November 13, 2023
Benton Public Library District
Board of Trustees Meeting
November 13, 2023
Members Present: Sue Wells, Brian Crisp, Pat Hollada, Theresa Bates, Kathy Storey, Debbie Clark, Larry Journey
Absent: None
Library Director: Susan Stickel
Also Present: Kimberly Livesay
Meeting Called to Order: 5:01 pm by Sue Wells
Approval of October Board Meeting Minutes
1st by Debbie Clark 2nd by Theresa Bates
Payment of Bills:
1st by Kathy Storey 2nd by Debbie Clark
Financial Report: (including September and October)
1st by Debbie Clark 2nd by Brian Crisp
Librarian’s Report:
Sue read a thank you card from Robin Culbreth.
Susan thanked Debbie, Theresa, and Henry for refreshing the picnic tables. They look brand new and it turned out to be a great project.
Susan also thanked Pat, Kelsey, and Kathy for covering the character chairs for the winter season.
MAINTENANCE:
The shed, patron canopy, and walkway have all been power washed and look great.
Low areas in the Reading Garden and the employee entrance have been filled with topsoil.
The extended sidewalk project with the city of Benton is now finished. The city employees did a nice job on this small project.
The tree damaged from lightning will soon be taken care of by Davis Tree Service.
(Larry brought up the idea of looking into getting lightning rods for the library roof and even the ship. Susan will check into it and get back with us)
The gutters have been cleaned and the gutter guards have been installed where needed.
COMMUNITY OUTREACH:
Yellow Brick Road and Learn and Play daycare facilities recently visited the Reading Garden. Akin Pre-K will be visiting the library this month.
Susan recently made a visit to Benton Head Start and she read seasonal books to the children there.
PROGRAMMING:
The second Senior Story Hour at the assisted living center is going well.
The 2nd Annual Halloween Event in the Reading Garden was a huge success and was a lot of fun. Susan wanted to thank all who were able to help in different areas.
The library received a nice donation from an anonymous donor for the Reading Garden. The donation is a Christmas display.
OTHER:
Susan had been contacted by The Flippin’ Crepe food truck. They were wanting permission to park on the C&J Motor lot to sell food. After some discussion, we decided this wasn’t a good idea due to the liability issues, parking, etc. She will contact him and let him know.
Susan showed an election ballot form from IMRF. We didn’t know anything about the two people who were running in this election and decided not to do anything with it.
Old Business:
EXECUTIVE SESSION
None
Personnel:
None
New Business
Ordinance 103-23 Levying and Assessing Municipal Tax for the Benton Public Library District
A motion was made to approve the ordinance.
1st by Theresa Bates 2nd by Kathy Storey (Vote passed – all yes)
Ordinance 104-23 Annual Abatement Ordinance
Brian read the ordinance to the library board.
There was a motion to adopt the ordinance.
All board members voted yes and the motion was carried and adopted.
Other
Debbie Clark checked with Alan at All Stars-n-Stitches about possible library shirts. She got pricing and sizing. It is a maroon shirt with a white stitched logo. A logo was created for $75.00. She is going to get samples of the short sleeve polo shirts and the long sleeve shirts so that we can see what they look like and what size people might want.
Susan is going to show the staff members the logo and see what their response is. We have decided that the library staff should get one free shirt if they want one. If they want more than one, they will need to purchase them on their own. Library Board Trustees will need to pay for their own shirts (if they want one).
We have decided not to purchase a new blower. The library already has one.
Kimberly mentioned calendar events: A blood drive on the 29th and the Tuesdays After School program would continue on December 19th due to school still being in session.
Public Comment
NONE
Adjournment: 5:53 pm by Sue Wells
1st by Theresa Bates 2nd by Kathy Storey
