YOUR ATTENTION TO THE PICTURE IN THE BOTTOM RIGHT HAND CORNER. THE PERCUSSIONISTS OF THE BATON ROUGE CONCERT BAND WENT OUT THERE, UNBEKNOWNST TO ME, BECAUSE THEY KNEW THE THINGS WERE HERE. THE MUSICAL FLOWERS THAT THEY HELPED PAY FOR THROUGH DONATIONS, THROUGH THE TUBA, THEY HELPED SUBSIDIZE THAT, UH, MUSICAL [00:10:01] SCULPTURE THAT'S OUT IN THE PLAZA. WELL, THEY SENT THE PERCUSSIONISTS OUT SECRETLY, AND THEY TUNED THEIR FLOWERS. AND AT THE BEGINNING OF THE CONCERT, THEY ACTUALLY PLAYED THE BEGINNING OF A PIECE ON THE FLOWERS. IT WAS PHENOMENAL. I HAVE IT ON MY CELL PHONE IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO IT. AND WE CERTAINLY PUT IT OUT ON OUR FACEBOOK PAGE. REALLY LOVELY. AND THEN AFTER THE CONCERT, IMMEDIATELY THE KIDS SWARMED THOSE FLOWERS AND THEY WERE ALL TRYING TO DUPLICATE THAT, UH, THAT WONDERFUL MELODIOUS AIR. UH, OUR SNEAK PEEK FOR THE MARLOWE MURDER CLUB WENT REALLY WELL. UM, AS I HAVE TOLD Y'ALL BEFORE, MYSTERIES ARE THE TOP SELLERS IN THE LIBRARY EXCEPT FOR COLLEEN HOOVER. UH, AND WE HAD THEM HERE. ALL KIND OF MYSTERY LOVERS WERE HERE, OLD, YOUNG, UH, EVERY KIND OF MYSTERY LOVER WAS HERE. WE WATCHED THE PREMIER AND WE FOUND IT TO BE GOOD. Y'ALL, UM, MANY OF ONE FOURTH OF THE ROOM HAD ALREADY READ THE BOOKS. UH, WE HAVE THEM OUT. THEY'RE CHECKED OUT. BUT, UH, FOR THAT BRIEF PERIOD OF TIME, WE HAVE UNLIMITED NUMBERS OF THE, THE FIRST BOOK IN THE SERIES BY ROBERT THURGOOD. UM, I FOUND THE, THE SERIES REALLY LOVELY, AS DID EVERYONE ELSE. 'CAUSE YOU NEVER REALLY SURE, YOU DON'T WANNA EVER JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS MOVIE. BUT IN THIS CASE, THE BBC DID A REALLY GOOD JOB. SO IT ACTUALLY PREMIERES ON THE REAL TELEVISION IN A FEW DAYS ON OCTOBER 27TH. SO I URGE YOU TO WATCH IT AND READ THE BOOKS. THE FIRST THREE BOOKS IN THE SERIES ARE IN THE LIBRARY. SO SPEAKING OF MURDER, , FALL FRIGHTS, OKAY. I PERSONALLY DON'T READ HORROR, BUT I, I DON'T MIND IF YOU DO. UH, AND WE HAVE A NUMBER OF OUR STAFF AND QUITE A FEW OF OUR PATRONS WHO ARE HER HORROR AFICIONADOS. WOULDN'T YOU SAY THAT DARLY KNOWS? YES. 'CAUSE SHE, SHE KNOWS. SO, UH, THE SAME GROUP OF STAFF MEMBERS THAT LAST YEAR TOOK OUR HIVE CLASS, UH, PHYSICAL FITNESS PLATFORM. AND WE DID, UH, HORROR FITNESS WHERE IT'S LIKE, RUN, RUN, YOU KNOW, HIDE, HI, YOU KNOW, WE DID MOTIONS THAT WENT WITH THE HORROR MOVIE OF THE NIGHT. WELL, THIS TIME THEIR, UM, THEIR INTERESTING LITTLE BRAINS CAME UP WITH BUILD YOUR OWN NIGHTMARE. SO, ANYONE WHO HAD OLD DOLL PARTS AND, YOU KNOW, THE HEADLESS DOLL OR THE, JUST THE HEAD OR, UM, INTERESTING PIECES OF WHATEVER BROUGHT THE PIECES. AND WE MADE BASICALLY A NIGHTMARE FACTORY IN THE LIBRARY. AND OLD AND YOUNG CAME, THE GRANDMOTHER DID THE MOST HORRIFYING ONE AS, UM, THERE SHE IS. OH, UH, THEY'RE SO PROUD. IT WAS SO CREATIVE. THEY, THERE WAS SO MUCH LAUGHTER COMING FROM THAT ROOM. YOU, YOU WOULD'VE THOUGHT IT WAS A COMEDIAN PERFORMING. THEY HAD A GREAT TIME. THEY IMMEDIATELY ASKED, WHEN'S THE NEXT THING? SO MY FIRST THOUGHT WAS NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS, BUT THEN I WENT ELVES WITH ATTITUDE. SO WE'LL SEE WHAT THEY COME UP WITH, BUT THEY, YOU WILL SEE THIS KIND OF OPPORTUNITY AGAIN. OH MY GOODNESS. BUT AGAIN, WITH CIVIC CELEBRATIONS, UH, WE, WE WE'RE NONPARTISAN, AS YOU KNOW. AND IF WE HAVE A BOOK FROM ONE SIDE OF AN ANGLE, WE'LL CERTAINLY HAVE A BOOK FROM THE OTHER SIDE OF THE ANGLE. WE HAVE BOOKS ON ALL THE PRESIDENTS, UH, DEAD AND ALIVE. WE HAVE BOOKS ON ALL THE PEOPLE WHO WANTED TO BE PRESIDENTS DEAD AND ALIVE IF THERE IS SUCH A BOOK. BUT JIMMY CARTER TURNED 100 AND, UM, WE, WE KIND OF FELT THAT HE WAS BEYOND POLITICS AT THAT POINT. AND SO WE HAD CIRCUS PEANUTS AND PEANUTS SCATTERED ALL AROUND THE PARISH AND BOOKS ON HIM AND HABITAT FOR HUMANITY. AND, UH, JIMMY CARTER MASKS AND PEOPLE HAD A GOOD TIME WITH THAT. THERE YOU CAN SEE SOME OF THE DISPLAYS, UH, AROUND THE PARISH. SO THAT WAS A FUN LITTLE CIVIC CELEBRATION. WHICH LEADS ME TO THE BILL OF OBLIGATIONS WE HAVE JUST COMPLETED. THE THIRD WEEK IN A FIVE WEEK SERIES IS BEYOND MY WILDEST DREAMS. TO ME, THIS IS KINDA LIKE A PASSION PROJECT. WE LOOKED AT THAT BOOK, THE 10 HABITS OF GOOD CITIZENS. IT WENT ALONG WITH A-L-P-B-P-B-S DOCUMENTARY, PRESERVING DEMOCRACY. SO THE, THE FORMAT IS AT SIX O'CLOCK WE SHOW THE DOCUMENTARY, AND MANY OF US HAVE SEEN IT MORE THAN ONCE, AND WE'RE WATCHING IT AGAIN. AND THEN AT SEVEN O'CLOCK WE TALK ABOUT TWO OF THE, UH, OBLIGATIONS THAT WE, THAT THE AUTHOR RICHARD HAAS [00:15:01] CONSIDERS ARE IMPORTANT IN ORDER TO PRESERVE DEMOCRACY. UH, SO WE'VE ALREADY BEEN INFORMED. WE'VE GOTTEN INVOLVED, WE'VE BEEN OPEN OR COMPROMISE. WE'VE LEARNED HOW TO REMAIN CIVIL OR DISCUSSED THE IMPORTANCE OF IT. UM, WE REJECTED VIOLENCE AND WE VALUED NORMS LAST NIGHT. COMING UP, WE'LL PROMOTE THE COMMON GOOD. WE'LL PUT THE COUNTRY FIRST AND WE'LL END WITH SUPPORTING THE TEACHING OF PHYSICS, CIVICS, AND RESPECTING GOVERNMENT SERVICE. WE'VE HAD, UH, GROUPS COME IN FROM BRCC, BRAVER ANGELS HAS COME IN. PEOPLE FROM DIALOGUE ON RACE HAVE COME IN. UH, OUR WONDERFUL MODERATORS, DANNY HYMAN, RONNIE HARRIS, UH, HAVE BEEN WITH US EVERY STEP OF THE WAY. FA FAMINE ROBERTS WILL JOIN US SOON. IT'S JUST BEEN MARVELOUS. THE VOTER, UH, THE REGISTRAR VOTERS WAS HERE FOR THE FIRST ONE BECAUSE IT WAS THE LAST POSSIBLE CHANCE TO REGISTER FOR VOTE. WE'RE GOING TO END WITH A BOSTON TEA PARTY, Y'ALL. WE WILL BE DRINKING TEA. THEY ASKED IF THEY COULD DUMP IT IN THE WATER FEATURE, AND WE DECIDED THAT WAS NOT A GOOD IDEA. BUT, UH, WE WILL DRINK IT INSTEAD. THESE HAVE BEEN MARVELOUS CONVERSATIONS. AND PERSON AFTER PERSON WHO'S ATTENDING HAS ASKED US, WHAT'S THE NEXT ONE, ? AND ARE YOU GONNA DO THIS NEXT YEAR? AND IT SHOULD BE AT EVERY LOCATION. AND SO THAT IS AN AFFIRMATION THAT PEOPLE ARE HUNGRY FOR COMMON CIVIL CONVERSATIONS. SO THAT KIND OF TIES IN WITH SOME OF THE THINGS WE ALREADY HAD PLANNED FOR THE SPRING. SO YOU'LL SEE MORE ALONG THIS VEIN LATER. UH, KIND OF LEADS INTO OUR SPONSORSHIP OF THE LEGACY LETTER. IT KICKED OFF A FEW WEEKS AGO. UH, THERE WILL BE AN ONLINE KICKOFF AS WELL. WE KICKED OFF IN PERSON. THE CONCEPT BEHIND LEGACY LETTER IS NOT ROCKET SCIENCE. IT'S BASICALLY TAKE THE TIME, BE INTENTIONAL, PUT SOMETHING DOWN ON PAPER. AND IT STARTED WITH A LETTER FROM A FATHER TO HIS SON. UH, WHICH IS CERTAINLY A WONDERFUL THING TO DO IN AMERICA. DO FATHERS OFTEN SAY WHAT'S ON THEIR HEART? DO THEY SAY IT IN A VERY INTENTIONAL PRESCRIBED WAY? UM, SOME FATHERS DO. MANY FATHERS DON'T FEEL THAT THEY HAVE THE, THE LANGUAGE TO DO THAT OR THE SKILL TO DO THAT. AND AS WE KNOW, , PEOPLE ARE INTIMIDATED BY A BLANK SHEET OF PAPER. SO THIS IS A TEMPLATED PLATFORM, BASICALLY, ALMO. THINK OF SOME OF THE ONLINE PLATFORMS THAT WE DO. AND THE IN-PERSON PLATFORMS THAT WE DO IS INSTRUCTOR LED. DOESN'T HAVE TO BE, YOU COULD DO IT YOURSELF, BUT MANY PEOPLE LIKE THAT IDEA OF SOMEONE. OKAY, NOW WE'RE GONNA WRITE THIS SECTION OF THE LETTER, AND FOR THE NEXT 10 MINUTES, WE WORK ON THAT SECTION OF THE LETTER. BY THE END OF THE 90 MINUTE PERIOD, YOU HAVE A LETTER, AND IT DOESN'T MATTER WHETHER IT'S A LETTER TO YOUR CHILD, LETTER TO YOUR PARENT, LETTER TO YOUR COLLEAGUE, A LETTER TO YOUR MENTOR OR YOUR MENTEE. AND I WAS THINKING WE INVITED PEOPLE FROM ALZHEIMER'S, UM, RETIREES, UH, GRANDPARENTS, RAISING GRANDCHILDREN, THE ADULT LITERACY ADVOCATES. ALL THESE GROUPS FOCUS ON CONNECTING PEOPLE AND SOMETIMES THROUGH THE WRITTEN WORD. SO, ESPECIALLY I'M THINKING IF ONLY I HAD BEEN ABLE TO GET A LETTER FROM MY FATHER BEFORE THE ALZHEIMER'S TOOK AWAY HIS ABILITY TO WRITE A LETTER, HOW LOVELY THAT WOULD'VE BEEN TO SHARE WITH CHILDREN IN THE FAMILY, THE SIBLINGS, WHATEVER. SO IT'S ABOUT MAKING CONNECTIONS USING THE WRITTEN WORD TO DO SO. AND WE'LL BE ROLLING THAT OUT IN THE SPRING WITH INSTRUCTOR LED INSTRUCTOR LED WORKSHOPS IN VARIOUS LIBRARIES. AND THEN AN ONLINE TEMPLATE THAT YOU COULD EITHER USE YOURSELF, USE WITH YOUR GROUP, USE AT YOUR CENTER, USE JUST AMONG YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS, OR ROLL OUT YOUR OWN PROGRAM. SO, UH, YOU'LL SEE MORE ABOUT THAT IN THE SPRING. SO AGAIN, ALL ABOUT BUILDING COMMUNITY. NOW, I ALLUDED TO MUSIC. WE ARE GONNA MAKE SOME NOISE. WE'VE ALREADY PUT UP SIGNS ON THE SECOND FLOOR SAYING IT'S NOT GOING TO BE QUIET ON SATURDAY. FOR, FOR QUIET, WE SUGGEST ONE OF THE OTHER LOCATIONS, OR GO INTO THE BATON ROUGE ROOM AND SHUT THE DOOR BEHIND YOU. THAT, THAT'S GONNA BE THE QUIET SPOT. , THERE'S EXCITEMENT. IT'S BUILDING. UH, THE, THE MAKER MEN ARE EVERYWHERE, PUTTING OUT, GETTING READY TO PUT OUT, UH, THE SIGNS, THE BANNERS, THE TENTS, THE BARRICADES. IT'S GONNA BE A GREAT DAY. I URGE YOU TO SHOW UP AT THE LIBRARY ON OCTOBER 19TH. ANYTIME [00:20:01] BETWEEN 10 AND FOUR, WE WILL HAVE EARPLUGS AVAILABLE. IF NOISE IS NOT YOUR FRIEND , BUT I THINK IT'LL BE FINE. THERE WILL BE PERFORMANCES AT YOUR SEATS. YOU SAW THE SCHEDULE AND A MAP TO KIND OF GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF THE SCOPE OF WHAT WE'RE OFFERING. AND IT'S NOT JUST GONNA BE MUSIC RELATED. OF COURSE THERE WILL BE ROBOTS, OF COURSE THERE WILL BE OUR FRIENDS FROM KNOCK, KNOCK CHILDREN'S MUSEUM AND, UH, LOUISIANA ARTS AND SCIENCE CENTER AND SCHOOL TEAMS WILL BE HERE. UM, WONDERFUL PEOPLE WILL BE HERE TO SHARE STEM AND STEAM ACTIVITIES. SO IT'S GONNA, A GOOD TIME WILL BE HAD BY ALL. I'M GONNA TELL YOU, COMING UP SOON, ADDICT TREASURES AND COLLECTIBLES, Y'ALL, WE'VE BEEN DOING THIS. THIS WILL BE OUR 24TH YEAR. IT'S HARD, IT'S HARD FOR ME TO IMAGINE THAT. BUT, UM, OUR, UH, OUR EXPERTS ARE BOOKED. UM, WE TOLD 'EM, DON'T GET SICK . 'CAUSE THAT'S THE THING. YOU COME AND THE, WHEN IT'S TOO GOOD OF A SUCCESS, PEOPLE ARE WAITING AND PEOPLE DON'T LIKE TO WAIT. UH, WE TOYED WITH THE IDEA OF GIVING PEOPLE TIME SLOTS. PEOPLE DID NOT WANT TIME SLOTS, SO IT'S OKAY. WE'LL HAVE CHAIRS. UM, IF THEY'RE IN A LONG LINE FOR A GENERALIST, THERE WILL BE CHAIRS. AND IN THE MEANTIME, BEHIND ME, ON THE GIANT SCREEN, WE'LL HAVE, WE HAVE THE CAVES COLLECTIBLES DATABASE, AND WE HAVE THE P FOUR ANTIQUES DATABASE THAT WE'LL HAVE ROLLING SO THAT WE CAN DEMONSTRATE THOSE AND LOOK UP WHAT YOU BROUGHT WHILE YOU'RE WAITING TO ME, THAT'S ALWAYS ONE OF THE MOST FUN THINGS TO DO. LOUISIANA BOOK FESTIVAL IS COMING UP FAST. THAT WILL BE ALL DAY NOVEMBER 2ND, DOWNTOWN IN BETWEEN THE STATE LIBRARY, THE STATE MUSEUM, AND THE STATE CAPITOL. SO WE JUST TAKE OVER. AND THIS YEAR, NOT JUST OUR BOOKMOBILE WILL BE THERE, BUT ALL THE OTHER BOOKMOBILES WANT IN ON THE ACTION. SO THERE'LL BE A BOOKMOBILE ROUNDUP FROM SOME OF THE SURROUNDING PARISHES. SO WE'LL JUST HAVE TO LOOK GOOD AND SHOW 'EM HOW IT'S DONE. RIGHT. OUR NEWEST BOOKMOBILE KING CAKE IS SLATED TO ARRIVE AT THAT EVENT THAT IS THE PRESCHOOL BOOKMOBILE. AND, UH, SHE'S GETTING HER, UM, SHE'S GETTING CLEANED UP FOR IT. GIS DAY, ALSO COMING IN NOVEMBER. UH, WE DO THIS IN THE MORNING WITH STUDENTS AND FROM A VARIETY OF SCHOOLS. WE DO THIS IN THE EVENING WITH ADULTS, AND IT'S ALWAYS FASCINATING TO SEE NEW APPLICATIONS OF THIS EXCITING TECHNOLOGY AND, AND HOW THEY ROLL IT ALL OUT. YOU KNOW, I WOULD NEVER HAVE THOUGHT GI GIS APPLICATIONS WITH FIREFIGHTING GIS APPLICATIONS HERE IN BATON ROUGE WITH OPEN DATA BR GIS APPLICATIONS. UM, WITH, OH GOSH, WE HAD TRACKING DISEASE. WE'VE TRACKED BIRDS, WE'VE LOOKED AT BEES. YOU CAN MAP ALMOST ANYTHING. AND THEY'RE DOING IT. LIBRARIES CHANGED LIVES THIS MONTH, CELEBRATES MAKERS, AND IN THIS CASE, NEED LEE AND RAKI. MILANI MET IN A MAKERSPACE IN ONE OF OUR LO BRANCH LOCATIONS, AND THEY HAVE REMAINED FIRM FRIENDS EVER SINCE. THEY MEET MONTHLY AT THE MAKERSPACE, AND THEY ARE UP TO MISCHIEF AND THEY'RE HAVING SUCH A GOOD TIME. THEY'VE INVITED OTHERS , THEY'RE GROWING A GROUP OUT THERE. UH, VIRTUAL AUTHOR TALK SERIES. WE HAD A LOT OF PEOPLE VERY EXCITED ABOUT SOME OF OUR AUTHORS RECENTLY, AND PEOPLE ARE REALLY RESPONDING TO THIS. SO I'M, I'M HAPPY ABOUT THAT. WE HAD LUCAS, UH, SPILL FOGEL, JUSTIN ALFRED AND DAN DE CODY ON OUR STRICTLY BUSINESS THIS WEEK, TALKING ABOUT BEST PLACES TO WORK AND WHAT MAKES THEM A BEST PLACE TO WORK THAT IS ARCHIVED. AND, UH, IT'S REALLY INTERESTING. AND AGAIN, PEOPLE ARE RESPONDING TO THIS. HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE LISTEN TO THOSE EVERY EVERY TIME WE DROP. AND THAT IS ALL I HAVE TO SHARE WITH YOU. UH, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR ME? ALL RIGHT, I'M GONNA GET OUT. MARY. YES MA'AM. ANY BO UM, PUBLIC COMMENT UNDER A SYSTEM REPORTS? C NONE. OH, UH OH. YOU, MARY, MY DAUGHTER ATTENDED THE WORKSHOP IN, UH, FOR, IN THE AUTHOR SERIES AND SHE SAID IT WAS WONDERFUL. GOOD. SHE'S A I'M GLAD SCHOOL LIBRARIAN. GOOD. I'M GLAD PE-PEOPLE, WE LEARN THINGS AND THEN THEY BRING IT BACK TO THE KIDS. AND WITH THIS AUTHOR, YOU KNOW, IT IS A STEREOTYPE THAT BOYS DON'T LIKE TO READ. WELL, THEY LIKE TO READ IF THEY HAVE THE RIGHT BOOK. AND THESE BOOKS, WHO WOULD WIN, ARE THE RIGHT BOOK FOR SO MANY RELUCTANT READERS. [00:25:01] AND THEY WERE EXCITED. ONE YOUNG MAN, THERE'S A PICTURE, HE WROTE HIS OWN BOOK AND HE BROUGHT IT AND JERRY TOOK THE TIME TO LOOK AT IT AND THEY AUTOGRAPHED EACH OTHER'S BOOKS AND THEY, IT'S JUST MARVELOUS TO SEE THE ENCOURAGEMENT AND THE SUPPORT THAT HE GAVE TO THE, TO THE KIDS AND THEN TO THE PARENTS, BECAUSE PARENTS NEED SOME SUPPORT. SO, GOOD. AND THEN I'M VERY EXCITED FOR THE PINK KNEES NEXT YEAR. YOU'LL HEAR MORE ABOUT THAT. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU MAYOR. ANY ADDITIONAL COMMENTS BY THE BOARD? ALRIGHT, SEEING NONE. MOVING ON TO OTHER REPORTS, MAINTENANCE AND ADDITIONAL CAPITAL PROJECTS. THESE REPORTS WILL BE READ BY MS. LAURIE, HUGE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR. OKAY, I AM GONNA KEEP THIS SHORT AND SWEET. DON'T HAVE MUCH FOR MAINTENANCE THIS MONTH, ALTHOUGH THERE HAVE BEEN THINGS GOING ON. UM, THE MAJOR THINGS THAT OUR MAINTENANCE STAFF HAVE ADDRESSED WERE, UH, WINDOW GLASS REPAIRS THAT WERE COMPLETED AT CARVER EDEN PARK AND FAIRWOOD. AND AT THE EDEN PARK BRANCH, UH, A MOTOR WAS REPLACED ON AIR HANDLE NUMBER THREE FOR THE MISCELLANEOUS IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS AT OUTREACH, THE CONTRACTOR IS STILL WORKING ON THE PUNCH LIST, BUT THE FIRE MARSHAL HAS ISSUED A CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION, UH, FOR THE MULTI-BRANCH PROJECT. ALL OF THE PENDANT LIGHTS WERE REPLACED AT PRIOR THIS MONTH. AND ALL BRANCHES EXCEPT DELMONT GARDENS ARE COMPLETE. REMEDIATION WORK HAS BEEN COMPLETED. BUT PUNCHLESS ITEMS REMAIN TO BE ADDRESSED FOR THE ROOFING PROJECT. THERE'S NOTHING NEW TO REPORT CURRENTLY, UH, FOR THE BOILERS FOR EDEN PARK AND GREENWELL SPRINGS BRANCH LIBRARIES ARCHITECTURAL SERVICES HAS ISSUED A NOTICE TO PROCEED ON THE DESIGN WITH AN ENGINEERING FIRM. ONCE THE DESIGN PLANS ARE COMPLETE AND ACCEPTED, WE WILL GO OUT TO BID IT FOR THE CONSTRUCTION PHASE FOR THE BLUEBONNET BRANCH LIBRARY RENOVATIONS. THERE'S CURRENTLY NOTHING NEW TO REPORT AT THIS TIME. AND FOR THE CHILLER PROJECT, THE CARVER BRANCH LIBRARY'S CHILLER WAS INSTALLED. BUT THERE ARE PUNCH LIST ITEMS THAT REMAIN, UH, WITH WORK TO BE COMPLETED. AND AT THE ZACHARY BRANCH LIBRARY, INSTALLATION OF THE NEW CHILLER HAS BEGUN AND THE WORK IS ALMOST COMPLETE. AND THE NEXT LOCATION TO RECEIVE A NEW CHILLER WILL BE THE CENTRAL BRANCH LIBRARY. ANY QUESTIONS? ANY, ANY BOARD COMMENT UNDER MAINTENANCE AND ADDITIONAL CAPITAL PROJECTS? ANY PUBLIC COMMENT? MOVING ON TO MISCELLANEOUS REPORTS. GOOD AFTERNOON. FIRST OF ALL, QUICK WORD ABOUT THE FACILITIES MASTER PLAN. WE NOW HAVE A ROUGH ESTIMATE OF THE PROJECTED COST FOR MAJOR MAINTENANCE AND CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS BEGINNING 2025 TO 2035. THE COST IS JUST UNDER $100 MILLION, BUT PLEASE KEEP IN MIND THIS WILL BE SPREAD OUT OVER 11 YEARS. SO THIS COMES TO APPROXIMATELY $9 MILLION SPENT PER YEAR. NOW WE ARE BASING THIS FIGURE ON HARD COST OF ANTICIPATED REPAIRS AND PROJECTS WHILE ACCOUNTING FOR INFLATION OVER TIME. WE WERE ADVISED BY THE ARCHITECTURAL SERVICES DEPARTMENT THAT'S ROUGHLY 3.2%. THIS GIVES RHONDA PENANT, OUR BUSINESS MANAGER, A STARTING POINT FOR BUDGET PROJECTIONS. SHE WILL BE WORKING CLOSELY WITH THE CITY PARISH FINANCE DEPARTMENT TO STUDY THESE NUMBERS AND DEVELOP PROJECTIONS. BY JANUARY, WE WILL PLAN A SPECIAL MEETING IN WHICH WE WILL PRESENT THESE FINDINGS. I WOULD LIKE, LIKE TO SPEND A MOMENT TALKING ABOUT A MEETING THAT LORI AND MARY AND I HAD WITH THE MAYOR PRESIDENT'S OFFICE AND THE DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT. UH, WE HAVE BEEN IN COMMUNICATION WITH OUR RIVER CENTER BRANCH. THERE HAVE BEEN SOME ISSUES WITH INDIVIDUALS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS. THEY ARE UNFORTUNATELY USING, UH, WELL, THEY'RE, THEY'RE LEAVING HUMAN WASTE AROUND THE GENERATOR. IT IS CREATING A BIT OF A SANITATION ISSUE. SOME ARE EVEN SLEEPING AROUND THE AREA. WE DO HAVE SOME CONCERNS ABOUT HOW SECURE THE GENERATOR IS. IT IS A HIGH VOLTAGE AREA. UH, THERE'S ALWAYS CONCERNS ABOUT HUMAN SAFETY, NOT JUST TO OUR STAFF, BUT ALSO TO ANYONE PASSING THROUGH AND TO ANY INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE LOOKING FOR SHELTER. UH, WE HAD THOUGHT ABOUT HAVING A FENCE BUILT AROUND THE AREA. UH, IT WAS SOMETHING THAT WE HAD DISCUSSED PREVIOUSLY, BUT WERE TOLD, UH, IT WAS NOT, THEY DID NOT FEEL IT WAS A GOOD IDEA. UM, SOME OF THE CONCERNS RAISED INC. UH, IN, IN BUILDING THIS FENCE INCLUDED BLOCKING THE, UH, THE RAMP TO THE STAFF ENTRANCE. SO THAT COULD POTENTIALLY IMPEDE ANYONE WHO NEEDS ASSISTANCE GETTING IN AND OUT OF THE BUILDING. UH, HOWEVER, THE SUGGESTION [00:30:01] WAS MADE THAT WE INSTALL BRIGHTER FLOODLIGHTS FOR THE AREA TO BETTER ILLUMINATE IT, UH, WHICH WOULD HOPEFULLY THEN DISCOURAGE ANYONE FROM SLEEPING OR USING THE AREA AS A LATRINE. UH, THE DOWNTOWN, UH, EXCUSE ME, DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT ALSO, UH, OFFERED TO ALLOW ACCESS TO ONE OF THE PORT PORTA-POTTIES THAT ARE, ARE LEFT IN THE ALLEYWAY FOR EVENTS, UH, HELD ON THE SQUARE TEMPORARILY. THAT IS UNTIL WE CAN COME UP WITH A MORE PERMANENT SOLUTION TO OFFER TOILET FACILITIES AFTER HOURS FOR INDIVIDUALS IN THE AREA. A QUICK WORD ABOUT GO LEARN 2024. THE FALL CONTRACT FOR A CONSULTANT IS CURRENTLY WITH THE CITY PARISH, UH, ATTORNEY'S OFFICE. AND WE ARE WAITING UNTIL WE HEAR FROM THEM BEFORE MOVING ON TO THE NEXT STEP. UM, MARY MENTIONED THE NEW WEBSITE IS CURRENTLY IN TESTING. UH, RELATED TO THAT, WE ARE IN DISCUSSIONS WITH BOTH STAFF AND THE CONSULTANT ON THE INTEGRATED LIBRARY SYSTEM TO DEVELOP A SCOPE OF WORK FOR, UH, THE REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS. I KNOW EVERYONE'S VERY EXCITED ABOUT THAT. WE'VE HAD A LOT OF FANTASTIC FEEDBACK FROM OUR STAFF, SO WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT MOVING FORWARD ON THAT PRO PROJECT. UH, DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, UH, REGARDING WHAT I JUST WENT OVER? YEAH, KATRINA. I DO MA'AM. UM, SO HOW QUICKLY, UM, OR WHAT IS THE AVAILABILITY TO BE ABLE TO GET THE PORTA POTTY, UM, AND IF, IF THAT IS A, A, A VIABLE SHORT, AT LEAST SHORT TERM SOLUTION, UM, WHAT IS THE COST GONNA BE TO THE, TO, TO THE LIBRARY TO BE ABLE, W WOULD WE BE CONSIDERED RENTING IT BECAUSE OF THAT ISSUE OR ARE THEY DONATING IT TO US, UH, FOR OUR LOCATION OR THAT LOCATION SO THAT WE COULD, AS YOU KNOW, ADDRESS THAT ISSUE? THAT QUESTION WAS ASKED. AND, UH, THE, THE, UH, DOWNTOWN DISTRICT, DISTRICT SAID THAT, UH, THEY, THEY ARE THE ONES WHO ARE CURRENTLY PAYING THE CON THE CON. THEY'RE THE ONES PAYING THE CONTRACT, I ASSUME. THAT'S RIGHT, MARY. THEY'RE THE ONES PAYING THE CONTRACT, UH, FOR, UH, LOOKING AFTER THE PORTA-POTTIES THERE, UM, BEHIND THE, UH, THE LIBRARY FOR NOW, RIGHT NOW, HE SAID JUST ONE. UH, AND IT'S TEMPORARY SO WE CAN SEE HOW WELL IT GOES. UM, I, I DID ADVISE HIM. I SAID, WE ARE MORE THAN HAPPY TO DISCUSS ANY OTHER FURTHER SOLUTIONS. UH, REALLY SPEAKING, IT'S, IT'S JUST BEEN A CONCERN. UM, IT, IT'S, UH, WE'VE HAD SOME, UH, REPORTS OF FOLKS WITNESSING INDIVIDUALS, UM, DOING THEIR PERSONAL BUSINESS BEHIND THE LIBRARY. NOT TO MENTION THEY'RE SLEEPING AROUND THE AREA, WHICH IS, IT'S JUST A MAJOR CONCERN. UM, SO WE WE'RE HOPING THAT, UH, SINCE THEY WERE GENEROUS ENOUGH TO, UH, KEEP ONE UNLOCKED AND ONE ONLY FOR THE TIME BEING, UM, AND WE WILL MONITOR THE SITUATION AND COMMUNICATE ON HOW WELL THAT IS GOING. UM, HE, UH, SOME, I BELIEVE IT WAS, WAS IT JOE BUTLER THAT MENTIONED THAT IT WASN'T THE LIGHTS, IT WAS, HE MENTIONED THAT IT SEEMED LIKE THEY NOTICED THAT WHEN THERE WAS A PORT-A-POTTY IN THE AREA, YES. THAT INSTANCES OF INDIVIDUALS WERE LEAVING THEMSELVES IN PUBLIC DECREASED. SO WE'RE HOPEFUL THAT MAYBE THIS WILL HELP US WORK TOWARDS A BETTER SOLUTION. THANK YOU. ONE, ONE MORE QUESTION ON MY END. YES, MA'AM. UM, WOULD THE, UM, THAT PARTICULAR LIBRARY BE THE ONLY ONE HAVE THAT, UM, POSSIBILITY OF HAVING A PORTA POTTY? OR WOULD THAT BE AN OPTION OPEN TO ALL? AS OF RIGHT NOW, THE ISSUE SEEMS LARGELY, UM, CONTAINED TO RIVER CENTER BECAUSE THE, IN THE WHOLE AREA DOWN THERE IS HAVING ISSUES OKAY. WITH THIS. SO HOPEFULLY THIS IS KIND OF SPARKING A GENERAL CONVERSATION TO KIND OF HELP. 'CAUSE I KNOW THERE, THERE'S BEEN, UH, A LOT OF DRAW DOWNTOWN WITH A LOT OF THE, UH, A LIVE AFTER FIVE EVENTS AS WELL AS MANY OTHERS THERE ON THE SQUARE. UM, BUT THERE WAS ALSO, I'M, I'M, I'M HEARING THE, THE RUMBLES OF PEOPLE CONCERNED ABOUT INDIVIDUALS SLEEPING, UH, AROUND THE AREA. SO WE'RE, WE'RE HOPING THAT THIS IS GOING TO HELP ALLEVIATE FOR THE WHOLE, NOT JUST FOR OUR LIBRARY, BUT ALSO FOR THE AREA. UNDERSTANDABLE. OKAY. GO AHEAD. I'M FINISHED. THAT WAS IT. OKAY. SO, UM, I THINK I'M ON. HELLO. HELLO. OKAY. SO I DID HAVE A QUESTION, UH, UH, PERTAINING TO THE SAME THING AND NICOLE HIT MOST OF IT. BUT MY QUESTION IS THE PORTA POTTY THAT'S LEFT OPEN, IS IT NEAR THE PLACE WHERE THEY'RE CURRENTLY RELIEVING THEMSELVES? YES. OKAY. THAT WAS JUST MY MAIN, MY MAIN QUESTION. YES. AND THEN LIVE AFTER FIVE IS GOING TO END IN THE NEAR FUTURE FALL SERIES. SO THEN WHAT, SO IS THAT SOMETHING THAT WE CAN DO AS A, EXCUSE ME, AS AN ITEM, UM, TODAY, POTENTIALLY, IT'S NOT ON THE AGENDA. I DON'T KNOW HOW IT WORKS, BUT TO SEE IF WE CAN, UH, FIND MONEY IN THE BUDGET TO [00:35:01] PUT SOMETHING IN PLACE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR. BECAUSE IF THEY DID IT ONCE, THEY'LL DO IT TWICE. AND, AND WHILE MY HEART IS 100%, WE JUST STARTED A HOMELESS FEEDING PROGRAM IN MY DISTRICT OFFICE MM-HMM . SHOWERS, I HAVE PEOPLE GET NAKED DEFECATING IN THE BUILDING. THERE'S A LOT GOING ON. YES. UM, DRUG ADDICTION, EMOTIONAL AND MENTAL ISSUES. SO IT'S NOT ALWAYS AS EASY AS WE THINK TO RESOLVE, WHICH MEANS THAT PROBLEM WON'T LEAVE TOMORROW. UM, I, I BELIEVE THAT THAT SHOULD BE MORE OF A PERMANENT SOLUTION THAT WE PROVIDE AND WE BECOME AN AIDE TO DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT VERSUS THEM BECOMING AN AIDE TO US IN THIS SITUATION. I'M CERTAINLY HAPPY TO LOOK INTO ANY SOLUTIONS THAT COULD HELP ALLEVIATE THE PROBLEM. UH, YEAH. I MEAN, IF THAT, IF THAT'S ONE, THEY JUST HAVE SOMEWHERE TO GO AND THEY NOT DO IT ON THE GROUND. RIGHT. IT FROM A SANITATION STANDPOINT, AND IT, IT, IT, UH, PUTS IN A GOOD, IN, IN A GOOD, HEALTHY, HEALTHIER ENVIRONMENT, BUT ALSO GIVES THEM PRIDE TO NOT HAVE TO GO BEHIND A BUILDING AND HAVE SOMEWHERE TO GO IN, IN THE MIDDLE, YOU KNOW, IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT. LIKE WE ALL GET OUT, GET OUT OF OUR BEDS AS WELL. RIGHT. ABSOLUTELY. UH, YES, IT, AND IT IS DEFINITELY, UH, AS I SAID, I WHEN IN THE DISCUSSION WITH THE, UH, THE TWO DEPARTMENTS, UH, I SAID, I AM MORE THAN HAPPY TO DISCUSS WHATEVER WE CAN DO TO PROVIDE A MORE PERMANENT SOLUTION FOR THIS. SO WE ARE DEFINITELY GOING TO BE MONITORING THE SITUATION AND KEEPING IN COMMUNICATION WITH BOTH DEPARTMENTS TO SEE IF WE CAN'T COME UP WITH SOMETHING. THANKS. IS, IS THIS, UH, MOSTLY HOMELESS OR IS THIS, UH, PEOPLE THAT ARE REVELING AT LIVE AFTER FIVE THAT DON'T WANNA PAY TO BUY A DRINK, TO USE A RESTROOM SOMEPLACE? ? NO, IT IS, IT IS MOSTLY INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE LIVING, UH, ON THE STREETS, JUST THEY'RE SEEKING OUT SHELTER, SEEKING OUT A PLACE TO RELIEVE THEMSELVES WAS BY THIS TIME, UH, MOST OF THE, UH, OFFICES, UH, LOCATION, UH, I'M SORRY, I'M STUMBLING ON MY WORDS HERE. UH, THE MAJORITY OF THE BUSINESSES, UH, LIBRARY INCLUDED ARE CLOSED BY THIS TIME. SO THERE'S SIMPLY NOWHERE FOR THEM TO GO IF THEY, IF THEY, IF THEY NEED TO. UM, THE BIGGEST THING FOR US IS, UH, IT'S CREATED, UH, SOME DISSENT AMONG THE JANITORIAL STAFF, SOME OF WHOM HAVE THREATENED TO QUIT OVER THAT. I CANNOT SAY I NECESSARILY BLAME 'EM. AND IT, I DON'T IMAGINE IT'S, IT'S PLEASANT TO HAVE TO CLEAN UP HUMAN WASTE EVERY DAY, ESPECIALLY OUTSIDE. UH, BUT, UH, AGAIN, THAT WAS MY NEXT QUESTION. DO WE HAVE THE PROPER LIKE HOSES AND EQUIPMENT FOR THEM? THAT IS AN EXCELLENT QUESTION. AND WE DO, WE DO. IS ALL OF IT YES. IS KATRINA, HOW LONG, LONG, UM, IS THE DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT GOING TO PROVIDE THE PORTA POTTY? THAT IS, THEY SAY, UH, YOU KNOW, THAT DID NOT COME UP IN THE CONVERSATION. I DIDN'T THINK ABOUT THAT, BUT I CAN DEFINITELY CHECK BACK WITH HIM AND ASK. THIS IS AS, UH, UH, COUNCILMAN HURST MENTIONED THE LIVE AFTER FIVE IS GOING TO, UH, END FOR THE SEASON FAIRLY SOON. AND, UH, IT WOULD PROB WE PROBABLY NEED TO CHECK WITH THEM AND ASK, ARE THEY, ARE THEY PLANNING ON AT LEAST LEAVING ONE OR, UM, WHAT, WHAT WE CAN DO FROM THERE. BUT AT THE VERY LEAST, BETWEEN NOW AND THEN WE CAN FIND OUT IF IT ACTUALLY HELPS ALLEVIATE THE SITUATION OR NOT. HOPEFULLY THE, UM, LOCATION WHERE THESE, UH, THIS PORTA POTTY WILL BE LOCATED IS A WELL LIT AREA AND A SECURED AREA WITH A CAMERA. YES. I WAS JUST THINKING ABOUT SOME OTHER, UH, ANOTHER SITUATION THAT RECENTLY TOOK PLACE AT HOME IN NEW ORLEANS. UM, BUT THE PARK PORTA POTTY WAS NEAR THE CITY, UM, THE CITY PARK AREA, BUT IT WAS NOT A WELL LIT AREA AND SOME OTHER ACTIVITIES TOOK PLACE. YES. WHICH IS PART OF THE REASON WHY WE'RE GOING TO LOOK INTO PUTTING BRIGHTER LIGHTING, UH, JUST EXTREME BRIGHT LIGHTS. YES. WHICH WOULD ALSO BE, MAKE IT, UH, SOMEWHAT UNCOMFORTABLE TO SLEEP SPECIFICALLY THERE TOO. SO HOPEFULLY IF, UH, AT THE VERY LEAST IT WILL MOVE THEM AWAY FROM THAT SPOT AND NOT BE SLEEPING IN YES. VERY UNSANITARY CONDITIONS. THANK YOU. YES, MA'AM. KATRINA, REGARDING THE, THE MAINTENANCE AND THE CAPITAL PROJECTS THAT YOU MENTIONED AT THE BEGINNING, UM, ROUGHLY HOW MANY PROJECTS PER YEAR DO YOU ANTICIPATE UNDERTAKING? MARY, CAN YOU HELP ME WITH THAT ONE? SURE. THAT'S RONNIE, THAT'S, THAT'S REALLY GONNA DEPEND ON THE, ON THE NEED. AS WE LOOKED OVER THAT 10, 11 YEAR PERIOD, THE ROOF HAS A DEADLINE. SURE. AND IT'S TICKING. YEAH. AND THE CHILLERS, THE BOILERS, ALL THOSE THINGS HAVE A BUILT IN ON OBSOLESCENCE. SO THOSE WERE, THOSE WERE LIKE THE ANCHORS ON THE TIMELINE. AND THEN WE FILL IN FROM THERE. SO THERE WERE SOME YEARS WHERE IT'S KINDA LIKE, DANG, THERE'S A LOT GOING ON. LIKE YOU'RE SEEING [00:40:01] NOW WITH, UH, SOME OF THE PROJECTS LAURIE HAS REPORTED ON, IT WAS LIKE, OH MY GOODNESS, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM. FIVE CHILLERS, UH, FIVE DIFFERENT LOCATIONS BECAUSE IT, IT WAS LIKE THEY WERE DOING THE WAVE. IT'S LIKE, ME, I'M NEXT, I'M THIS. SO, UH, IT'S, IT'S THE PRIORITY OF THE, THE ASSET ITSELF. AND THEN WHAT MAKES SENSE TO KIND OF PLUG IT AROUND IT. IF YOU'RE ALREADY DOING A CERTAIN KIND OF WORK AT ONE LOCATION AND YOU'VE ALREADY DISRUPTED THINGS, WELL WHAT ELSE CAN WE DO THAT'S, THAT FITS THAT DISRUPTION INSTEAD OF DISRUPTING US AGAIN A YEAR LATER FOR SOMETHING THAT WASN'T QUITE AS EXTENSIVE. SO THAT'S WHAT THE REPORT IS GOING TO HELP US WITH. THEY JUST GAVE US THE QUICKEST LOOKY-LOO SO THAT KATRINA COULD SHARE THAT WITH YOU. THEY'RE GONNA FINESSE THAT FOR US OVER THE NEXT SIX WEEKS. AND THEN RHONDA AND ARCHITECTURAL SERVICES AND FINANCE AND ALL THE FRIENDS ARE GONNA BE LOOKING AT THIS TO DECIDE WHAT CAN WE REASONABLY ACCOMPLISH IN A YEAR. 'CAUSE AS YOU KNOW, YOU CAN'T DO IT ALL AT ONCE. WE RELAX THE HUMAN CAPITAL TO, TO COORDINATE ALL THESE PROJECTS. IT'S A LOT. RIGHT. MY, MY BIGGEST, WELL NOT BIGGEST CONCERN, BUT ONE CONCERN IS THAT, UM, GIVEN THE DEMAND PLACED ON ARCHITECTURAL SERVICES BY EVERYBODY, EVERY DEPARTMENT IS THE ABILITY TO COMPLETE THE LIST. YOU KNOW, HOW, HOW ATTAINABLE OR ACHIEVABLE DO WE THINK IT IT IS OR IT WILL BE. RIGHT? BECAUSE WHEN WE FIRST MET THIS 10 YEAR T CYCLE, WE THOUGHT ARCHITECTURE SERVICES HAD LOTS OF PEOPLE. WE TALKED WITH THEM, WE WERE THINKING TWO BRANCHES OUT OF THE GATE, THEN GET THEM STARTED, THEN THE NEXT TWO BRANCHES OUT OF THE GATE, GET THEM STARTED. AND THEN COVID HIT AND SLOW DOWNS AND CHILLERS TOOK 52 WEEKS TO COME IN AND CRAZY STUFF LIKE THAT WAS HAPPENING. SO WE HAVE NOT MET THAT TIMELINE. AND SO WE, WE LEARN THAT. SO WE'RE NOT GOING TO BE OVER AND WE ARE NOT GONNA OVER PROMISE AND UNDER DELIVER. OKAY. OKAY. THANK YOU. ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS? OKAY THEN, UH, IT IS NOW MY PLEASURE TO, UH, CARRY ON THE INTRODUCTION OF OUR BRANCH MANAGERS AROUND OUR LIBRARY SYSTEM. WE HAVE TODAY HEATHER HARRISON, MANAGER OF OUR CENTRAL BRANCH AND DARLY BUTLER, MANAGER OF DELMONT GARDENS BRANCH. UM, DARLY, WOULD YOU LIKE TO COME UP AND INTRODUCE YOURSELF? , MY NERVES AREN'T AS BAD AS THEY USED TO. I RECORD BOOK TALKS NOW. SO MY NAME IS DARLY BUTLER AND I AM THE BRANCH MANAGER AT THE DELMONT GARDENS LOCATION. I HAVE BEEN WITH THE LIBRARY SYSTEM FOR 21 YEARS. I STARTED OFF AS A STUDENT WORKER AT DELMONT. THIS IS MY THIRD STINT. SO , WHEN I GOT MY MASTER'S, I CAME BACK TO DELMONT AS A YOUTH SERVICES LIBRARIAN AND I'M NOW BACK FOR MY THIRD TIME AS A BRANCH MANAGER. UM, THINGS THAT I LOVE ABOUT THIS BRANCH HAS ALWAYS FELT LIKE HOME TO ME. SO IT'S ALWAYS FIRST CHOICE WHENEVER I GET A CHANCE TO MOVE SOMEWHERE. UM, I WORKED THROUGHOUT THE SYSTEM AT A NUMBER OF BRANCHES. I'VE BEEN AT, UM, OUTREACH SERVICES WITH THE BOOKMOBILE. I'VE COME TO MAINE TEMPORARILY TO KIND OF HELP OUT A LITTLE BIT. I'VE BEEN AT JONES CREEK AS THEIR CHILDREN'S LIBRARY AND UM, A SMALL TWO MONTHS AT SCOTLANDVILLE . UM, BUT NOW I'M BACK, UM, WHERE I CONSIDER IT TO BE HOME. UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I LOVE ABOUT, UM, OUR BRANCH IS JUST THE PATRONS GETTING TO KNOW THEM BY NAME. UM, I LOVE THE COMMUNITY BECAUSE THAT'S WHERE I GREW UP. SO I ALWAYS FEEL LIKE I CAN GO, I LIKE TO GO A PLACE WHERE I CAN, UM, LOOK PAST ALL OF THE EXTERIOR, THE DRUG ADDICTIONS, THE THINGS THAT WE DEAL WITH AT OUR BRANCH, UM, MENTAL ISSUES AND JUST GET TO KNOW PEOPLE AND TREAT THEM LIKE HUMANS. UM, ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR PROGRAMS IN MY BRANCH IS BINGO. MM-HMM . OKAY. AND, UM, WE'VE TRIED MULTIPLE TIMES DUE TO STAFFING TO GET RID OF THAT PROGRAM AND WE CAN. SO IT IS HERE TO STAY. UM, BUT I THINK THAT'S PRETTY MUCH ALL, UNLESS Y'ALL HAVE QUESTIONS FOR ME, I TRIED TO SUMMARIZE IT AS QUICK AS I COULD. MS. DARLY, IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU CAME UP THROUGH THE TRENCHES, UH, AND TRULY AND THOROUGHLY UNDERSTAND THE LIBRARY SYSTEM. AND THAT'S, UH, COMMENDABLE. YES MA'AM. TO YOU AND FOR YOU MA'AM. NOW THIS, UH, YOU MENTIONED BINGO. IS THAT FOR THE ADULTS? YES, MA'AM. OKAY. IT'S AN ADULT PROGRAM, SO WE HOST IT ONCE A MONTH. OKAY. [00:45:01] UM, THE DATE WILL CHANGE JUST BASED ON UM, MEETING ROOM USAGE, BUT IT'S ONCE A MONTH AND IT'S PRETTY POPULAR. SO WE ARE UP TO ABOUT, I KNOW FOR OUR LITTLE BRANCH WE'RE UP TO ABOUT 20 PEOPLE SOMETIMES, SO THAT'S BIG FOR US. . OKAY. OKAY. BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, WE'LL PEOPLE ASK FOR COMPUTER CLASSES ALL THE TIME, BUT WE MIGHT GET ONE OR TWO PEOPLE TO PARTICIPATE. UM, EVEN CRAFT PROGRAMS WE CAN GET ABOUT, YOU KNOW, FIVE BINGO THERE AND THERE ON TIME EARLY. AWESOME. THANK YOU. YOU'RE WELCOME. SO, UM, THAT BRANCH HAS TO BE, HAPPENS TO BE IN THE BEST DISTRICT IN ALL OF EAST BAT PARISH. LET ME MAKE THAT. IT'S IN DISTRICT VERY CLEAR. BUT UM, UH, THEY HAVE BEEN A GREAT COMMUNITY PARTNER WITH FEEDING, UM, WITH HOUSING AND THROUGH THE YEAR, YEAR SUMMERTIME. SO I KNOW WHAT YOU ALL DO. WE GET GREAT FEEDBACK TWO DOORS DOWN WITH MY DISTRICT OFF OFFICES AND ALSO SCARES AND COMMUNITY RESOURCES, WHETHER IT BE HEALTH OR WHATNOT. SO THAT'S SMALL BRANCHES PACKING A BIG PUNCH. UM, AND WE KNOW WE'VE HAD RECENT DISCUSSIONS ABOUT HOW CAN WE EXPAND AND GROW THAT BRANCH. YES. UH, BUT KEEP IT IN AN AREA, UM, THAT WILL STILL ALLOW PEOPLE WITHIN WALKING DISTANCE TO BE SERVICED. RIGHT? YES. EVEN THOUGH, AND THERE WAS AN INITIAL SITE OF A PLANK ROAD WHERE IT COULD POTENTIALLY GO. MARY CAN I, CAN I HAVE A DISCUSSION? NO. YES. NO. I GUESS WHAT WELL IT DOESN'T MATTER. LOOK WELL, I MEAN IT'S JUST US, BUT FOR THE MOST PART. BUT, SO BEHIND OUR COMMUNITY CENTER, I LOVE FEEDBACK TOO. UH, WE HAVE ABOUT THREE OR FOUR ACRES AND SO WE'VE HAD PRELIMINARY DISCUSSIONS BECAUSE TWO P TWO PLACES THAT ARE BURSTING AT THE SEAMS IS YOUR LIBRARY. 'CAUSE IT'S VERY SMALL. VERY SMALL. PROBABLY IT IS PROBABLY THE SMALLEST ONE IN THE PARISH, I WOULD ASSUME. YES SIR. NO I GOT, I HADN'T VISITED THAT. WHERE'S THE SMALLEST CARVER AND PRIDE? OH, I'VE BEEN TO CARVER. YEAH, I'VE BEEN TO CARVER. OKAY. I WOULD AGREE. OKAY. PICK OUT PRIDE. IT'S NICE. I HAVE NOT BEEN TO PRIDE, BUT I'VE BEEN TO CARVER. PARKING IS OUR MAIN ISSUE. SO EVEN WHEN WE TRY TO HOST PEOPLE, I WAS GONNA SAY, WE, WE TALKED ABOUT THAT AS WELL. THE ONE THING ABOUT THE CHARLES KELLER COMMUNITY CENTER IS THAT IT WAS BUILT IN MULTIPLE PHASES. AND SO EACH BUILDING HAD ITS OWN SET OF PARKING. EVEN THOUGH THE BUILDING'S NOT BEING UTILIZED TO CAPACITY IN TERMS OF PARKING, UM, WE WE'RE FULL EVERY DAY AND LEAVE SO MANY VACANT SPACES ON THAT BACKSIDE NEAR LONGFELLOW, THAT THAT FIELD HAS BEEN UP FOR DISCUSSION WITH COA WHO'S ALSO GROWING AND BURSTING AT THE SEAMS. AND HOW DO WE BECOME FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE WITH THE MILLAGES THAT BOTH ORGANIZATIONS HAVE TO MAKE THE MOST IMPACT ON THE COMMUNITY. AND LAST WEEK WE HAD A DISCUSSION VERY HIGH LEVEL. UM, BUT I BELIEVE IT'S, I BELIEVE IT'S GONNA BE THE FIRST OF MANY WHERE I'LL BE DONATING, I WANNA SAY THIS PUBLICLY OR OR LAND SWAPPING AND DOING WHATEVER. 'CAUSE I WANT PEOPLE TO SAY WE'RE GIVING AWAY TAX LAND. UM, WHERE THAT CAN BE UTILIZED TO BE A JOINT FACILITY POTENTIALLY BETWEEN YOU GUYS, COA. AND SO WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT SOME OF THOSE PROGRAMS THAT MAKE A DIFFERENCE, THAT PROGRAM AND A LOT OF TIMES CAN DETERMINE, UM, FACILITY SIZE AND WHAT RESOURCES THERE. SO MORE FEEDBACK YOU HAVE FOR ME, FOR MAYOR THROUGHOUT THE AND UH, THROUGHOUT THE BEGINNING OF THIS PROCESS. I BELIEVE IT WOULD BE GREAT TO LET US KIND OF NAVIGATE THOSE CONVERSATIONS OF WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE LONG TERM. OKAY. ALRIGHT. THANK YOU MS. BUTLER. ALL THANK YOU. NICE. I LOVE YOUR LIBRARY. HOW'S THE, UM, HOW'S THE FOOD PANTRY DOING? THE REFRIGERATOR? UM, IT'S DOING, IT'S GOING, UM, THE NEED, UH, BY THE, AND THE TYPE OF MATERIAL THEY OTHER ITEMS SOON, SOON AS THIS FILLED, THEY FILLED IT YESTERDAY. . WELL I LOVE YOUR BRANCH. IT'S A, IT IS A GREAT ASSET TO OUR, OUR SYSTEM TELL ABOUT THE BLOOD PRESSURE. OH. AND WE DO HAVE, UM, A BLOOD PRESSURE MONITORING STATION. HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE MIC OR JUST IT? YEAH, WE DO HAVE, UH, A BLOOD BLOOD PRESSURE MONITORING STATION. IT'S IN THE CORNER OF THE LIBRARY. SO WE HAVE THREE MONITORS WHERE PATIENTS CAN COME IN DURING THE HOURS OF THE OPENING, UM, TEST THEIR BLOOD PRESSURE RIGHT DOWN. AND WE ALSO HAVE 10 THAT THEY CAN, UM, CHECK OUT, YOU KNOW, CHECK OUT FOR, THEY CAN RENEW IT TWO OR THREE TIMES BEFORE THEY HAVE TO BRING IT BACK IN. BUT MOST ARE JUST COMING IN COME MEAN AND CHECK IT OFFER, YOU KNOW, TO ABOUT THEY CAN WORKING AND THEY HANDLE THEM THEMSELVES. WELL. YEAH. PERFECT. I JUST GO AND CHANGE. [00:50:01] NICE. MM-HMM . AWESOME. I LOVE THAT MUCH. THAT'S GOOD. AWESOME. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK MR. DARLING. THANK YOU. ABSOLUTELY. AWESOME. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE. ALRIGHT, I THINK THIS IS MY WIFE'S PEOPLE. . HELLO, I'M HEATHER HARRISON. I AM THE BRANCH MANAGER AT THE CENTRAL LOCATION. UM, A LITTLE BIT ABOUT MYSELF. I'VE BEEN A LIBRARIAN FOR 24 YEARS. I STARTED MY CAREER IN NEW ORLEANS. I WAS AN ASSISTANT BRANCH MANAGER IN NEW ORLEANS FOR ABOUT FOUR, FIVE YEARS BEFORE I ACTUALLY WAS HIRED UP HERE IN 2005. AFTER KATRINA. AFTER KATRINA. WELL, TECHNICALLY RIGHT BEFORE KATRINA WE GOT YOU. . MAY 2ND. MAY 2ND I WAS HIRED. UM, LET'S SEE. BACK TO MY NOTES. UH, CENTRAL IS LOCATED IN THE NEWLY FORMED CENTRAL CITY CENTRAL, UH, 1 1 2 6 0 JAW ROAD. UM, PROGRAMS WE CURRENTLY OFFER, ONE OF OUR MOST POPULAR PROGRAMS IS EARLY VOTING. THAT'S GONNA START FRIDAY FOR ANYBODY INTERESTED. UM, HOTSPOTS. HOTSPOTS ARE VERY POPULAR. WE HAVE A HAND QUILTING GROUP THAT MEETS TWICE A TWICE A MONTH. UM, WE HAVE A BOOK CLUB AND WE HAVE AT LEAST THREE TABLETOP PUZZLES SCATTERED THROUGHOUT THE LIBRARY. THEY LOVE THOSE FOR THE KIDS. STORY TIMES AND CRAFTS. UH, FOR THE TEENS GRAB AND GO PUZZLE. UH, GRAB AND GO CRAFTS. THEY ARE NOT SUPER INTERESTED IN, INTO THE IN-PERSON PROGRAMS, BUT THEY LOVE THE GRAB AND GO. THEY CALL ALL THE TIME ASKING, DO YOU HAVE A NEW ONE? DO YOU HAVE A NEW ONE? SO, ANY QUESTIONS? YES MA'AM. YOUR BRANCH, UH, IT, WHERE DOES MOST OF YOUR FOOT TRAFFIC COME FROM? IS IT ALL CAR DRIVEN? IT'S CAR DRIVEN. IS THERE A GOOD WAY TO GET FROM THE, IT'S CAR DRIVEN. DON'T THE DEPARTMENTS BACK BEHIND THERE? NO, WE DON'T GET, WE DON'T GET FOOT TRAFFIC. IT IS NOT SAFE TO CROSS THAT ROAD. YEAH, NO, IT'S A DANGEROUS ROAD. UM, LOVELY LIBRARY THOUGH. AND, UH, GLAD YOU MADE IT HERE AND THROUGH OUR HIRING SYSTEM. APPARENTLY IT TAKES ABOUT FROM KATRINA TO NOW TO GET HIRED. BUT, UH, GLAD GLAD YOU GOT IN AND I I, I DO ADORE YOUR LIBRARY AS WELL. IT'S, IT'S BEAUTIFUL. THANK YOU. I'D JUST LIKE TO SAY THAT HEATHER IS THE, UH, MANAGER OF THE BRANCH CLOSEST TO MY HOUSE BEFORE RETIRING. SHE WAS ALWAYS, UH, BOTH PROFESSIONAL AND FRIENDLY, PLEASANT. AND SINCE RETIRING WE'VE MAINTAINED THAT RELATIONSHIP AND, AND SHE'S DEFINITELY AN ASSET TO THE CENTRAL COMMUNITY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THANK YOU. MR. ARE YOU RELATED TO MY WIFE? UH, YES. SHE'S TOLD ME THAT THERE'S SOMEONE IN THE YES, STEPHANIE IS MY COUSIN. THAT'S A COUSIN? YES. STEPHANIE IS MY COUSIN. GOOD TO SEE YOU. . THANK YOU BOTH. I DID NOT KNOW THAT WE HIRED . THANK YOU BOTH. ANY ADDITIONAL BOARD COMMENTS UNDER THE LIBRARY? BRANCH MANAGERS? ALRIGHT. SHE SAYS HELLO BY THE WAY, . MOVING ON TO REPORTS OF COMMITTEES. WE DO NOT HAVE ANY COMMITTEE REPORTS AT THIS TIME. NEXT ON THE AGENDA, UNFINISHED BUSINESS UPDATE ON THE SOUTH BRANCH LIBRARY. OKAY. THIS UPDATE WILL BE READ BY MS. LORI AND MS. MARY. OKAY. FOR THE SOUTH BRANCH FOR THE PAST MONTH, THE CONTRACTOR HAS COMPLETED THE FOLLOWING WORK. 100% OF THE SECOND COAT OF PAINTING HAS BEEN COMPLETED THROUGHOUT THE BUILDING. A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE BATHROOM FLOOR TILE HAS BEEN INSTALLED. 90% OF THE INTERIOR STOREFRONT GLASS HAS BEEN INSTALLED. 90% OF THE MILLWORK HAS BEEN INSTALLED. 90% OF THE CARPET FLOORING HAS BEEN COMPLETED. UH, A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE AIR HANDLING UNIT INSTALLATION HAS BEEN COMPLETED. 95% OF THE MECHANICAL AND ELECTRICAL TRIM OUT WORK HAS BEEN COMPLETED. 15% OF THE EXTERIOR WALL PANELS HAVE BEEN COMPLETED AND 100% OF THE CONCRETE PAVERS HAVE BEEN INSTALLED. UH, THE TEMPORARY CHILLERS WERE TURNED ON TO BEGIN ACCLIMATING THE BUILDING. AND THEY'RE, UH, LOOKING AT INSTALLING THE PERMANENT HVAC EQUIPMENT AND EXTERIOR SITE FURNISHINGS BY NEXT WEEK. AT THIS TIME, THE COMPLETION DATE IS STILL PROJECTED TO BE DECEMBER 31ST. SO THIS COULD CHANGE. AND MARY WANTS TO TELL YOU SOME EXCITING NEWS BEFORE I SHOW YOU THE, THE POWERPOINT. THAT'S RIGHT. I'VE, I'VE HEARD FROM SEVERAL OF YOU ABOUT, UH, PICKING YOUR SLOT TO JOIN US EITHER NEXT [00:55:01] TUESDAY AT NOON OR ONE O'CLOCK OR THE FOLLOWING TUESDAY THE 29TH AT NOON OR ONE O'CLOCK, ONLY THREE OF YOU AT A TIME MAY COME . SO THAT'S WHY WE HAVE TO SCHEDULE THIS. SO IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO VISIT US DURING THESE TOURS WHERE THE ARCHITECT WILL BE ON HAND TO HELP ANSWER QUESTIONS, UH, I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW VERY SOON . SO WE WANNA KNOW TO BE SURE WHO TO MEET NEXT TUESDAY, THE 22ND AT NOON. UH, AND THEN AGAIN, IF ANYONE'S GOING TO JOIN US AT ONE, YOU DON'T HAVE TO COME. YOU KNOW, AND IF A TUESDAY IN THE DAY IS NOT POSSIBLE FOR YOU, WE COULD SEE ABOUT WORKING OUT ANOTHER TIME. BUT IT NEEDS TO BE A TIME WHEN THE SITE IS UH, UH, OPEN. IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE A TIME WHEN THE ARCHITECT IS THERE, BUT WE THOUGHT YOU WOULD PREFER THAT, UH, BECAUSE YOU DON'T WANT ME MAKING UP AN ANSWER . SO, 'CAUSE I'LL DO IT. UM, SO IF, IF YOU HAVE NOT YET TOLD ME YOUR PREFERENCE, UH, PLEASE LET ME KNOW. AND WE'RE VERY EXCITED TO SHOW YOU THESE PICTURES, Y'ALL. UGH. IT'S SO GOOD. MARY. MARY, DO YOU HAVE, I, I THINK I TOLD YOU THE 29TH. YES. RIGHT. OKAY. AT ONE. OKAY. YEAH. YEP. MARY, I'M AVAILABLE PRETTY MUCH ANYTIME AND I LIVE REAL NEAR THERE, SO THAT'S WHY I WAS KINDA LETTING EVERYONE ELSE TRY AND PICK THE TIMES THAT WOULD BEST WORK FOR THEM. YOU AND CANDACE CAN GET PUT IN WHEREVER WE HAVE A WHOLE, YOU CAN LET ME IN KNOW WHEN IT'S AVAILABLE AND I'LL, I'LL BE GLAD TO SHOW. EXCELLENT. AND WANT TO SHOW. I FELT MR. DOLORES WOULD BE THE HARDEST . LET ME KNOW THE TIMING AND REMIND ME AND I'LL BE THERE. OKAY. PLEASE. I'D LIKE TO BE THERE. I'M SO SORRY. I MISSED WHEN WE, UH, WENT FOR THE CELEBRATION WITH THE COUNCILMAN. OH YEAH, YEAH. I'M SORRY I MISSED THAT. OH, NO PROBLEM. WE'LL, WE'LL TALK. OKAY. ALRIGHT. OKAY. SO TO NOW SHOW YOU THESE LOVELY SLIDES. SO THIS FIRST IMAGE IS OF THE BATHROOM TILE WORK THAT HAS BEEN COMPLETED. THE FLOORING TILE AS WELL AS THE WALL TILE IS NOW INSTALLED. THE NEXT IT LOOKS BETTER IN PERSON. YEAH, I'M GONNA JUST SAY, LET'S SEE, IS IT SHOWING EVERYTHING? LET'S SEE IF I CAN, YEAH, WHICH ONES? LET'S SEE. THIS IS A PAGE DOWN, ARROW DOWN. WELL, I WAS TRYING TO IS IT, OH, YOU'RE TRYING? YEAH. WHERE IS IT? KEEP GOING UP. RIGHT THERE. RIGHT HERE. CLICK IT. HIT SCREEN. THE LAST. OKAY, THERE WE GO. AH, THERE WE GO. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. 'CAUSE I KNOW I WAS SKIPPING OTHER STUFF. ALL RIGHT, SO HERE WE HAVE THE ADULT AREA WHERE THE CABINETS HAVE BEEN INSTALLED. THE CIRCULATION DESK, TRIM ARTWORK AND THE CIRCULATION DESK IS REALLY LOOKING NICE. Y'ALL, YOU HAVE TO SEE THESE PICTURES ACTUALLY KIND OF DON'T DO THEM JUSTICE. SO WHEN Y'ALL GO OUT THERE NEXT WEEK, YOU'RE GONNA SEE HOW REALLY NICE IT LOOKS. THIS IS THE WOOD BATTEN THAT'S BEEN INSTALLED ABOVE THE CIRCULATION DESK AND I HAVE IT FROM A DIFFERENT VIEW. THE STOREFRONT AND THE GLASS INSTALL OVER THE ADULT CENTER. AND AFTER THEY DID THE REPAINTING AROUND THAT STOREFRONT, UH, AREA IN THE ADULT AREA AND THEY'RE INSTALLING THE STOREFRONT GLASS IN THE CHILDREN'S SWING AND IT'S, IT LOOKS THE SAME IN THE TEENS. THAT'S WHY I DIDN'T INCLUDE A PICTURE OF THAT. YOU KNOW, STOREFRONT GLASS INSTALLED OVER AN AREA. IT'S GONNA LOOK ABOUT THE SAME. UM, THE NEXT ONE IS OF THE STAFF WORKROOM LOCKERS THAT WERE INSTALLED AND THE CARPET THAT WAS INSTALLED IN THE CHILDREN'S SWING. THE FLOORING THAT WAS INSTALLED IN THE CHILDREN'S WING. AND IT GIVES THAT LOVELY VIEW OF THAT WINDOW I LOVE. MM-HMM . AND THE CHILDREN'S STORY, TIME ROOM FLOORING AND THE CABINETS IN INSTALLED AND THIS BEAUTIFUL LOOK OF THOSE GLASS GLOBES IN THE TEEN AREA WHERE THE FLOORING HAS NOW BEEN INSTALLED. AND THE SHADE BLADES. YES. YOU CAN SEE THE SHADE BLADES OUTSIDE THE WINDOW FROM HERE. AND THE EXTERIOR WALL PANELS ARE NOW BEING INSTALLED. AND THIS IS ON THE NORTH SIDE. UH, THIS NEXT IMAGE IS ON THE EAST SIDE, THE EXTERIOR WALL. THAT ONE, THAT SIDE IS MORE COMPLETE. THEN WE HAVE THE CONCRETE PAVERS THAT HAVE BEEN INSTALLED OUTSIDE BY THE TREE. AND OUR LAST IMAGE [01:00:01] IS OF THE BARRIER THAT HAS NOW BEEN CONSTRUCTED AROUND THE TREE. SO WE'RE EXCITED. IT'S LOOKING GREAT OUT THERE. ALRIGHT, LEMME CLOSE THAT OUT. INTERESTING. WHEN DID WE ADD THE BARRIER? I WOULDN'T, DIDN'T EXPECT THAT. THAT'S, YEAH, THAT WAS UNIQUE. UNIQUE. WE, WE NOTICED THAT THE LAST VISIT THAT WE WENT OUT AND, UM, WE KIND OF WEREN'T EXPECTING TO SEE THAT. SO THAT WAS SOMETHING. UM, I DON'T THINK IT WAS IN OUR PLANS, BUT I DON'T KNOW IF, UH, ARBUS. YEAH. NOT THE ARB. IT'S INTERESTING. I JUST DIDN'T EXPECT IT. YEAH, BUT IT LOOKS GOOD. IT DOES LOOK GOOD. VERY HANDSOME. YES. OKAY. YEAH. VIRGIL'S DOING GREAT Y'ALL. YES HE IS. OKAY. ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE SOUTH BRANCH? OKAY. MOVING ON TO THE SCOTLANDVILLE BRANCH UPDATE OR THE PAST MONTH, THE CONTRACTOR HAS COMPLETED THE FOLLOWING WORK. UM, A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE BLINDS HAVE BEEN INSTALLED. THIS IS GONNA BE SHORTER BECAUSE THAT BUILDING IS ACTUALLY NOW COMPLETE. UM, SO A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE COUNTERTOPS, COUNTERTOPS HAVE BEEN INSTALLED. A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE CABINETS HAVE BEEN INSTALLED. A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE HANDICAP RAMPS HAVE BEEN PAINTED. A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE FENCING HAS BEEN INSTALLED AND A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE LABELING OF ALL THE UNITS HAVE BEEN COMPLETED. UM, GENERAL CLEANUP OF THE INTERIOR AND EXTERIOR OF THE BUILDING HAS TAKEN PLACE AND THE PUNCH LIST ITEMS ARE BEING ADDRESSED. NOW. WE ARE WAITING FOR THE FIRE MARSHAL AND FINAL BUILDING INSPECTIONS TO RECEIVE THE, THE CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY. IN ADDITION, THE CONTRACTOR FOR THE COMPACT SHELVING MOVE BEGAN INSTALLING THE RAILS LAST WEEK. THE COMPACT SHELVING FROM SCOTLANDVILLE SHOULD BE MOVED OVER TO THE ARCHIVES BUILDING THIS WEEK AND COORDINATION FOR MOVING COMPACT. SHE FROM THE CARVER BRANCH WILL SOON FOLLOW. SINCE SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY'S HOMECOMING PARADE IS ON SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19TH, AND WE ARE READY TO BEGIN TO MOVE INTO THE ARCHIVES BUILDING. WE'LL BE CLOSING THE SCOTLANDVILLE LIBRARY BRANCH TO THE PUBLIC AFTER THIS FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18TH. OVER THE COURSE OF THE NEXT FEW WEEKS, LIBRARY STAFF WILL BE MOVING PART OF THE COLLECTION AND THE COMPUTERS INTO THE ARCHIVES BUILDING FOR PATRON USE. IN ADDITION, WE PLAN TO HAVE AN ONSITE SURPLUS CELL FOR ITEMS THE LIBRARY WON'T BE ABLE TO USE AS WE PREPARE TO CLEAR THE SCOTLANDVILLE RANCH LIBRARY FOR PHASE TWO OF THE RENOVATION PROJECT. WE'LL HAVE MORE INFORMATION REGARDING THE SURPLUS SALE IN OUR NOVEMBER SOURCE LIBRARY STAFF NOW ANTICIPATE POSSIBLY GOING OUT TO BID IN LATE NOVEMBER FOR PHASE TWO OF THE RENOVATION PROJECT, AND WE HOPE TO HAVE A CONTRACT AWARDED BY MID-DECEMBER. SO NOW LET ME SHOW YOU THE IMAGES THAT GO WITH THE SCOTLAND BILL PROJECT. SO WE HAVE THE CONTRACTORS GROUP OUT THERE INSTALLING THE BLINDS, AND I LOVE THIS CONCRETE FLOOR IN THAT WORKROOM. UM, THE COUNTERTOP INSTALLED IN THE WORKROOM, THE CABINETS THAT ARE INSTALLED IN THE WORKROOM. AND THIS WILL HOLD ALL OF THE, UM, THIS WILL HOLD THE MAPS THAT ALVIN WILL NEED, UM, IN REFERENCE TO ALL OF THE LIBRARY BRANCHES. SO HE HAS SOMEWHERE TO STORE THINGS NOW. UH, THE HANDICAP RAMPS THAT WERE PAINTED AND THE BEAUTIFUL FENCING THAT HAS BEEN PUT AROUND THE AREA AND THEY CLEANED UP THE AREA. SO IT'S REALLY LOOKING NICE OUT THERE. ANY QUESTIONS? I'LL JUST ADD THAT, UM, STAFF HAVE ALREADY UNLOADED THE, UNLOADED ALL THE TEEN BOOKS ONTO GONDOLAS. THE TEEN SHELVING IS READY TO BE MOVED ON MONDAY AND THEN THEY HAVE UNLOADED, UH, BOOKS FROM LOW FLOATING SHELVES IN THE CHILDREN'S ROOM. SO THOSE WILL BE ABLE TO BE MOVED INTO THE ANNEX NEXT WEEK. AND THEY HAVE STARTED ZING THINGS AROUND IN FREESTANDING ADULT SHELVES SO THAT THOSE CAN GO JOIN THEIR FRIENDS. AND WE ARE GONNA MAKE SHORT ORDER OF MOVING THE BOOKS. THE HARD PART WILL BE GETTING THE COMPUTERS IN SO TO, TO HELP US. WE OFTEN PEOPLE ASK Y'ALL QUESTIONS, WELL, WHAT HAPPENS TO MY HOLDS? WELL, WE'RE CALLING PEOPLE WITH HOLDS AND SAYING YOU CAN PICK 'EM UP THROUGH FRIDAY. AND AFTER THAT, IF, IF LORI HAD A BOOK THAT SHE WANTED THAT CAME IN FOR HER AND SHE'S A SCOTLANDVILLE PATRON FOR A FEW WEEKS, WE'LL CALL HER AND SHE'LL SAY, WELL, I'LL PICK IT UP AT BAKER OR I'LL PICK IT UP AT MAINE AND THE HUMANS WILL TAKE OVER. WE WON'T LET THE COMPUTER TELL US WHAT TO DO WITH THE HOLDS BECAUSE THAT'S SOMETHING PEOPLE CARE DEEPLY ABOUT IF THEY'VE WAITED TO GET A BOOK, THEY WANT TO GET IT [01:05:01] IN A TIMELY MANNER AND THEY DON'T WANNA LOSE THEIR SHOT. SO THAT IS ONE THING THAT, UM, HAS COME UP IN THE PAST. UH, WE WANNA TO ASSURE YOU THAT THERE'S A SYSTEM FOR ALL THAT. AND OF COURSE, IF BOOKS COME IN WHILE WE'RE KIND OF CLOSED, WE HAVE A PLAN FOR THAT TOO. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ANY BOARD COMMENT UNDER UNFINISHED BUSINESS? LET ME ASK LORI. UH, ON THE, WHERE YOU PUT UP THE, WHERE THE NEW FENCE IS, IT SAID CLEANED UP THERE, IS IT GONNA BE A LANDSCAPED ALSO GRASS OR, OR BUSHES OR SOMETHING GONNA BE PLANTED THERE? THEY DID NOT INDICATE THEY WERE GONNA PUT ANY SOD THERE OR NOT. UH, I KNOW THAT THEY AREAS, UM, I DUNNO IF THEY'RE GONNA REPLACE ANYTHING ALONG THE AREA BY THE FENCE. THEY MAY, BECAUSE I THINK THEY SAID THEY WHEN WE WERE OUT THERE FOR, SO THEY PUT THAT THERE AND CHECK THEM. WHO ALL'S GONNA BE AT OUR VISITS TO THE SOUTH BRANCH? UH, LORI, ARE YOU GONNA BE THERE? YES, I'M THERE. OKAY. HOW ABOUT, UH, MR. D? IS HE GONNA BE THERE, UH, DURING OUR VISITS? YES. YES. EXCELLENT. THESE ARE PART OF OUR REGULAR VISIT. OKAY. OR, OR WE WILL MAKE THEM PART OF OUR REGULAR VISIT. OKAY. ARCHITECTS ALREADY THERE ON TUESDAY, WHICH IS WHY WE PICK TUESDAY. PERFECT. AND, UH, IS IT POSSIBLE TO TRY AND INVITE, UH, UM, LORI'S, UH, PREDECESSOR, UH, SEE IF SHE HAD COME BACK, OR IF SHE'S STILL TOO BUSY WORKING FOR HER? PATRICIA'S PRETTY BUSY, BUT WE'LL MAKE SURE SHE GETS HER SHOT. OKAY. I, I, I'D, I'D LIKE TO SEE HER AND SEE HER, HER IDEAS OF HOW IT'S COMING TOGETHER TOO. IF, IF SHE COULD COME. PATRICIA WAS HOLIDAY VACATION. OKAY. SHE'S A LONG WAY VACATION. GOD BLESS HER. SHE DESERVES IT. MM-HMM . SHE, SHE'S REALLY GONE. GOOD FOR HER. YEAH. GOOD FOR HER. PAY ATTENTION LADIES. THAT'S . AT SOME POINT IT'S TIME TO RUN. . ANY ADDITIONAL BOARD COMMENT UNDER UNFINISHED BUSINESS? ANY, NONE. ANY PUBLIC COMMENT? ALL RIGHT. MOVING ON TO NEW BUSINESS. WE DO, WE DON'T HAVE ANY NEW BUSINESS AT THIS TIME. ANY COMMENTS? UM, GENERAL COMMENTS BY THE LIBRARY BOARD OF CONTROL. I, I JUST WANT TO THANK OUR BRANCH MANAGERS, BUT WHEN YOU LISTEN TO THEM, COME AND SPEAK TO US. YOU CAN SEE HOW EACH BRANCH DELIVERS TO ITS PATRONS, WHAT IT NEEDS, UM, AND WHAT WORKS FOR THE COMMUNITY AND WHAT DRAWS THEM IN. AND SO THAT, UM, IT'S A, INSTEAD OF ONE SIZE FITS ALL, IT'S A, A BONDING WITH THE COMMUNITY, WHICH IS WHAT WE, WE WANT. AND THANK BOTH OF YOU, MS. MS. UH, KATHY, YOU TOOK MY, MY SPEECH , I JUST WANT TO ADD ON IN ADDITION TO THAT, UM, I THINK IT'S, IT'S A GOOD IDEA THAT WE ALLOW THEM INTO THE MEETING AND, AND MAKE THEM A PART OF, AND THEY BRING THE GOOD INFORMATION, ACTIVITY AND THE LIKES. BUT TO ALL OF YOU, CONGRATS AND KEEP IT UP. YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. I AGREE WITH THAT. HEATHER AND DARLING, THANK Y'ALL FOR COMING AND, UH, TELLING US ABOUT YOUR, YOUR BRANCHES AND WHAT YOU DO FOR OUR SYSTEM. AND Y'ALL, Y'ALL, Y'ALL MAKE OUR SYSTEM. WE'RE, WE'RE HERE TO SERVE Y'ALL. IF THERE'S ANYTHING I CAN EVER DO FOR Y'ALL, PLEASE DON'T HESITATE TO REACH OUT AND LET ME KNOW HOW I CAN HELP. YES. THANK YOU. ANY ADDITIONAL COMMENTS? ALL RIGHT. SEEING NONE, DO I HAVE A MOTION TO ADJOURN? I MOTION? I HAVE A SECOND. SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. THE MEETING IS ADJOURNED. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.