Agendas and Minutes

Citizen Library Advisory Ad Hoc Committee (View All)

citizen Library Advosiry Committee

Agenda
Thursday, January 03, 2008

 

 

Citizen’s Library Advisory Ad Hoc Committee

Meeting Notes

January 3, 2008

Guanajuato Room, Ashland Public Library

4:00-6:00 pm

 

 

Attendance: Vavra, Blossom (library staff liaison), Churchman, Keil, Battistella

 

Absent:  Burkholder, Morrison (Council liaison), Gibb, Brown, Ashworth, Seltzer (city staff liaison)

 

Audience:  Jim Faircloth, Anne Billeter, Jim Olney, Helga Motley

 

Call to Order: The meeting assembled at 4:00 pm.  It was noted that only four Committee members were present and that five were needed for a quorum.  Therefore, the Meeting was not officially called to order, but discussion of Items on the draft Agenda proceeded with the understanding that no official business would be conducted.

 

There was some discussion re the Minutes from December 17.  Members were asked to review their memories and notes in preparation for Approval on January 17.

 

Report on Study Session: 

  Churchman summarized the study session in a draft document which he passed out.

 

Keil reported on the session – bottom line, the city funding will end before something can be done countywide.  Options include: 

  1. Extend the current local levy until the county can do something – 2010 district.

      – the city could raise money to pay for the interim –

    1. Raise the tax up to 58 cents for the duration of the levy, then use the money for the following year
    2. Divert funds from some other source
  1. Create a small district including only those that previously expressed support, ie. Ashland, Talent, Pinehurst and ?
  2. Extension could for a school district, not just the city limits. This could be 20 cents, not 25 cents.  Note: there are costs to creating a district.

 Long Term Concerns:

       There are many, such as how to involve the county, when, what leadership role Ashland might take, political reaction to whatever Ashland does, who would lead a county election, getting support and much more.

Keil believes a district including Ashland and Pinehurst is the only one that would succeed. 

 

Vavra will contact Morrison to see if he can talk with mayors of Talent and Phoenix and gather info on how they would feel about studying the feasibility of creating a small library district to include at most the Ashland, Pinehurst, and Talent-Phoenix School Districts.

 

General Discussion included:  Are we talking of forming a district that would act as a supplement to what the county is doing or is a district that would fund all the services?  How long with the county fund the libraries, even in the minimal amount?  When can districts be formed?  Only in November elections or is it possible to do this in a May election, which would bring the money in a full year sooner due to tax collection policy?  Do we meet our charge if the suggestion is to recommend extending the local levy until there is time to develop a long term plan for 2010?  What is the best use of Ruth Metz and what should we be asking of from her?

 

Vavra will invite Kathleen Davis, Jackson County Library Advisory Committee chair, Colette Boehmer, chair of the Jackson County Library Foundation, and Pat Ashley, library activist from Eagle Point, to the next meeting.

 

Evaluation of services – what is the measurement of good library services, beyond circulation and counters?  American Library Association and the Oregon Library Association have standards for libraries. Ruth Metz might suggest criteria for evaluating library services.

 

Anne Billeter spoke on her involvement in 2006 with forming a library district and why it got to a bad start.  1. The group hit the cities cold with the request to support this.  The library staff had been working for 2 years on this, the cities were surprised.

  1. The feasibility study wasn’t finished because they didn’t know what the $ value would be that they were asking for.
  2. The public was not involved enough.

 

Vavra will ask Ruth Metz if the previous feasibility study she did for Jackson County is a public document and in any event request a copy.

 

A preliminary status report to the City Council is planned for Jan 15.  It will be an informal report.  No recommendations are planned but an update on what the committee has been doing.  Vavra will ask to be on the Council Agenda.

 

Next meeting – January 10 – study session Guanjauto Room, Ashland library

Next Official Meeting – January 17

 

Meeting disbanded 5:30 p.m.

Amy Blossom, temporary notetaker.

 

 

 

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