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OKAY.[Municipal Library Board Meeting on February 24, 2026.]
AFTERNOON EVERYONE.TODAY IS TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 24TH, 2026.
THE CITY OF DALLAS MUNICIPAL LIBRARY BOARD, REGULAR MEETING FOR FEBRUARY HAS BEEN CALLED TO ORDER.
AT 5:00 PM WE HAVE A QUORUM PRESENT.
LEGAL NOTICE HAS BEEN POSTED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE TEXAS OPEN MEETINGS ACT, AND THIS MEETING HAS BEEN DULY CALLED.
WELCOME BOARD MEMBERS AND WELCOME STAFF AND GUESTS.
UH, WE WILL BEGIN OUR MEETING WITH A READING OF THE STATEMENT OF PURPOSE IN ACCORDANCE WITH DALLAS CITY CODE.
THE MUNICIPAL LIBRARY BOARD IS CHARGED WITH ADVISING MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL, THE CITY MANAGER AND DIRECTOR OF LIBRARIES ON MATTERS RELATED TO LIBRARY OPERATIONS AND SERVICES.
THE BOARD ALSO ASSUMES A SUPPORTIVE ROLE THROUGH ITS PROMOTION OF THE LIBRARY AND ITS PROGRAMS WITH THAT.
ITEM TWO ON TODAY'S AGENDA WILL BE PUBLIC COMMENTS.
EACH REGISTERED PUBLIC SPEAKER WILL HAVE A MAXIMUM OF THREE MINUTES TO SPEAK AND MAY ONLY ADDRESS THE CHAIR.
BOARD MEMBERS WILL NOT RESPOND TO ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FROM PUBLIC SPEAKERS AT THE MEETING.
ONLY ONE PERSON, UH, MAY SPEAK AT A TIME.
DO WE HAVE ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WHO HAVE REGISTERED TO SPEAK AT TODAY'S MEETING? WE HAVE ONE SPEAKER, MR. STAGGS IN PERSON.
ON THE HOMEPAGE OF THE LIBRARY WEBSITE IS A SECTION TITLED REIMAGINING THE DALLAS PUBLIC LIBRARY VISIT TO THE WEB.
UH, VISITORS TO THE WEBSITE MIGHT TAKE THIS AS THE FINAL WORD, AND YET ON JANUARY 20TH AT A CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE MEETING, THE LIBRARY DIRECTOR WAS REPRIMANDED BY THREE COUNCIL MEMBERS FOR THIS VERY SAME REGIONAL PLAN, WHICH THEY WERE UNAWARE OF UNTIL A FEW DAYS EARLIER.
COUNCIL MEMBER MENDELSON CALLED IT SCANDALOUS COUNCIL MEMBER UA REFERRED TO IT AS HALF ASKED WHY IS IT UP ON THE WEBSITE AS THOUGH IT WERE AN ACCOMPLISHED FACT, A DONE DEAL.
YOU, I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW, IS THAT THE CONCLUSION? THAT'S THE EXTENT.
UM, ITEM THREE IS THE APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM THE MUNICIPAL LIBRARY BOARD MEETING ON J.
IT SHOWS ME IT'S BEING ONLINE AND I WAS ACTUALLY HERE IN PERSON.
SO THIS IS FOR THE MINUTES YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT? YEAH.
ANY OTHER CORRECTIONS OR CHANGES TO THE, SORRY, JANUARY MEETING MINUTES.
I DID MAKE A FEW SPELLING CHANGES.
LONE ARE, I CHANGED THE SPELLING OF LOVE AND, AND SOME OTHER SPELLING ISSUES.
IS IT THE LIBRARY THAT LONE STUFF OUT? IT WASN'T INTENTIONAL.
YOU WANNA DOUBLE CHECK? I DON'T BELIEVE SO.
I THINK THE LONE STAR LIBRARIES.
IT'S LONE, RIGHT? IT WASN'T LONN.
THEY WERE THE STARS OF OWNING BOOKS.
IS THERE, IS THERE A MOTION FOR APPROVAL? SECOND.
MOTION TO APPROVE AS CORRECTED.
NEXT ITEM, THE CHAIR'S REPORT.
UH, AS A REMINDER, WHEN ATTENDING, VIRTUALLY MO B MEMBERS MUST BE ON CAMERA THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE MEETING TO BE COUNTED AS PRESENT.
UM, FIRST OF ALL, I WANT TO ENCOURAGE ALL OF YOU TO SHARE THE COMMUNITY SURVEY SEEKING RESIDENT FEEDBACK ON THE FUTURE OF THE DALLAS PUBLIC LIBRARY WITH THE COMMUNITY.
THE SURVEY WILL CLOSE ON THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26TH.
THIS SURVEY IS FUNDED BY THE FRIENDS OF THE DALLAS PUBLIC LIBRARY AND CONDUCTED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE LIBRARY.
AND CINDY, I WOULD CERTAINLY ENCOURAGE YOU TO SHARE THIS SURVEY LINK ONE LAST TIME VIA SOCIAL MEDIA, EMAIL AND TEXT MESSAGE WITH YOUR CONTACTS TOMORROW.
NEXT, AS YOU KNOW, SINCE OUR LAST MEETING, LIBRARY DIRECTOR MANA SHORE, PRESENTED ON THE PROPOSED LIBRARY REGIONAL MODEL ON JANUARY 20TH TO THE DALLAS CITY COUNCIL QUALITY OF LIFE ARTS AND CULTURE COMMITTEE BASED ON FEEDBACK FROM COUNCIL MEMBERS, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER, LIZ RERA, SHARED IN A STAFF
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MEMBER, THE LIBRARY STAFF PLAN TO PRESENT REVISED OPTIONS TO THE COUNCIL COMMITTEE IN MARCH, INCLUDING ALTERNATIVE SCENARIOS IN WHICH LIBRARY HOURS AND DAYS OF OPERATION COULD BE CUT.THE COMMITTEE MEETING IS SCHEDULED FOR MARCH 23RD AT 9:00 AM IN COUNCIL CHAMBERS AT CITY HALL.
I ENCOURAGE YOU TO ATTEND IN PERSON OR WATCH ONLINE.
AND AGAIN, THE DALLAS PUBLIC LIBRARY IS FACING DRAMATIC $2.6 MILLION IN CUTS.
AND THAT IS WHAT HAS PROMPTED STAFF TO LOOK AT THE REGIONAL MODEL PROPOSAL, CALLING FOR A CLOSURE POTENTIALLY OF FOUR BRANCH LIBRARIES.
BUT TODAY WE'LL HEAR AGAIN FROM THE DIRECTOR ABOUT THE STATUS OF THIS PROPOSAL.
NEXT STEPS, WE'LL HAVE A CHANCE TO ASK QUESTIONS.
ALSO, YOU MAY HAVE NOTICED MY, UH, THE DIRECTOR CIRCULATED RAW LIBRARY DATA USED TO MAKE THESE RECOMMENDATION.
AND THAT APPEARS IN AN UPDATED VERSION OF THE WHITE PAPER ON PAGE 11.
I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO HIGHLIGHT THIS SINCE OUR BOARD MEMBERS EXPRESSED A DESIRE, DESIRE TO SEE MORE UNDERLYING DATA.
ALSO, WE HAVE A BIG WEEKEND AHEAD AT THE CENTRAL LIBRARY ON SATURDAY WITH THE GET GROWN UP BOOK FAIR ON THE FIRST FLOOR, UM, FOLLOWED BY AN AMERICA TWO 50 PANEL.
AND EAR EARLIER I SAW OUR TALENTED STAFF WORKING ON THIS VOICE AND WELL, THAT, UM, ALSO, I WANTED TO CELEBRATE THE MILESTONE OF HAVING A FULL BOARD APPOINTED TO THE MUNICIPAL LIBRARY BOARD, WHICH IS QUITE A IMPORTANT MARKER FOR US.
I WANTED TO WELCOME NEW DISTRICT EIGHT MEMBER, UM, DEBBIE AUSTIN, APPOINTED BY CITY COUNCIL MEMBER LAURIE BLAIR.
I THINK SHE'S ON WAVE, PLEASE.
IS THIS DEBBIE? IS THIS DEBBIE? DEBBIE, WELCOME.
DEBBIE, I DON'T IF YOU WANTED TO TAKE A COUPLE MINUTES TO INTRODUCE YOURSELF TO THE BOARD.
I HAVE FORMERLY SERVED AS SENIOR AFFAIRS COMMISSIONER FOR DISTRICT EIGHT UNDER MAYOR PROTE ATKINS AND COUNCILWOMAN LAURIE BLAIR.
MY TENURE THERE IS UP, AND, UM, I'M VERY MUCH INTERESTED IN SERVING ON THE LIBRARY BOARD.
I HAVE A, A VERY, VERY GOOD BACKGROUND IN LIBRARY SERVICE AND LIBRARY WORK.
I'VE ALSO SERVED AS A VOLUNTEER AT THE LITTLE MINI LIBRARY AT NORTH PARK FOR A WHILE, HELPING WITH LESSON PLANS FOR THE KIDS.
UM, THAT EXPERIENCE CAME FROM BEING A TEACHER FOR 30 YEARS FOR DALLAS, ISD.
I AM CURRENTLY ON THE BOARD FOR ALZHEIMER'S ASSOCIATION, THE TRIPLE A, WHICH IS AREA AGENCY ON AGING TASK FORCE.
AND I AM THE ADVOCACY CHAIR FOR DAGS, WHICH IS THE DALLAS AREA GERONTOLOGICAL SOCIETY.
I HOPE THAT MY PRESENCE HERE ON THE LIBRARY WILL BE BENEFICIAL TO YOU ALL AND BENEFICIAL TO MY DISTRICT AND THE SENIORS THAT I SERVE IN MY DISTRICT.
THANK YOU SO MUCH AND WELCOME DEBBIE.
ALSO, UM, WANTING TO ANNOUNCE NEW DISTRICT FIVE MEMBER MIRIAM HERNANDEZ, APPOINTED BY A CITY COUNCIL MEMBER JAIME RESENDEZ.
I WANTED TO GIVE YOU A CHANCE TO INTRODUCE YOURSELF AS WELL.
UM, MY NAME IS MIRIAM HERNANDEZ.
UM, SO I JUST, I'M ABOUT TO MAKE SIX YEARS, UM, IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS LIVING HERE IN, UH, DALLAS, TEXAS.
UM, I MOVED FROM NEW YORK, UM, SO STILL, I'M STILL, ALTHOUGH I HAVE A COUPLE OF YEARS HERE, I'M STILL TRYING TO LEARN THE COMMUNITY, LEARN THE AREA.
BUT, UM, YEAH, I AM CURRENTLY, UM, A HUGE, UM, WHAT CAN I SAY? LIKE I, THE LIBRARY.
I LOVE TAKING MY CHILDREN TO THE LIBRARY.
UM, I SPOKE AT THE, UM, AT THE MEETING, MY APOLOGIES, UM, THE, WHAT'S IT CALLED? THE, THE MEETING BACK IN AUGUST, AROUND THERE, BACK IN THE FALL.
UM, AND I AM VERY INTERESTED TO ADVOCATE FOR THE LIBRARY, INTERESTED TO LEARN ABOUT, UM, THE LIBRARY, UM, ALL THE COMPONENTS ABOUT IT.
SO I'M EXCITED TO BE HERE AND, UM, YOU KNOW, TRY TO HELP, UM, ADVOCATE, DO WHAT WE HAVE TO DO FOR THE LIBRARY.
I URGE YOU ALL TO CHECK OUT THE VIDEO PROFILE OF THE CENTRAL LIBRARY IN THE LONE STAR LIBRARY SERIES SHARED BY THE TEXAS STATE LIBRARY AND ARCHIVES COMMISSION.
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COPY OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE, THE SHAKESPEARE FOLIO, OUR OUTSTANDING GENEALOGY DEPARTMENT, THE PRESIDENT JOHN OF KENNEDY COLLECTION AND SPECIAL COLLECTIONS AMONG OTHER RESOURCES.AND SO THAT IS A VIDEO THAT'S BEEN SHARED ON SOCIAL MEDIA THAT I ENCOURAGE YOU TO WATCH.
THE NEXT ITEM IS THE LIBRARY REGIONAL MODEL PROPOSAL UPDATE AND DISCUSSION.
LIBRARY DIRECTOR MANIA SHORE IS HERE TO DISCUSS THAT.
AND ALSO, CITY OF DALLAS, CHIEF DATA OFFICER, DR.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR COMING TO OUR MEETING TO ALSO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT MAY ARISE.
UH, I, I, I'LL INTRODUCE BRITA AND JUST ONE SECOND, BUT I DID WANNA SORT OF BRING THE BOARD UP TO WHERE WE ARE NOW.
AND AND I PRESENTED, UH, AT THE JANUARY 20TH QUALITY OF LIFE ARTS AND CULTURE COMMITTEE.
THAT WAS THE FIRST PROPOSAL FOR COUNCIL CONSIDERATION OF THE PROPOSED REGIONAL MODEL.
THE GOAL WAS TO GET FEEDBACK FROM THE COUNCIL COMMITTEE AND THEN COME BACK AT A LATER DATE WITH CHANGES.
AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHERE WE ARE RIGHT NOW.
SO, AS CATHERINE MENTIONED, I WILL BE PRESENTING AGAIN AT QUACK ON MARCH 23RD AT 9:00 AM THE PURPOSE OF TODAY IS TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU HAVE ABOUT ANYTHING UP TO THIS POINT WITH THE REGIONAL MODEL, WHETHER IT BE THE DATA, WHICH IS WHY DR.
ANDER CHECK IS HERE, OR ANYTHING ELSE HAVING TO DO WITH THE PROPOSAL.
BUT BEFORE WE GET TO THAT, LET ME REMIND YOU, IF YOU HAVEN'T HAD A CHANCE TO EITHER WATCH QUACK LIVE OR, OR, OR WATCH IT TAPED, UH, WHAT, WHAT I WAS ASKED TO BRING BACK IN MARCH.
SO I WAS ASKED TO BRING BACK WHAT I'M CALLING HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE OF LIBRARY BRANCHES.
IT COULD ALSO JUST BE CULTURAL SIGNIFICANCE, BUT SORT OF WHAT DOES A BRANCH MEAN TO ITS COMMUNITY AND TO ITS NEIGHBORHOOD, AND BRING THAT FORWARD AS SOMETHING TO CONSIDER AS PART OF THE RECOMMENDATION.
SO AS A PART OF THAT, THE, UH, LIBRARY STAFF ON THIS FLOOR, THE SEVENTH FLOOR, WHICH IS, UH, THE LOCAL HISTORY AND ARCHIVES DEPARTMENT.
THEY HOLD THE DPL ARCHIVES AS WELL AS CITY ARCHIVES.
THEY'VE BEEN DOING A LOT OF RESEARCH INTO THIS, UH, THIS ISSUE.
AND THEN FEEDING ME INFORMATION THAT I CAN USE TO HIGHLIGHT.
OBVIOUSLY, I'M NOT GONNA BE ABLE TO HIGHLIGHT 28 LIBRARIES AND THE CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL, UH, UH, SIGNIFICANT OF ALL OF THOSE, BUT HIGHLIGHT A FEW OF THEM AT THE NEXT MEETING.
SO THAT IS SOMETHING THAT I'M WORKING ON.
UH, THE COUNCIL ALSO ASKED FOR PROXIMITY OF LIBRARIES TO OTHER SIMILAR CITY BUILDINGS SUCH AS REC CENTERS, CULTURAL CENTERS, AND COMMUNITY CENTERS.
EREK AND HER TEAM HAVE BEEN WORKING ON MAPS THAT, THAT SHOW THAT, UH, THEY ALSO ASK FOR MORE INFORMATION AROUND PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION AND CAR OWNERSHIP.
SO AGAIN, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT DR.
ANDER CHECK AND, AND HER TEAM HAVE BEEN LOOKING INTO.
CAR OWNERSHIP BY REGION, ACCESS BY PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION FROM BRANCHES TO OTHER BRANCHES.
WE ALSO, IN JANUARY AS PART OF THE APPENDIX, AND THAT'S IN THE PRINTOUT THAT WAS JUST DISTRIBUTED TO, YOU HAD A, UH, TRANSPORTATION OVERLAY AROUND THE FLAGSHIPS SHOWING HOW MANY BUS STOPS WERE, I THINK WITHIN A 10 MINUTE WALK AND A 15 MINUTE WALK YES.
SO THAT WAS ALREADY PRESENTED IN JANUARY, BUT THIS WILL BE A BIT MORE, UH, I WAS ASKED TO COME UP WITH SOME REVENUE IDEAS.
SO FOR EXAMPLE, UM, THAT COULD BE, UH, IT COULD BE A COFFEE SHOT
UM, IT COULD BE CHARGING FOR PARKING AT THE CENTRAL LIBRARY, FOR EXAMPLE.
IT COULD BE, UH, RAISING THE RATES ON INNER LIBRARY LOAN TO THE MAXIMUM ALLOWED, THINGS LIKE THAT.
I WOULD JUST SAY TO THE BOARD AS A REMINDER THAT REVENUE DOES NOT COME BACK TO THE LIBRARY, REVENUE GOES INTO THE CITY'S GENERAL FUND.
BUT I WAS ASKED TO COME UP WITH REVENUE IDEAS.
AND SO I AM, UH, I AM WORKING ON, ON THAT.
IN ADDITION, I AM COMING UP WITH ALTERNATIVE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT, UH, INVOLVE CLOSING NO LIBRARIES AND WHAT THAT WOULD MEAN FOR THE LIBRARY SYSTEM SPECIFICALLY, OPEN HOURS AND DAYS IF WE WERE TO CLOSE, UH, NO LIBRARIES AT ALL.
SO THAT, THAT IS, UH, SOME OF WHAT I'M WORKING ON FOR, FOR, FOR MARCH.
SO WITH THAT, UM, I'D LIKE TO INTRODUCE DR.
SHE IS THE CHIEF DATA OFFICER.
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YES.UM, AND SHE RUNS THE, LET'S SEE IF I CAN DO IT.
DATA ANALYTICS AND BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE DEPARTMENT.
POSSIBLY THE LONGEST NAME DEPARTMENT IN THE CITY.
SHE, SO JUST TO GIVE YOU A SENSE OF, OF WHAT BRITTA AND HER TEAM DID FOR US AND WITH US, WE MET WITH THEM MULTIPLE TIMES BECAUSE WE REALLY WANTED TO TAKE A DATA APPROACH TO THIS.
AND I HAVE BEEN TALKING TO THIS BODY SINCE JULY ABOUT THE REGIONAL MODEL.
SO YOU, AND YOU'VE HEARD THIS FROM ME MANY TIMES BEFORE, WHEN I HAVE SAID THAT IF WE LOOKED AT CLOSURES STRICTLY THROUGH A TRADITIONAL LIBRARY METRICS VIEW, THAT WE WOULD NEGATIVELY IMPACT LIBRARIES AND COMMUNITIES THAT USE THEIR BUILDINGS IN DIFFERENT WAYS.
FOR EXAMPLE, IN SOUTH DALLAS, IT IS NOT UNUSUAL FOR BOOK CHECKOUT TO BE QUITE LOW, BUT THE SPACE IS REALLY IMPORTANT.
IT'S A PLACE FOR KIDS TO GO AFTER SCHOOL.
IT'S A PLACE FOR PEOPLE TO COME PRINT OUT IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS, AND SO ON AND SO ON.
SO IF WE WERE TO ONLY LOOK AT THE REGIONAL MODEL THROUGH TRADITIONAL LIBRARY METRICS, WE WOULD ESSENTIALLY DISENFRANCHISE COMMUNITIES THAT NEED US IN SORT OF MORE ALTERNATIVE WAYS, IF YOU WILL.
ALTERNATIVE, BUT STILL IMPORTANT.
AND SO WE WENT TO BRITTA AND HER TEAM AND WE SAID, WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO RUN THIS FORMULA.
SO THAT COMMUNITY NEED IS JUST AS IMPORTANT AS TRADITIONAL LIBRARY METRICS.
AND SORRY, BRITA, DO YOU HAVE THE, UM, ABSOLUTELY.
I BELIEVE IT'S SLIDE 16 OFF OF MY HEAD.
I THINK IT'S SLIDE 16, BUT THAT MIGHT BE MY MEMORY FAILING ME.
THIS IS WHAT WAS PRESENTED IN JANUARY.
AND I'M SORT OF STEALING, UH, BRITISH, YOU'RE DOING GREAT,
BUT WHAT I WANT YOU TO NOTICE, IF YOU DON'T MIND, WHAT I WANT YOU TO NOTICE, UM, WE HAD THREE ELEMENTS THAT WE CONSIDERED AS PART OF THE FORMULA COMMUNITY NEED, LIBRARY USAGE AND LIBRARY COVERAGE IS WHAT WE ENDED UP CALLING THEM.
LIBRARY NEED REALLY FOCUSES ON POVERTY AND EDUCATION, BECAUSE WHAT I KNOW FROM 30 YEARS IN LIBRARIES IS THAT THAT IS WHERE WE HAVE THE BIGGEST IMPACT ON POVERTY AND EDUCATION.
AND SO POVERTY IS MEDIAN HOUSEHOLD INCOME REPRESENTED HERE AS PART OF THE CENSUS.
AND EDUCATION IS REPRESENTED HERE AS HIGH SCHOOL COMPLETION.
AND THEN OF COURSE, AGE UNDER FIVE BECAUSE ONE OF OUR BIGGEST BUSINESSES IS SERVING KIDS AND FAMILIES.
SO WE PUT A GREATER WEIGHT ON COMMUNITY NEED.
AND THE REASON FOR THAT IS BECAUSE PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN NEIGHBORHOODS OF LOW COMMUNITY NEEDS.
SO HIGHER MEDIA AND INCOME, HIGHER LEVELS OF EDUCATION HAVE THE MEANS IF NEEDED TO GO TO OTHER LIBRARIES.
THEY HAVE ACCESS TO CARS, THEY HAVE ACCESS TO TIME, THEY HAVE MORE FLEXIBILITY THAN PEOPLE WHO ARE LIVING IN POVERTY.
SO IF WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT CLOSING LIBRARIES, IT MAKES THE MOST SENSE TO ME THAT WE, WE EMPHASIZE COMMUNITIES OF HIGH POVERTY AND HIGH NEED OF STAYING OPEN.
SO THAT'S WHY COMMUNITY NEED IS WEIGHTED AT 50% LIBRARY USES, WHICH IS THOSE TRADITIONAL LIBRARY METRICS OF CHECKOUT COMPUTER USE PROGRAMS AND PROGRAM ATTENDANCE THAT WAS WEIGHTED AT 30%.
AND THEN COVERAGE IS JUST DRIVE TIME AND SQUARE FOOTAGE OF THE BUILDING ITSELF.
AND THAT IS WHAT BRITA AND HER TEAM USED TO, TO, TO MAKE THE MODEL.
AND I DIDN'T WANNA GET OUT AHEAD OF HER, BUT I WANTED TO REALLY HIGHLIGHT HOW SERIOUSLY WE TOOK THIS ISSUE OF POVERTY AND EDUCATION AND THE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT THAT WE SERVE POOR COMMUNITIES AT A GREATER LEVEL AND, AND ALMOST MORE IMPORTANT THAN AREAS THAT HAVE ACCESS TO BE ABLE TO BUY THEIR OWN BOOKS OR TO GET TO ANOTHER LIBRARY.
AND THAT WAS A DELIBERATE CHOICE THAT WE MADE.
BRITA, DO YOU WANNA SAY ANYTHING BEFORE WE SURE.
SO I'LL JUST OPEN UP BY SAYING THAT THERE WAS NO MAGICAL FORMULA THAT MEANT THAT A LIBRARY MET A THRESHOLD OR NOT.
WE KNEW THAT QUANTITATIVE DATA WOULD NOT GET US ALL THE WAY THERE.
IT'S NOT SUPPOSED TO, IT'S NOT ITS JOB.
UM, WHAT WE WANTED TO DO WAS SIMPLY PROVIDE A FRAMEWORK TO SORT THESE VARIOUS LIBRARIES INTO REGIONS AND INTO GROUPINGS IN TERMS OF USAGE AND REFLECTIVE OF THEIR COMMUNITY DATA SO THAT THE LIBRARY EXPERTS COULD REALLY LOOK AT IT IN A DIFFERENT WAY.
SO OUR FIRST TASK, UM, AND I'LL JUST SPEAK BRIEFLY 'CAUSE I WANT, I KNOW THAT THE QUESTIONS ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT TO THIS.
THE FIRST TASK WAS TO SEPARATE REGIONS.
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SO WHAT WE DID IS WE UPDATED THE LIBRARY SERVICE REGIONS BY LOOKING AT UPDATED CENSUS NUMBERS, MAKING SURE THAT THEY WERE RELATIVELY EQUALLY DISTRIBUTED.SO WE WERE TRYING TO SERVE SOMEWHAT EQUAL POPULATIONS OF AREAS.
UH, THE NEXT THING WE DID IS WE WENT THROUGH THESE, UH, THESE DIFFERENT DATA CHOICES, THESE VARIABLES.
HOW WOULD WE MEASURE THIS? HOW WOULD WE MEASURE THAT? UM, AND THEN WE, WE LOOKED AT THE WEIGHTING, WHAT MADE SENSE, AND WE PRESENTED THE LIBRARY LEADERSHIP TEAM WITH MULTIPLE WEIGHTS.
AT THE END OF THE DAY, THE CITY LEADERSHIP WANTED TO MOVE, UH, WITH THE COMMUNITY NEED MODEL.
SO THAT IS, THAT IS WHAT WE DID TO GET US HERE.
OUR GOAL WAS TO ASSIST, UH, THE LIBRARY IN ADDING THIS QUANTITATIVE COMPONENT TO THAT QUALITATIVE ASSESSMENT.
SOME OF THAT STARTED, AND AS YOU HEARD, MANIA LAY OUT, MORE OF IT IS TO COME WITH THE TRANSPORTATION OVERLAY, THE HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE RESEARCH THAT PEOPLE ARE DOING.
UM, SO NOBODY WANTS TO CLOSE LIBRARIES, RIGHT? UH, I, I'M NOT LIKE AN EVIL DATA WITCH THAT WANTS TO CLOSE LIBRARIES.
UM, WHEN I'M TRYING TO, TO HELP THE LIBRARY TEAM DO IS THINK THROUGH, IF WE ARE IN THIS SITUATION, HOW DO WE DO IT IN A WAY THAT HAS A MINI AS MINIMAL IMPACT AS POSSIBLE, KNOWING THAT THERE WILL BE IMPACT.
UM, SO I AM HERE TO ANSWER WHATEVER QUESTIONS YOU ALL HAVE ABOUT THE DATA, UH, TO THE BEST OF MY KNOWLEDGE.
I KNOW YOU'VE BEEN PROVIDED WITH A POWERPOINT THAT WE GAVE IN JANUARY AND, AND THE WHITE PAPER AS WELL.
UM, AND THE RAW DATA AS, UH, WAS POINTED OUT IS ON PAGE 11 THAT WAS REQUESTED AND, AND HAS BEEN PROVIDED.
SO CHAIR, I WILL TURN IT BACK TO YOU, UH, TO HANDLE QUESTIONS.
ONE IS, UM, THIS EXERCISE IS A BUDGET DRIVEN THING.
DO THE LIBRARIES, THE COST OF RUNNING EACH OF THESE LIBRARIES, ARE THEY ROUGHLY THE SAME, OR IS IT WORTH INCLUDING, YOU KNOW, THIS LIBRARY HAS THREE FTS, THIS ONE HAS 30.
SO, SO SEAN, SEAN'S BRAIN IS GONNA MELT A LITTLE BIT, BUT FOR THE EASE OF IT BEING EASY TO ANSWER, WHAT I'VE BEEN SAYING IS THAT A BRANCH COSTS US APPROXIMATELY $650,000 A YEAR TO RUN.
OF COURSE, SOME BRANCHES HAVE MORE STAFF, SOME HAVE FEWER, UM, SOME HAVE SECURITY, SOME DON'T.
SOME HAVE LANDSCAPING, SOME DON'T.
BUT FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS EXERCISE, THAT'S THE NUMBER WE'RE GOING WITH.
SO THAT'S HOW YOU GET TO 2.6 MILLION WITH FOUR.
I GUESS WHAT I'M ASKING THOUGH IS, YOU KNOW, THE MOST EXPENSIVE BRANCH, IS IT MANY MULTIPLES OF THE LEAST EXPENSIVE? NO.
AND SO WE SHOULD TAKE THAT INTO ACCOUNT FOR, THEY'RE KIND OF ALL THE SAME BALLPARK.
I MEAN, V WOULD BE THE MOST EXPENSIVE, RIGHT? 'CAUSE THEY HAVE THE MOST STAFF AND THEY'RE OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK, RIGHT? YEAH.
SO THEY'RE IN THE SAME BALLPARK.
BUT, SO V IS UNIQUE IN THAT IT HAS 13, THE REST HAVE BETWEEN NINE AND 11, AND IT'S, IT AVERAGES OUT.
AND THEN MY SECOND QUESTION WAS CENTRAL MM-HMM
SO I THINK I'VE HEARD IT REFERRED TO AS LIKE EIGHT LIBRARIES IN ONE OR HOW
AND WHY IS THAT VERY DELIBERATELY EXCLUDED.
SO YES, IT IS STAFFED LIKE EIGHT DIFFERENT BRANCHES, BUT THE SERVICES IN THIS BUILDING ARE WILDLY DIFFERENT THAN WHAT WE OFFER IN THE BRANCHES, WHICH IS WHY I HAVE FOUGHT REALLY HARD TO KEEP IT SEPARATED FROM THE REGIONAL MODEL.
CENTRAL IS NOT JUST A BIG BRANCH.
AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I'M HOPING TO BRING TO QUACK IN MARCH IS A MEMO ABOUT THE CENTRAL LIBRARY DESCRIBING EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS IN THIS BUILDING.
AND IT'S RIGHT NOW TRACKING AT 14 PAGES BECAUSE THERE IS SO MUCH THAT HAPPENS HERE.
UM, NOT JUST WHAT YOU CAN SEE, BUT THERE'S SO MUCH THAT YOU CAN'T SEE, WHETHER THAT BE, UM, RARE STORAGE MATERIALS, DEEP VAULTS AND FREEZERS, EVEN DOWN TO, UH, THE AUTOMATIC MATERIALS HANDLING MACHINE, WHICH IS A GIANT CONVEYOR BELT THAT MOVES ALMOST A MILLION ITEMS A YEAR.
THIS IS THE HUB OF THE ENTIRE LIBRARY SYSTEM, ALL BACK OF HOUSE.
ALL OF ADMINISTRATION IS HERE, ALL OF OUR OPERATIONS AND DOCK ARE HERE.
SO IT'S NOT A SIMPLE THING TO SAY, OH, WE'LL JUST CLOSE A FLOOR AND THEN YOU DON'T HAVE TO CLOSE A BRANCH BECAUSE IT IS JUST, IT'S LIKE APPLE STORE ORANGES FUNCTIONALLY.
THAT, THAT IS WHAT I WAS ASKING.
CAN WE, YOU'RE NOT THE ONLY ONE ASKING.
AND I WILL SAY THAT, UM, BECAUSE OF THE DISTRICT THAT YOU REPRESENT, WHEN SKILLMAN CLOSED, IT WAS VALUED, I THINK AT ABOUT 450,000.
BUT THAT'S BECAUSE, UH, IT HAD ALREADY BEEN REDUCED IN HOURS AND DAYS AND
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STAFFING, IF YOU RECALL.DERON ARMSTRONG, UH, DISTRICT SIX REPRESENTATIVE.
I JUST WANNA SAY THANKS FOR THANK YOU.
ALL THE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING, I KNOW YOU ARE PRESENTED WITH THIS BUDGET.
AND WE'RE ALL HAVING TO MAKE, UM, DIFFICULT DECISIONS TO RUN.
AND NOBODY WANTS TO CLOSE, UM, LIKE, CAN HEAR YOU, I HAD TWO QUESTIONS, AND THEN LIKE A CONSIDERATION.
AND THE FIRST ONE IS, UM, SO IN THE WEST REGION ASSESSMENT MM-HMM
UM, IT RANKS TWO ACROSS THE, THE MODELS.
COMMUNITY NEED LIBRARY USAGE AND LIBRARY COVERAGE.
AND SO JUST TRYING TO UNDERSTAND LIKE WHAT ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS MOVED IT INTO YES.
AND WHETHER THOSE, UM, YOU CAN SHARE THAT.
UM, AND I, I REMEMBER THERE WAS A FU A PAST CONVERSATION ABOUT LIKE BOND AND MM-HMM
AND THE, THE COLOR CODED ONE IS GONNA BE HELPFUL, BUT, SORRY, FINISH YOUR QUESTION.
IF YOU COULD JUST SPEAK MORE TO THAT, UM, OF CLOSING THAT ONE VERSUS THE SO ON.
ON SLIDE 18, IT'S A REALLY GOOD QUESTION.
SO YOU CAN SEE, AND I'LL LET, OR THANK YOU FOR ASKING.
UM, I, I'LL LET MANA RESPOND MORE TO THIS, BUT THE LIBRARIES THAT SHOW UP IN BLUE, WHAT PAGE ARE YOU ON? I'M ON PAGE 18 OF THE POWERPOINT PRESENTATION THAT WAS GIVEN TO QUALEX.
SO WHAT YOU CAN SEE ON THIS PAGE, IN THAT REGION IS THAT THE LIBRARIES IN BLUE ARE LIBRARIES THAT HAD BEEN FUNDED IN THIS BOND OR THE PRIOR.
SO THIS, THIS LIBRARY WAS IN THAT MOMENT.
SO IT WAS SORT OF EXCLUDED FROM POTENTIAL CONSIDERATION.
SO DID I, DID I SAY THAT RIGHT? CORRECT.
WE CAN'T TAKE OFF ANY LIBRARY, EVERY LIBRARY THAT WAS BOND FUNDED, BECAUSE THAT MIGHT BE A HUNDRED PERCENT, IF NOT VERY, VERY CLOSE TO A HUNDRED PERCENT.
THAT MEANS A ARGUMENT THAT THE LAURA YES.
AND I BELIEVE ARCADIA PARK WAS PART OF THE 2003 BOND CYCLE.
UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT, UH, THE BUDGET OFFICE IS WORKING ON IS A BREAKDOWN OF, UM, WHEN A LIBRARY WAS BOND FUNDED, AND WHETHER WE HAVE FULFILLED OUR OBLIGATION ON THAT DEBT.
AND I HAVEN'T RECEIVED THAT YET.
UM, SO THE BRANCHES IN BLUE ARE STILL BEING PAID FOR? NO, I MEAN, YES, DEFINITELY.
BUT THAT'S NOT THE DISTINCTION.
THE BRANCHES IN BLUE ARE PART OF THE MOST RECENT BOND AND THE MOST PRE AND THE MOST RECENT PREVIOUS.
AND THE ONE BEFORE THAT, AND THE ONE BEFORE THAT, IT'S THE LAST TWO BONDS.
AS A REMINDER, THE LA THE MOST CURRENT BOND WAS ONLY VOTED ON LAST YEAR.
I'VE BEEN SAYING LAST YEAR FOR SO LONG, THE YEAR PASSED.
UM, SO I JUST SAW, YOU KNOW, THE VOTERS SPOKE AND THEY SPOKE PRETTY RECENTLY ABOUT THESE LIBRARIES, AND SO WE EXCLUDED THOSE.
SO YOU SEE, ARCADIA PARK, AS YOU NOTICE, IS NOT THE BOTTOM, BUT UNFORTUNATELY THE BOTTOM IS A BOND FUNDED, AND SO IT'S EXCLUDED FROM THE LIST.
SO IT'S NOT A QUESTION IF, IF THEY WERE BOND FUNDED EVER.
'CAUSE WITHIN THE TWO YEARS, AND IF THEY FULFILLED WHATEVER THAT BOND PACKAGE, IT'S ONLY THAT THEY WERE THE LAST TWO BONDS.
AND THEN MY SECOND QUESTION IS JUST AROUND, UM, THE TRANSPORTATION MM-HMM
AND JUST THIS IDEA OF LIKE, UM, HOW DO I WANNA PUT THIS, UM,
AND HOW DO WE, AND I, I THINK YOU SPOKE TO THIS A LITTLE BIT IN YOUR OPENING, BUT UHHUH
IF WE COULD SPEAK A LITTLE BIT MORE TO THAT.
UM, SO THE FIRST THING IS THAT, UH, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE ARE PROVIDING MANA AND HER TEAM WITH IS AN OVERLAY FROM THE CENSUS AROUND TRANSIT DEPENDENCY VERSUS VEHICLE AVAILABILITY, SO THAT WE CAN SEE WHICH ARE THE NEIGHBORHOODS THAT HAVE A HIGHER DEPENDENCY ON TRANSIT VERSUS HAVING ACCESS TO A VEHICLE.
THE DRIVE TIME ANALYSIS, I GUESS TO JUST SPEAK TO THAT IS, IS DONE AS A PURE DRIVE TIME, AVERAGE DRIVER, MIDDLE OF THE DAY, NOT NECESSARILY HORRIBLE CONDITIONS AT RUSH HOUR, BUT NOT IDEAL PITCH CONDITIONS AND ASSUMED YOU'RE DRIVING THE SPEED LIMIT.
AND IT'S NOT LIKE, IT'S NOT BIRD'S EYE.
RIGHT? THERE ARE DIFFERENT WAYS YOU CAN ASK THE SYSTEM TO GIVE YOU AN ASSESSMENT.
[00:30:01]
ABILITY TO TRAVEL PLACES.SO THIS IS A NORMAL KIND OF A CONSUMER VEHICLE.
UM, AND SO YES, IT, IT IS NOT THE SAME IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE CITY.
WE'VE ALSO MAPPED, UH, THE FINAL SLIDE, 26 IN THE APPENDIX, AT LEAST FOR THE FLAGSHIPS SHOWS, THE PUBLIC TRANSIT, THE BUS STOPS, THE DART LINES.
UM, THE LIBRARIES IN GENERAL ARE RELATIVELY ACCESSIBLE, BUT WE DO UNDERSTAND THAT THAT IS DIFFERENT MM-HMM
UM, AND SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT, THAT MAN'S GOT FOR THE NEXT ROUND AND ITERATION AND CONSIDERATION IS HOW TRANSIT DEPENDENT IS THE POPULATION IN THE LIBRARY NEIGHBORHOOD.
I HOPE THAT ANSWERS YOUR QUESTION.
AND THEN MY LAST CONSIDERATION IS JUST, YOU KNOW, UM, IF WE MOVE, OR WHEN WE MOVE, IF, WHEN WE MOVE TO A FLAGSHIP MODEL, IS THERE A WORLD WHERE, A WORLD WHERE WE CAN DO THE FLAGSHIP, BUT THEN, UM, LIKE DECREASE THE RESOURCING OR THE HOURS AT THE, LIKE OTHER SATELLITE BRANCHES, LIKE A ARCADIA MM-HMM
TO STILL KEEP THEM OPEN AND MAYBE FOCUS MORE ON LIKE, I DON'T KNOW, LIKE MORE, UM, WHAT ARE THOSE HOTELS CALLED THAT ARE LIKE BOUTIQUE, LIKE, YOU KNOW, JUST, UH, YEAH.
UH, WHAT WERE THOUGHT KINDA LIKE CUSTOM? YEAH, LIKE CUSTOM, LIKE STREAM RESPONSIVE, STREAM WISE.
THE PROGRAMMING WHERE, LIKE, IS THERE A BOTH YES.
THIS IS MY THOUGHTS AROUND THAT.
AND MAYBE THOSE CAN JUST BE MORE FOCUSED ON LIKE, YOU KNOW, PROGRAMMING, WHICH IS IN THE PROPOSAL AND, BUT THEY'RE NOT AS RESOURCED AS LIKE THE, THE FLAGSHIP MM-HMM
SO THIS IS WHAT I MENTIONED AT THE BEGINNING, THAT I WILL BE BRINGING BACK, UH, ADDITION PROPOSALS THAT DO NOT CLOSE ANY LIBRARIES.
UM, ONE OF THE PROPOSALS IS TO STILL STAND UP THE FLAGSHIP LIBRARIES.
SO STILL HAVE THESE VIBRANT SEVEN DAY A WEEK UP UNTIL 8:00 PM DURING THE WEEK, LIBRARIES IN, IN THE REGIONS, UH, IN FIVE INITIALLY WITH A GOAL OF SEVEN.
AND THEN WE, WE REDUCE THE HOURS EVERYWHERE ELSE, INCLUDING THIS BUILDING BECAUSE WE WOULD NO LONGER HAVE THE SAVINGS, UH, IN THE CLOSING OF THE BUILDINGS.
WE WOULD HAVE TO ELIMINATE SIGNIFICANTLY MORE STAFF IN ORDER TO DO THAT.
THAT IS HOW WE KEEP ALL THE, ALL THE BRANCHES OPEN AND STILL SAVE 2.6 MILLION.
UH, IS WE, WE, UH, WE TERMINATE MORE EMPLOYEES.
ONE HAS TO DO REALLY WITH THE CITY BUDGET, AND THAT THE SLIDE THAT YOU SHARED, WHICH I'VE SEEN OVER THE YEARS, WHICH IS FRUSTRATING, UH, THAT SHOWS THE DOLLARS THAT THE DALLAS CITY BUDGET PUTS INTO OUR LIBRARIES COMPARED TO OUR PEER CITIES.
UM, HAS THERE BEEN ANY, I MEAN, I KNOW THAT SLIDE BEEN SHOWN TO THE COUNCIL OVER THE YEARS, BUT HAS THERE BEEN ANY MORE RECENT CONVERSATION ABOUT THAT DISCREPANCY, THAT DISPARITY IN WHAT THE CITY IS PUTTING INTO OUR LIBRARIES COMPARED TO OUR PEER CITIES? AND THEN I HAVE A SECOND QUESTION THAT I'LL GO AHEAD AND ASK.
AND THAT IS, WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT THE LIBRARIES, THEY'RE GONNA, THE FLAGSHIP LIBRARIES, LIBRARIES, THEY'RE GONNA STAY OPEN MORE HOURS OR LATE.
HAVE WE ALSO LOOKED AT A SAFETY FACTOR WITH THOSE LIBRARIES AND WHAT THE STATISTICS LOOK LIKE AROUND THOSE LIBRARIES AS FAR AS, UM, LATE HOURS? SO, TWO QUESTIONS.
I WOULD CALL ATTENTION TO THE, UH, TO THE BOARD.
THE PACKET SLIDES SEVEN THROUGH 11 ADDRESS OUR FUNDING, UH, THE, OUR HISTORICAL FUNDING AS WELL AS OUR FUNDING COMPARED TO OUR PEER LIBRARIES.
AND THAT WAS PRESENTED TO COUNCIL ON JANUARY 20TH.
UM, AS FOR YOUR QUESTION ABOUT SAFETY, UH, DO YOU MEAN SAFETY STAYING OPEN LATER? SAFETY STAYING OPEN LATER? I MEAN, I DON'T WANNA PINPOINT A LIBRARY, BUT THERE, I WOULD NOT DRIVE FROM MY HOUSE TO NORTH PARK AT EIGHT O'CLOCK AT NIGHT BY MYSELF.
AND I GO DOWN PARK LANE AND I WOULDN'T DO IT.
WE, WE WILL CONSIDER THAT, UM, ALL OF OUR LIBRARIES STAY OPEN TILL EIGHT O'CLOCK, AT LEAST ONE OR TWO NIGHTS A WEEK.
SO WE ALREADY HAVE THAT MODEL IN PLACE.
WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT AT THE FLAGSHIPS IS JUST INCREASING THAT TO MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY, SO FOUR DAYS A WEEK.
SO YES, WE WILL TAKE SAFETY INTO CONSIDERATION.
AND I WOULD ADD ON THE BUDGET QUESTION THAT IT HAS BEEN ADDRESSED IN SOME OF THE BRIEFINGS AND COUNCIL MEETINGS THAT I'VE BEEN IN.
[00:35:01]
AND COUNCIL MEMBERS HAVE SAID, YOU CAN'T REALLY COMPARE THE CITY OF DALLAS BUDGET AND THE WAY THAT IT'S STRUCTURED TO THE WAY THAT THE CITY OF AUSTIN IS STRUCTURED, OR THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO IS STRUCTURED.SO IT'S NOT, ALTHOUGH WE WOULD LOVE TO SEE MORE MONEY GIVEN TO THE LIBRARY, IT'S NOT JUST A MATTER OF, WELL, AUSTIN DOES IT.
BECAUSE OF SOME OF THE CONSTRAINTS ON, UM, RESTRICTED FUNDS IN THE DALLAS BUDGET THAT WE DON'T HAVE THAT KIND OF LEVEL OF WIGGLE ROOT, I GUESS, THE UTILITIES AND YEAH.
DID YOU SEE MYKA HAS, OH, MSIKA, SORRY.
UM, MSIKA, I, UM, AM THE REPRESENTATIVE FOR DISTRICT THREE.
SO I KNOW THAT, UM, WE JUST RECEIVED THE WHITE PAPER, UH, EARLIER TODAY, SO I HAVEN'T HAD TIME TO FULLY DO A FULL ANALYSIS AND REALLY COMPREHEND IT.
UM, BUT I KNOW THAT WITH SOME OF THE, UH, MONEY THAT WE'RE TRYING TO SAVE, I DID NOTICE THAT ON THE WHITE PAPER ON PAGE, LET ME SEE, ON PAGE, OR IT SHOWS PAGE EIGHT TO ME BECAUSE I'M LOOKING AT IT ONLINE.
UM, IT'S ALSO COUNTING THE, THE KLEBERG RILEY LIBRARY.
AND AS OF RIGHT NOW, I UNDERSTAND THAT IT IS INDEFINITELY CLOSED.
UM, SO I WANTED TO KNOW, FOR EXAMPLE, UM, PRIOR TO CREATING THIS REPORT, DO WE KNOW HOW MUCH OF THE COST SAVINGS OR, UM, OR LACK THEREOF THERE MIGHT BE WITH THE CLOSURE OF, OF BEBERG RILEY? AND IN ADDITION, I UNDERSTAND, UH, BACK IN NOVEMBER WHEN, UM, I DID BRING UP HOW, UM, AS A RESPONSE TO COVID, UH, WE, THE LIBRARY WAS ONLY ALLOWED TO HIRE, UH, FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES DURING COVID COVID.
BUT POST COVID, THAT MANDATE THAT WAS THERE HAS HADN'T BEEN LIFTED YET.
HAS THERE BEEN AN UPDATE TO WHERE THE LIBRARY IS NOW ALLOWED TO HIRE PART-TIME EMPLOYEES? BECAUSE I UNDERSTAND THAT, UM, JUST LIKE WITH ANY ORGANIZATION, A LOT OF THE BUDGET GOES TO, UH, EMPLOYEES AND THEIR BENEFITS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
AS FOR SAVINGS IN CLEAVER, THERE WILL BE NO SAVINGS IN CLEAVER RILEY LIBRARY WHILE IT'S CLOSED.
UH, THEY, THEY'VE JUST BEEN MOVED TO OTHER LOCATIONS TO WORK, AND THE BULK OF, OF OUR, UH, BUDGET GOES INTO STAFFING, OF COURSE.
AND THEN, UM, I, I THINK POTENTIALLY UTILITIES, IT'S JUST SO SMALL WHAT WE WOULD HAVE SAVED IN THE KLEBERG BEING CLOSED.
UH, I DON'T THINK THERE'S ANY SAVINGS THERE.
AND WE'LL HAVE A REPORT ON KLEBERG TOWARDS THE END OF THE MEETING.
UM, AS FOR PART-TIME, WE HAVE, I AM PLEASED TO REPORT WE HAVE MOVED TO, UH, INTO HIRING TWO PART-TIME STAFF FOR VICAR.
UH, WE HAD TO TAKE FULL-TIME VACANCIES TO TURN THEM INTO PART-TIME STAFF.
BUT, UH, I THINK I'VE, I'VE SHARED WITH THIS BODY BEFORE, NOT HAVING PART-TIME STAFF IS VERY DIFFICULT FOR US.
UM, PART-TIME STAFF OFFERS SO MUCH MORE FLEXIBILITY ON OPEN HOURS.
I'LL GIVE YOU, UH, UH, I'LL GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE.
SUNDAY MORNINGS, UH, ARE REALLY DEAD IN MOST LIBRARIES, UH, THAT ARE OPEN ON SUNDAY.
BUT WE'RE OPEN ALL DAY BECAUSE WE ONLY HAVE PART-TIME, UH, ONLY A FULL-TIME STAFF.
SO WHEN THEY WORK ON SUNDAY, THEY WORK ALL DAY.
AND SO WE'RE OPEN BECAUSE THEY'RE THERE.
IF WE HAD PART-TIME STAFF, WE COULD BE OPEN MORE APPROPRIATELY IN THE AFTERNOON WHERE THEY WOULD ONLY WORK THE, THE HALF DAY THAT WE'RE OPEN.
SO IT'S A PROCESS BECAUSE WE DON'T JUST GO AND ASK FOR PART-TIME STAFF.
OBVIOUSLY, WE'RE NOT IN A POSITION RIGHT NOW TO ASK FOR ADDITIONAL STAFF.
SO WHAT WE HAVE TO DO IS TAKE VACANCIES AND CONVERT THEM INTO PART-TIME.
SO WE'RE DOING THAT AS WE, AS WE CAN.
AND, AND, UM, I KNOW THAT WE WERE SPEAKING ABOUT OTHER AVENUES OF RAISING FUNDS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, AND I'M STILL TRYING TO GAIN AN UNDERSTANDING IN TERMS OF, UH, FRIENDS OF THE DALLAS LIBRARY AND HOW THOSE FUNDS GO INTO THE LIBRARY.
UM, BUT I DID WANT TO MENTION THAT I, THAT, UM, I WENT TO LOS ANGELES RECENTLY, AND THEY HAVE THEIR VERSION OF FEL, BUT THEY ALSO HAVE ANOTHER ORGANIZATION CALLED THE LA LIBRARY FOUNDATIONS, WHERE, UM, IT'S MORE SO, UH, COMPANY SPONSORSHIPS OR, UM,
[00:40:01]
INDIVIDUALS OR ORGANIZATIONS THAT HAVE DEEPER POCKETS THAN INDIVIDUALS THAT ARE IN THE COMMUNITY TO HELP IN, UH, MEETING THEIR LIBRARIES WHEN, UH, THE BUDGET IS NOT ABLE TO ASSIST.AND THEY ALSO HAVE, UM, INSTEAD OF A COFFEE SHOP, UM, THEY HAVE KIND OF LIKE A LIBRARY STORE WHERE THE FUNDS WILL GO THROUGH.
AND THE MAIN REASON WHY I STATE THAT IS BECAUSE I HAVE SPOKEN TO, UM, SOME LIBRARIANS WAY IN THE PAST WHERE WE DID SPEND, YOU KNOW, MONEY OR POTENTIAL BOND MONEY, UM, IN GENERAL TO CONSTRUCT A SECTION FOR, UM, A COFFEE SHOP, FOR EXAMPLE.
BUT BECAUSE IT WASN'T BEING UTILIZED PROPERLY, THAT, THAT AFTER LIKE FIVE, SIX YEARS WOULD'VE BEEN SHUT DOWN.
AND THAT WOULD, IS ESSENTIALLY, UM, MONEY THAT COULD HAVE BEEN SAVED.
UM, SO I JUST WANTED TO KNOW, UM, IN TERMS OF LIKE OTHER SUGGESTIONS THAT YOU WERE POTENTIALLY LOOKING FOR.
AND MY FINAL QUESTION, UH, IS THAT, UM, I'LL HAVE TO GET BACK TO IT BECAUSE I, IT JUST SLIPPED MY MIND, BUT, UH, LEMME JUST, SURE.
WE HAVE THE SAME STRUCTURE AS LOS ANGELES.
WHEN I WAS BEING, THE FRIENDS OF THE DALLAS PUBLIC LIBRARY ARE ESSENTIALLY A FOUNDATION.
THEY JUST CALL THEMSELVES A FRIEND.
AND THEN WE HAVE THE BRANCH FRIENDS.
THE FRIENDS OF THE DALLAS PUBLIC LIBRARY IS AT THAT SAME LEVEL AS, AS LAPL, AS THEIR FOUNDATION.
AND THEY BRING IN MONEY FROM, UM, PHILANTHROPISTS AND FROM BUSINESSES.
ONE THING YOU DON'T SHOW IS THE DENSITY OF POPULATION AROUND THE BRANCHES.
TALK ABOUT, UH, DENSITY OF POPULATION AROUND BRANCHES.
I THINK OF SOMETHING LIKE OAK LAWN WHERE YOU HAVE THREE OR 4,000 PEOPLE PER SQUARE MILE, OR EVEN MORE BECAUSE IT'S FOUR, SIX AND EIGHT STORY BUILDINGS FOR BLOCKS.
IT'S MUCH DENSER THAN IT USED TO BE.
SO THAT'S A LIBRARY WHERE PEOPLE WALK TO THE LIBRARY, THEY DON'T DRIVE TO THE LIBRARY.
AND WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT TRANSIT, PLEASE BE AWARE THAT DART IS CUTTING SERVICE AGAIN BECAUSE THE SUBURBS ARE TAKING THEIR MONEY BACK.
SO IT'S NOW MAYBE EVERY HOUR ON SOME OF THOSE BUS ROUTES, ESPECIALLY ON THE WEEKENDS, OR NOT AT ALL.
THE TRAINS ARE RUNNING EVERY 20 MINUTES INSTEAD OF EVERY 10 MINUTES.
SO IF YOU'RE DOING CALCULATIONS ON TRANSIT, YOU NEED TO THINK ABOUT, YOU NEED TO TALK TO DART TO MAKE SURE THERE EVEN HAS SERVICE ANYMORE BECAUSE THEY'RE CUTTING BACK AGAIN AND IT'S SIGNIFICANT.
SO WE HAD, AND PROGRAMMING, WHEN IT COMES TO PROGRAMMING ON THESE FLAGSHIP LIBRARIES MM-HMM
HOW MUCH MONEY IS CENTRAL GO CONTRIBUTE TO THAT PROGRAMMING.
SO I'M GONNA LET BRITA ADDRESS YOUR FIRST POINT, IF YOU DON'T MIND, STAN.
UM, SO OUR ATTEMPT AT POPULATION DENSITY, OR AT TAKING POPULATION INTO ACCOUNT WAS THE NORMAL NORMALIZATION OR THE ADJUSTMENT OF THE REGIONS.
WE DID NOT, AS YOU POINT OUT, GET INTO SORT OF STACKED DENSITY AND THERE'S, YOU KNOW, APARTMENTS AROUND THIS LIBRARY VERSUS SINGLE FAMILY HOMES AROUND THIS LIBRARY.
WE DIDN'T, UM, IF THAT'S AN OVERLAY THAT, THAT WE WANT TO LOOK AT, THAT THAT IS A THING THAT COULD BE DONE.
UM, BUT WE DID NOT, THE ONLY THING WE ATTEMPTED TO DO WAS NORMALIZE THE POPULATION IN EACH REGION AND GET THEM AS CLOSE TOGETHER AS POSSIBLE.
BECAUSE WHAT WE HAD PRIOR TO THAT, IT HADN'T BEEN ADJUSTED FOR THE MOST RECENT CENSUS NUMBERS.
SO WE WERE TRYING TO FIND A WAY TO SERVE APPROXIMATELY THE SAME NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN A REGION.
WELL, THE 2020 CENSUS WAS RUSHED AND A LOT OF PEOPLE WEREN'T COUNTED, ESPECIALLY IN DALLAS.
SO I WOULD THINK YOUR NUMBERS ARE NOT REALLY THAT ACCURATE COMPARED TO THE 2010 BECAUSE IT WAS DONE DURING COVID AND THEY RUSHED IT AND THEY CUT IT OFF SHORT.
AND I ACTUALLY THINK IT'S THE A CS, BUT YEAH, I THINK IT'S THE A CS WE USE, BUT WE UNDERSTOOD.
CAN, CAN YOU EXPLAIN THE DIFFERENCE FOR PEOPLE WHO DON'T UNDERSTAND A CS VERSUS THE TENURE? SURE.
CENSUS, SO THE AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY IS A, IS A LONG FORM OF THE CENSUS THAT IS CONDUCTED MORE REGULARLY TO FEWER NUMBERS OF PEOPLE.
UM, AND SO IT GIVES YOU MORE IN DEPTH INFORMATION ABOUT A SMALLER GROUP THAT THE FORMAL CENSUS THAT HAPPENS EVERY 10 YEARS IS INTENDED TO GO AROUND AND COUNT EVERY PERSON.
SO THOSE ARE THE DISTINCTIONS IN MOST OF WHAT WE PULLED, WE PULLED THE 2023 IN THE POPULATION NORMALIZATION.
OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD, I DO NOT KNOW WHAT WE USED.
BUT WE WOULD'VE USED, IN ADDITION
[00:45:01]
TO THAT, WE ALSO USED THE COGS, UH, GROWTH PROJECTION TO, FOR THE REGION.BUT I CAN, I CAN VERIFY THAT FOR YOU.
AND I'M, IT PROBABLY SAYS IT IN THE PAPER.
BEA, THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION.
ALSO, I WANTED TO, UM, CLARIFY THAT, UM, THE QUESTIONS AND DISCUSSION COME FROM BOARD MEMBERS AT THE MEETING, SO RIGHT, RIGHT.
THAT'S WHY I HADN'T HIGHLIGHTED THE CHAT.
UM, MANA, I WANTED TO ASK YOU A QUESTION ON THE STAFF CUTS THAT WOULD HAPPEN CLOSING FOUR BRANCHES VERSUS IF HOURS WERE REDUCED SYSTEM WIDE AND JUST TALK MORE ABOUT, IT WOULD BE MORE SUBSTANTIAL IF WE CUT HOURS AND YES.
HOW MUCH MORE? IT'S, IT'S MORE SUBSTANTIAL IF WE DON'T CLOSE BRANCHES.
UM, THE SAVINGS TO WHAT PATRICK ASKED EARLIER, IF EVERY BRANCH, UH, COSTS US APPROXIMATELY $650,000, THAT'S A COMBINATION OF WHAT IT COSTS TO RUN THE BUILDING ITSELF.
WITH THINGS I'VE ALREADY MENTIONED, LANDSCAPING, SECURITY, UTILITIES, ET CETERA.
AND THE STAFF, IF WE DO NOT CLOSE THE BUILDING ITSELF, WE LOSE ALL OF THAT SAVINGS AND WE HAVE TO FIND IT SOMEWHERE ELSE.
WE HAVE A VERY PRACTICAL PROBLEM TO SOLVE.
AND AS A REMINDER, THAT'S AFTER FINDING $1.9 MILLION THIS YEAR.
AND I BELIEVE THERE WAS A COUPLE YEAR BEFORE, WASN'T THERE? I DON'T KNOW THAT NUMBER 'CAUSE I WASN'T HERE.
SO WE'RE, WE'RE LOOKING, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THREE YEARS OF, OF BUDGET SAVINGS, UH, IN A ROW.
AND SO AT SOME POINT WE CAN NO LONGER FIND EASIER THINGS.
I, I WOULD SAY WE DID THAT THIS YEAR.
EASIER THINGS, WE'VE, WE, WE ELIMINATED SOME UNDERUTILIZED DATABASES THIS YEAR, FOR EXAMPLE.
UM, WE REMOVED SOME CIRCULATION POSITIONS HERE AT THE CENTRAL LIBRARY.
NOT EASY BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY THAT WAS THE ELIMINATION OF STAFFING POSITIONS, BUT LESS OF AN IMPACT ON THE PUBLIC.
WE'VE REACHED A POINT WHERE WE SIMPLY JUST CAN'T FIND ANYMORE.
AND, AND SO THE REASON THAT I SUGGESTED THE REGIONAL MODEL WITH THE FLAGSHIPS IS TWOFOLD.
ONE IS TO STAND UP FIVE LIBRARIES THAT GIVES THE RESIDENTS OF DALLAS WHAT I THINK THEY DESERVE, WHICH IS SEVEN DAY A WEEK SERVICE AND EVENINGS DURING THE WEEK, VIBRANT, ACTIVE PROGRAM FILLED BRANCHES.
I'M TELLING YOU, OTHER CITIES HAVE THESE, YOU JUST NEED TO GO UP TO FRISCO TO SEE AN EXAMPLE OF IT.
THAT'S WHAT THE FLAGSHIPS ARE.
BUT OF COURSE, WE STILL HAVE THIS PRACTICAL PROBLEM TO SOLVE.
AND SO THAT'S WHY I'M PROPOSING, UM, I I'M PROPOSING THAT WE, WE DON'T HAVE THE BUDGET TO RUN THE NUMBER OF BUILDINGS AND WE HAVEN'T FOR QUITE A WHILE.
AND THAT'S THE ONE OF THE POINTS THAT I MADE IN THE PRESENTATION IN JANUARY.
IF WE DO NOT CLOSE LIBRARIES, AND THIS IS WHAT I WAS SAYING TO, TO DEVON'S QUESTION A COUPLE OF MINUTES AGO, WE DON'T CLOSE LIBRARIES THEN THE ONLY PLACE TO TAKE IT, TO TAKE THAT SAVINGS AND TO FIND THAT SAVINGS IS IN THE ELIMINATION OF STAFF POSITIONS AND STAFF RUN LIBRARIES.
SO IF WE ELIMINATE STAFF POSITIONS, WE CANNOT BE OPEN THE NUMBER OF HOURS WE'RE OPEN NOW SIGNIFICANTLY.
SO THE PROPOSAL AS IT STANDS RIGHT NOW, HAS THE ELIMINATION OF UP TO 32 POSITIONS WITHOUT THE SAVINGS FROM THE CLOSURE OF THE BRANCHES.
WE'RE LOOKING AT SOMEWHERE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF DOUBLE, AND THAT'S NOT A SOLID NUMBER.
THERE ARE A LOT OF FACTORS THAT GO INTO IT, BUT JUST THAT GIVES YOU AN IDEA OF CLOSURE OF LIBRARIES HAS A LIGHTER IMPACT ON STAFFING.
SO CAN YOU TALK IN BROAD TERMS ABOUT WHAT THE CUTS MIGHT LOOK LIKE IF WE DIDN'T CLOSE ANY BRANCHES? WOULD WE BE CUTTING DOWN TO FIVE DAYS A WEEK AT ALL LOCATIONS? MM-HMM
AND OPEN LIKE EIGHT TO FIVE EVERY DAY.
SO WE HAVEN'T GOTTEN THAT FAR.
HERE'S WHAT I CAN TELL YOU BECAUSE I, I DON'T WANNA GET OUT AHEAD OF ACTUAL OPEN HOURS.
WHAT I CAN TELL YOU, AND I'M, I'M HOPING MELISSA REMEMBERS THIS A LITTLE BIT.
I REMEMBER THE BRANCHES, BUT I DON'T RE I THINK I REMEMBER CENTRAL.
SO IF WE STAND, WE STILL STAND UP THE FLAGSHIPS BECAUSE I, I, I BELIEVE IN THEM.
I BELIEVE IN THEM VERY STRONGLY.
SO WE STILL STAND UP THE FLAGSHIPS.
WE ONLY NEED TWO ADDITIONAL STAFF AT
[00:50:01]
EACH LIBRARY TO GET TO SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.SO WE HAVE FIVE FLAG SHIFTS THAT ARE OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK, 59 HOURS A WEEK.
I BELIEVE IF WE DON'T CLOSE ANY LIBRARIES, THE REMAINING BRANCHES GO DOWN TO 40 HOURS A WEEK.
THAT MAY OR MAY NOT BE FIVE DAYS.
IT'S NATURAL TO THINK 40 HOURS, FIVE DAYS.
THAT'S WHAT WE WANNA SPEND MORE TIME THINKING ABOUT.
WHETHER IT'S A FEWER NUMBER OF DAYS, BUT LONGER HOURS, THAT SORT OF THING.
THAT'S, THAT'S SOME OF WHAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT.
AND THEN CENTRAL, I BELIEVE GOES DOWN TO 43.
SAME, SAME THING WITH THE, WE HAVEN'T FIGURED OUT THE, THE OPEN HOURS AND DAYS YET.
SO WHEN YOU PRESENT TO THE QUALITY OF LIFE COMMITTEE ON MARCH 23RD MM-HMM
AND THEY'VE ASKED YOU TO COME UP WITH ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS, IS THAT GONNA BE YES.
PRETTY MUCH WHAT YOU SAY IS STAFFING CUTS AND HOURS CUTS? YES.
AND I WILL ALSO GIVE A THIRD, UM, RECOMMENDATION, WHICH IS NO FLAGSHIPS, NO REGIONAL MODEL.
BUT HERE'S WHAT I CAN TELL YOU.
IT'S ELIMINATION OF THE SAME NUMBER OF POSITIONS AND IT ONLY GETS BACK FOUR HOURS PER BRANCH.
SO FOUR FEWER HOURS PER NEIGHBORHOOD BRANCH ALLOWS US TO OPEN FIVE FLAGSHIPS.
SO I I IF, IF, IF THE CONSENSUS IS WE DON'T CLOSE BRANCHES, MY RECOMMENDATION IS WE STAND UP THE FLAGSHIPS.
I'M TELLING YOU, IT WILL BE INCREDIBLE IF I CAN JUST GET EVERYONE TO UNDERSTAND, LET'S GO UP, LET'S GO UP TO FRISCO AND SEE IT.
UM, IT, IT WILL BE AN INCREDIBLE THING FOR, FOR THE RESIDENTS OF DALLAS.
AND IT'S, IT, THE IMPACT ON THE REMAINING NEIGHBORHOOD LIBRARIES IS ONLY FOUR HOURS A WEEK.
DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? SO I'LL JUST, LET ME SEE IF I UNDERSTAND.
I KNOW THAT'S A LOT HARD TIME.
SO YOU'RE SAYING WE, WE DO THE REGIONAL MODEL SEVEN DAYS A WEEK AT FIVE AT FIVE LOCATIONS? FIVE, YES.
THE OTHER BRANCHES THAT ARE, COULD BE KEPT OPEN FOUR HOURS.
AND, AND YOU HAVE TO REMIND ME HOW MANY HOURS THEY'RE OPEN NOW.
YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO REMIND ME HOW MANY HOURS? 50 53.
SO THEY GO DOWN TO FOUR 40, WHICH IS PRETTY MUCH WHAT SKILLMAN SOUTHWESTERN WAS.
WAS SKILLMAN AT FOUR OR AT 39? 39? WELL, OKAY.
IT WAS OPEN FOUR DAYS, FOUR DAYS A WEEK.
IT WAS FIVE, WAS IT FIVE? I GUESS TUESDAY, TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY, FRIDAY.
YOU TALKED ABOUT THE FLAGSHIPS AND SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.
BUT HONESTLY ON THE SUNDAY, IT SHOULD BE IN THE AFTERNOON.
THAT IS WITH IT JUST AFTERNOONS.
AND WE COULD DO PART-TIME THEN FOR THOSE.
IT ALL DEPENDS ON TIMING AND, AND WHAT WE HAVE AND WHAT WE CAN GET DONE.
I MEAN, IDEALLY WE HAVE PART-TIME STAFF WORKING ON SUNDAYS, BUT AS, AS I JUST SAID, IT TAKES A PROCESS.
SO, SO WE'RE TRYING TO GET THERE.
BUT YES, I THINK PART-TIME STAFF MAKE A LOT OF SENSE.
I THINK PART-TIME STAFF MAKE A LOT OF SENSE IN THE EVENINGS.
THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO WANNA WORK PART-TIME, UM, EITHER AS A SECOND JOB OR AS A RETIREMENT JOB.
WE HAVE EXISTING STAFF WHO ARE INTERESTED IN PART-TIME WORK.
WELL, WELL, I KNOW THE REASON JOE DID AWAY WITH THE PART-TIME WAS BECAUSE SHE HAD TROUBLE KEEPING THE POSITIONS FILLED.
AND EVERY TIME IT, WHEN IT CAME TO BUDGET TIME, THEY'D SAY, WELL, THOSE POSITIONS AREN'T FILLED.
WE'RE TAKING IT OUTTA YOUR BUDGET.
SO THAT'S, YOU NEED, THAT'S THE ONLY THING IS IF YOU'RE GONNA DO PART-TIME AND MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A LIST TO FILL THOSE POSITIONS WHEN THEY COME OPEN AGAIN.
'CAUSE THAT'S WHAT HAPPENED THE LAST TIME.
I'VE NEVER WORKED IN A LIBRARY THAT DIDN'T HAVE PART-TIME STAFF.
I, I'D LIKE TO JUST SAY SOMETHING AND I HAVEN'T BEEN ON THE BOARD VERY LONG, SO I HOPE THIS ISN'T SOMETHING THAT'S ALREADY BEEN BROUGHT UP.
I THINK A LOT OF THE PROBLEM IS IT SEEMS THAT THE FILLMAN BRANCH WAS CLOSED PREEMPTIVELY.
IN OTHER WORDS, THERE WASN'T MUCH NOTICE OR DISCUSSION.
AND AS I SAID, I HAVEN'T BEEN ON THE BOARD, UH, LONG AND MY FAMILY USE THE, I'M SORRY.
MY, MY FAMILY HAPPENED TO USE THE SKILLMAN BRANCH EVERY WEEK, AND IT WAS ALWAYS FULL OF PEOPLE USING COMPUTERS AND CHILDREN.
UM, SO WE, WE HAVE MOVED TO, OH, I HAVE IT, BUT MY DAUGHTER HAS, I THINK THE LAKEWOOD BRANCH
[00:55:01]
AND IT'S NOT ALL SATISFACTORY.NOW, I KNOW THAT THE SKILLMAN BRANCH WAS ALSO PHYSICALLY AS A BUILDING, SMALLER THAN SOME OF THE NEWER BRANCHES.
UM, BUT IT DID CAUSE A LOT OF ANGUISH IN ALL PARTS OF DALLAS.
UM, THE OTHER THING I WANT TO SAY ABOUT THAT IS THERE WILL BE SOME SAVINGS FROM THE SKILLMAN BRANCH BEING CLOSED.
WILL THAT MONEY GO TO THE LIBRARY OR WILL JUST GO BACK TO THE CITY? AND IT SEEMS TO BE PROPERTY THAT IS, UM, RIGHT FOR DEVELOPMENT, EITHER COMMERCIAL OR SOME OTHER.
AND WELL, THE MONEY EVEN SOLD GOES FOR THE SALE OF THE LAND.
I'M SURE WE'LL GO TO THE CITY AND NOT THE LIBRARY, WHICH IS VERY UNFORTUNATE.
THAT'S KIND OF A COMMENT, UNLESS THE LIBRARY CAN SOMEHOW PERSUADE THE CITY THAT WE DID THEM A FAVOR AND GIVE US THE MONEY.
UH, THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION, SANDRA.
AND I JUST WANNA REITERATE, AS I DID LAST MONTH, I WOULD LOVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO SIT DOWN WITH YOU AND, AND TALK THROUGH.
UM, I, SO THIS, THE SKILLMAN SOUTHWESTERN BRANCH, UH, CLOSED AT THE END OF LAST FISCAL YEAR.
SO THERE'S NO SAVINGS TO BE FOUND IN THIS YEAR WITH SKILLMAN, UH, SKILLMAN.
THE CLOSURE OF SKILLMAN WAS A TOPIC OF CONVERSATION FOR, FOR TWO YEARS.
I BELIEVE, UH, AMONGST THE CITY AND THE COMMUNITY.
AND I DID, IF THIS IS NOT ON YOUR RADAR, UH, THE BUILDING WAS AUCTIONED OFF BY THE CITY LAST WEEK OR TWO WEEKS AGO.
I LOST TRACK AND WAS NOT ON MY RADAR.
IT'S, IT SOLD FOR $3.3 MILLION.
TO YOUR QUESTION, THAT MONEY DOES NOT GO TO THE LIBRARY.
JUST LIKE REVENUE DOESN'T GO TO THE LIBRARY.
THAT MONEY DID NOT GO TO THE LIBRARY.
SO THE SAVINGS THAT, THAT WE FOUND BY CLOSING THE BRANCH, UM, THAT WASN'T SAVINGS THAT, THAT, THAT WE THEN GET TO USE IN OTHER WAYS.
IT'S, IT'S REALLY MORE OF A, UM, IT, IT, THAT GOES AWAY.
AND I THINK THAT'S VERY UNFORTUNATE.
NOT, NOT, NOT, NOT, NOT YOU DID, BUT FOR THE CITY TO DO.
THEN SINCE I MAY HAVE THE MAYOR'S EAR, I WILL EXPRESS THAT TO HIM.
I UNDERSTAND SHE HAS TO LEAVE AT, UM, SIX FEET.
I DON'T WANNA, IF IF ANYONE HAS ANOTHER DATA QUESTION, I DON'T, I DON'T WANT TO MISS IT.
AND I DON'T, I THINK MYS IS, AND ROBIN AND ROBIN, WELL, I'LL ROBIN.
DO YOU HAVE A DATA QUESTION THAT YOU NEED, DOCTOR? UH, I GUESS MY QUESTION IS MORE SO IN TERMS OF BUDGET, SO, OKAY.
I HOPE IT WAS HELPFUL IN SOME WAY.
YOU HAVE FUN IN YOUR HOT ROOM.
UM, I'LL LET RO ROBIN HASN'T SPOKEN YET.
UM, I HAD QUESTION, QUESTION ACTUALLY ABOUT LIKE THE COUNCIL DIRECTION, UM MM-HMM
AND I, I HATE TO ASK A STAFF MEMBER TO SPEAK ON BEHALF OF COUNCIL, BUT I WAS CURIOUS, THEY ASKED, UH, FOR AN ANALYSIS OF THE PROXIMITY OF LIBRARIES TO SIMILAR PUBLIC BUILDINGS.
AND I'M NOT CLEAR IF BEING PROXIMATE WOULD BE, UH, DING OR NOT ON THE LIBRARY BECAUSE UHHUH
I CAN'T SPEAK ON, ON BEHALF OF COUNCIL ON THAT.
UM, I'M NOT, I THINK IT MIGHT VARY.
I THINK SOME MIGHT SEE THAT AS IF, IF THERE ARE OTHER CITY FACILITIES, LIKE CITY FACILITIES IN THE AREA AROUND THAT LIBRARY, THEY SEE THAT AS WELL, WE CAN LET GO OF THE LIBRARY OR IF THERE'S A DEARTH OF THEM OR WE CAN'T LET GO OF THE LIBRARY.
EK AND HER TEAM HAVE BEEN RUNNING AND OVERLAY OF THAT FOR ME.
BUT, BUT TO YOUR POINT, I'M, I THINK IT MIGHT VARY ON WHAT THEY OKAY.
I JUST WASN'T SURE IF THE DIRECTION CAME WITH A REALLY CLEAR, I DON'T THINK IT WAS OVERTONE
I THINK IT DEPENDS ON THE COUNCIL DISTRICT.
FOR EXAMPLE, GATE ON L WILLIS SEES THE FACT THAT THERE IS NOT A REC CENTER NEAR VICKERY AS THAT THE LIBRARY IS MORE NEEDED.
AND THAT WAS HER, ONE OF HER PRIMARY ARGUMENTS IN TRYING TO GET THAT LOCATION OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK, IS THAT IT IS THE ONLY CITY PUBLIC SPACE IN THAT NEIGHBORHOOD.
AND SO IT ACTS AS THE REC CENTER AND IT ACTS AS A COMMUNITY CENTER.
AND, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF CITY OF DALLAS MEETINGS ARE HELD THERE.
PUBLIC HEARINGS AND PUBLIC, UH,
[01:00:01]
FORUMS ARE THERE, BUT IN OTHER PLACES THAT MIGHT NOT BE THE CASE.WELL, AND COUNCIL MEMBER MEN, MENDELSSOHN POINTED OUT THAT RENT FRANKFURT IS THE ONLY PUBLIC MUNICIPAL BUILDING IN HER DISTRICT, RIGHT.
IT'S IN THE DALLAS PART OF COLLIN COUNTY.
SHE ACTUALLY HAS TWO LIBRARIES.
YEAH, BUT THOSE ARE FURTHER SOUTH.
BRET'S IS NOT IN HER DISTRICT.
THAT'S IN COUNCIL MEMBER ROTH'S DISTRICT.
MSIKA, UH, YOU HAD YOUR HAND UP AGAIN.
UM, SO, UH, I REMEMBERED WHAT SOME OF MY QUESTIONS WERE.
SO IN TERMS OF THAT SURVEY THAT, UM, IS ON THE WEBSITE, I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT MY CONSTITUENTS ARE, UM, ARE QUESTIONING OR CONCERNED ABOUT IS OBVIOUSLY THEY'RE TRYING TO PROMOTE THE NEED FOR THE LIBRARY AND WANT TO TAKE ACTION TO HELP PROMOTE AN INCREASE IN BUDGET.
BUT WITH SOME OF THESE SURVEYS, UM, THERE'S, TO THEM, THERE'S NO CLEAR DIRECTION ON IF THEY'RE WANTING TO HEAR, YOU KNOW, ALL THE GREAT THINGS THE LIBRARY IS DOING, OR IF THEY'RE WANTING TO HEAR THINGS IN TERMS OF LIKE, HEY, THESE ARE SOME IMPROVEMENTS OR NEEDS THAT WE HAVE TO THEN HELP PROVIDE YOU WITH, WITH DATA THAT WILL SUPPORT INCREASING LIBRARY BUDGETS.
AND THEN, UM, AND SO I WOULD LOVE TO KNOW IN TERMS OF THE SURVEY THAT'S GOING TO BE CLOSING ON THURSDAY, WHICH ONE OF THOSE TWO CATEGORIES THAT FALLS IN.
AND THEN THE SECONDARY QUESTION THAT I HAVE, AND THIS IS, UM, BUDGET BASED, BECAUSE I WORK IN PRI IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR.
AND SO WHAT I KNOW ABOUT HOW BUDGETS TYPICALLY WORK IS, YOU KNOW, IF YOU, YOU EITHER USE IT OR YOU LOSE IT.
UM, AND SO ONE OF THE OTHER QUESTIONS THAT I HAVE IS, UM, IF WE ARE ABLE TO REDUCE SPEND AND MEET THE NEW BUDGET REQUIREMENT, UM, THAT THE, IT'S A TWOFOLD BECAUSE I, FROM MY UNDERSTANDING, THAT IS ALSO SHOWCASING TO THE BUDGET TEAMS OR FINANCE TEAMS THAT WE CAN WORK IN A CONSTRAINED BUDGET.
AND SO HOW DO WE, UH, SHOWCASE THAT WE DO STILL NEED BUDGET? BECAUSE IF WE'RE WORKING WITHIN THE NEW BUDGET THAT THEY ARE PROVIDING, WE'RE SHOWING THAT WE CAN WORK WITH JUST THAT AMOUNT.
AND, UM, IT MAKES, IN MY MIND IN TERMS OF THE DATA, IT DOESN'T HELP BECAUSE, UM, IT, IT'S SHOWING WE CAN WORK IN THAT BUDGET.
SO WHAT WOULD BE THE NEED TO INCREASE THE BUDGET IN THE FUTURE? WELL, JUST, MAY I ADD, SO THIS IS PATTY.
OVER THE YEARS, THAT'S BEEN A QUESTION BECAUSE AS THE LIBRARY HAS WORKED TO WORK WITHIN THE BUDGET THAT'S BEEN GIVEN US, IT'S BEEN APPLAUDED THAT IT HAS BEEN ABLE TO CUT ITS BUDGET AND WORK WITHIN IT.
SO I THINK IT'S, IT'S A, IT'S A NEGATIVE ALSO.
WELL, I, I WILL JUST POINT OUT THAT WE AREN'T, WE ARE OBVIOUSLY WORKING WITHIN THE BUDGET WE'RE GIVEN BECAUSE WE HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO DO SO.
BUT, UM, WE'RE NOT DOING MORE WITH LESS.
OUR BUDGET PROPOSAL SHOWS THAT THESE CUTS ARE DEEP AND PAINFUL AND THAT WE CAN'T JUST ABSORB THEM.
SO, UM, TO YOUR QUESTION, MISS, I MEAN, THAT'S A, THAT'S A TOUGH ONE.
WE NEED OUR CHAMPIONS, OUR COMMUNITIES TO, TO TELL THE CITY THAT, UM, THEY WANT MORE FROM THEIR LIBRARY AND TO GET MORE, WE NEED A SUSTAINABLE LONG-TERM BUDGET, BUT WE ARE GIVEN A TARGET AND, AND, AND THAT'S SORT OF WHAT IT IS.
AND I HA I HAVE TO PRESENT A BUDGET THAT MEETS THE TARGET.
AND SO WHEN WE HAVE BUDGET SAVINGS REQUIRED THREE YEARS IN A ROW THAT ARE QUITE SUBSTANTIAL, I HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO PUT UP THINGS THAT, THAT HURT BECAUSE I HAVE NOTHING LEFT OTHER THAN THAT.
UM, FOR YOUR OTHER QUESTION ABOUT THE SURVEY, I'M GONNA ASK DENISE MCGOVERN, THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE FRIENDS TO ANSWER, BECAUSE IT'S ACTUALLY THE FRIENDS WHO ARE SPONSORING THE SURVEY, AND I THINK SHE CAN GIVE A BETTER RESPONSE TO YOUR QUESTION.
UM, REALLY THE, THE KEY TO THE SURVEY IS NOT ABOUT, UM, LOOKING AT, AT THINGS WITHIN THE LIBRARY TO POINT OUT SPECIFICALLY, BUT VERY MUCH TOWARDS
[01:05:01]
USAGE OF THE LIBRARY.UM, SO A LOT OF THE QUESTIONS THAT ARE IN THERE HAVE TO DO WITH HOW FREQUENTLY, UM, YOU USE THE LIBRARY, THE REASONS THAT YOU USED THE LIBRARY.
UM, I, I'M THINKING OF SOME OTHER THINGS, BUT IT WAS A LOT ABOUT USAGE VERSUS MM-HMM
UM, WANTING TO, TO POINT OUT WHY THE BUDGET WOULD BE INCREASED, IF THE BUDGET WOULD WANT TO BE INCREASED.
SO IT'S, IT'S LESS ABOUT THE SPECIFICS OF THE REASON WHY AND WANTING TO, UM, TO SHOW HOW PEOPLE ARE USING IT AND THAT THEY USE IT ROBUSTLY.
UM, I KNOW WE HAVE STILL SOME BIG ITEMS ON THE AGENDA LEFT.
IS THERE ANY LAST, UM, DONNA? YES, I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THE SURVEY.
SO IT WAS, IT'S REALLY LESS THAN TWO WEEKS THAT IT'S BEEN LIVE.
THAT, THAT I COULD TELL MM-HMM
AND A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T KNOW ABOUT IT.
UM, I HAVE A LITTLE CONCERN ON THE LIBRARY PAGE WHERE IT SAID, TAKE THE SURVEY THAT DIDN'T, YOU KNOW, YOU HAD TO DO THE PICTURE, BUT IT DIDN'T SAY CLICK ON IMAGE, CLICK HERE.
SO I, I DON'T KNOW IF PEOPLE GAVE UP OR DIDN'T DO IT.
CAN YOU JUST TELL ME HOW MANY LIBRARY CARDS WE HAVE AND HOW MANY SURVEYS HAVE BEEN TURNED IN? NOT, YOU KNOW, NOT, NOT GOING THROUGH THEM.
UH, WE KNOW THAT WE'VE HAD OVER 3000 PEOPLE COMPLETE THE SURVEY AND HOW MANY, HOW MANY LIBRARY CARDS, HOW MANY LIBRARY CARDS, HOW, HOW MANY LIBRARY CARDS HAVE, DOES, HAS THE DA, UH, DPD DALLAS PUBLIC LIBRARY ISSUED ISSUED OR HALF HALF? HOW MANY PE HOW MANY ACTIVE LIBRARY CARDS? I'M SORRY THAT I CAN'T HAVE 650,000 OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
BUT I, I WILL TELL YOU THAT 3000 PEOPLE IN A WEEK AND A HALF IS PRETTY SUBSTANTIAL.
THERE'S ONLY MORE DAYS FOR A SURVEY FOR LIKE, OF THIS, OF THIS SIZE.
UM, I, I'M, WE'RE VERY PLEASED WITH THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE COMPLETED THE SURVEY.
WE'VE SEEN IT AMPLIFIED ALL OVER IN, UM, IN, ON MESSAGE BOARDS.
IN, IN, I, WELL, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'RE BUCKNER TERRACE OR NOT, BUT I KNOW THE BUCKNER TERRACE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION HAS REALLY BEEN PUSHING IT OUT.
UM, IT IS OUT THERE AND WE'RE REALLY EXCITED BY OVER 3000 RESPONDENTS.
WE CAN'T KEEP IT OPEN ANY LONGER.
THE TIMELINE FOR WHEN I HAVE TO SUBMIT, UH, THE PRESENTATION FOR THE QUACK MEETING AND THEN ALL OF THE PERMUTATIONS AND APPROVALS IT HAS TO GO THROUGH, IT NEEDS TO CLOSE THIS WEEK SO THAT I CAN GET THE RESULTS.
SO I I STILL THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T, DON'T KNOW ABOUT IT.
SO EVERY, EVERY DAY, I, SOME PEOPLE DON'T GET EMAILS FROM THE LIBRARY, BUT EVERY DAY, YOU KNOW, ACCOUNT ALERTS, EVEN I THINK ON SUNDAY I GET ACCOUNT ALERT AND EMAIL, UH, I WAS WHY CAN'T PEOPLE WHO HAVE ACCOUNTS BE SENT OUT? PLEASE TAKE THE SURVEY.
CAN WE DO THAT SOUND? I'LL HAVE TO LOOK.
THAT'S A DIFFERENT COMPANY THAT RUN THAT IS INITIATING THAT.
I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH WHAT THAT ALERT IS.
I DON'T KNOW HOW WELL IT WILL DO A URL BECAUSE IT'S A VERY TEXT.
IT WOULD HAVE TO HAPPEN TOMORROW.
STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT ENOUGH TO, BUT THE PERSON TO BEAT, I'M SAYING SUBJECT CHAIR, BUT THE PERSON THAT THEY, THEY WANNA KEEP THEIR, THEIR, UH, TRASH IN THEIR ALLEY.
SO THEY GOT, THEY GOT 20,000 SIGNATURES.
BASICALLY, IT'S A SURVEY, YOU KNOW, THEY, AND JUST, YOU KNOW, NOBODY CAN DO THAT FOR CITY HALL.
THEY'VE ONLY GOT SIX TH SO SOMEBODY REALLY ORGANIZED THIS PERSON,
WELL, WELL, THEY'VE BEEN DOING THAT A LONG, OVER A LONG PERIOD OF TIME TOO.
ANYWAY, I JUST THINK PEOPLE STILL DON'T KNOW.
AND THEY'RE JUST GONNA WAKE UP ONE DAY AND THEY'RE GONNA GO, MY LIBRARY'S CLOSED.
YOU KNOW, THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE LIKE ON THE, NOT IN LAKEWOOD PROPER, BUT ON THE OTHER SIDE, YOU KNOW, WEST, UH, SOUTH SOUTHWEST WHO WALK TO THE LIBRARY TO USE THE COMPUTERS.
THEY'RE JUST GONNA WAKE UP ONE DAY AND GO, OH MY, WHAT HAPPENED? NOT, NOT LAKEWOOD, BUT OAK LAWN.
UH, THEY'RE JUST, THE LIBRARY'S CLOSED.
UH, WE ARE TRYING, OKAY, WE ARE TRYING TO PUT THE WORD OUT ABOUT THINGS.
IT'S, IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO COMMUNICATE WITH 1.3 MILLION PEOPLE.
AND MANY, AND THAT'S WHY WE NEED MANY PEOPLE.
WE NEED THE COMMUNITIES TO AMPLIFY IT.
WE NEED PEOPLE TO PUT IT ON NEXTDOOR THROUGH THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATIONS IN THE NEWSPAPER.
I MEAN, WE, WE RELY ON THAT KIND OF AMPLIFICATION.
WE, THE LIBRARY CANNOT DO IT ALL ON OUR OWN.
UM, BUT, BUT TO ANNE'S POINT, 3000 IS PRETTY GOOD FOR A SURVEY THAT'S BEEN OPEN A WEEK.
SO YOU, SO THE LIBRARY ACTUALLY POSTED IT ON NEXTDOOR? NO, I SAID WE RELY ON OUR PARTNERS TO DO THAT.
WE RELY ON, BUT THEY HAVE, THEY HAVE AN ACCOUNT.
THE
[01:10:01]
POST GENERAL.I'M SAYING WE NEED OUR PARTNERS TO DO THAT.
WE NEED OUR BOARDS TO DO THAT.
WE NEED, I, I MEAN, I SAW ROBIN ON FACEBOOK RESPONDING TO AFTER THE QUACK, UM, UH, PRESENTATION WAS POSTED THAT FRIDAY RESPONDING.
AND THERE IS A REASON I HAVE BROUGHT YOU ALL ALONG IN THIS PROCESS AND HAVE TRIED TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT'S HAPPENING AND ARE INFORMED BECAUSE YOU ARE, UM, A REPRESENTATIVE OF, OF THE LIBRARY TO THE COMMUNITY.
I I CANNOT TALK TO 1.3 MILLION PEOPLE, SO PLEASE AMPLIFY THE SURVEY.
WE, WE HAVE ALL DAY TOMORROW AND ALL DAY THURSDAY.
IT'S CLOSING FRIDAY MORNING, MELISSA OR DENISE, LATE IN THE DAY THURSDAY, LIKE END OF THE DAY THURSDAY.
SO WE HAVE TWO MORE DAYS THAT IT'S OPEN.
ANYTHING YOU CAN DO TO PUSH PEOPLE TO TAKE IT IS MUCH APPRECIATED.
OH, AND THE COUNCIL MEMBERS HAVE AMPLIFIED IT TOO.
I, I MEAN, WE AND THE NEWSLETTERS.
I KNOW WE STILL HAVE SOME BIG ITEMS REMAINING, SO I WAS GONNA MOVE ON.
TO IT TO, UM, OUR FRIENDS AT THE DALLAS PUBLIC LIBRARY UPDATE, UM, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR DENISE MCGOVERN IS HERE TO, TO DELIVER AN UPDATE.
I KNOW IF I'M A BIG ITEM ON THE AGENDA, BUT I'M IN, I'M, I'M HERE.
AND I WAS ALWAYS VERY HAPPY, UM, TO BE HERE AND VERY HAPPY TO, TO HEAR YOU ALL TALK.
SO, UM, ASK A LOT OF QUESTIONS ABOUT WHERE EVERYTHING IS GOING.
I THINK THAT THIS IS DIFFICULT TO DESCRIBE TO ALL OF OUR CONSTITUENTS AND EVEN TO OUR MEMBERS TO UNDERSTAND WHERE, UM, THE SCENARIOS ARE AND WHAT THE REACTION IS TO, UM, TO THE BUDGET CUT.
AND JUST TO LET YOU ALL KNOW, UM, FROM THE FRIEND STANDPOINT, WE DO BELIEVE IN THE FLAGSHIP MODEL, BUT WE DO NOT SUPPORT LIBRARY CLOSURES.
AND SO WHAT WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE HAPPEN IS THAT THE, THE, THE CITY RESTORE THE 2.6 MILLION INTO NEXT YEAR'S BUDGET, SO THAT WE ARE NOT ABLE TO, WE DON'T HAVE TO CLOSE BRANCHES AND, AND THE LIBRARY SYSTEM HAS THE MONEY THAT THEY WOULD HAVE IF THE CUT HADN'T COME THROUGH.
BUT THAT WE DO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO LOOK AT THE FLAGSHIPS AND THE FLEXIBILITY AND SOME OF THE THINGS THAT CAN BE DONE WITH THAT MODEL.
UM, I ALSO DO WANNA SAY THAT, UM, WE WOULD LOVE TO HAVE ALL PEOPLE IN YOUR AREA, PLEASE SPEAK UP FOR THIS.
WE'D LIKE TO HAVE FOLKS JOIN THE FRIENDS, HELP US IN WHATEVER WAY THAT YOU CAN TO GET THE WORD OUT, BECAUSE WE DON'T WANNA SEE ANY LIBRARIES CLOSE.
WE KNOW HOW IMPORTANT THEY ARE TO YOU.
WE KNOW HOW DIFFICULT IT IS TO TAKE ALL OF THIS BUDGET AWAY FROM THE LIBRARY.
SO THAT IS WHERE WE ARE ON THAT.
IF, UM, JUST TO BE VERY CLEAR ON HOW EVERYTHING, UM, ON WHERE THE FRIENDS ARE AND WHAT WE ARE TALKING ABOUT, UM, AGAIN, THE SURVEY REALLY HAS COME THROUGH WITH, WITH WHAT IT IS.
AND JUST VERY QUICKLY TO YOUR POINT, BECAUSE I DO HAVE, UM, THE ABILITY TO TALK, WE HAVE SENT THAT OUT TO OUR MEMBERS.
WE HAVE A 4,000 PERSON MAILING LIST.
WE ARE BOOSTING OUR SOCIAL AND HAVE SENT IT TO EVERY COUNCIL PERSON WITH A PERSONAL NOTE, UM, AS WELL AS PUTTING IT ON ALL SORTS OF PLACES.
UM, OUR BOARD CHAIR COULD BE THE MOST INCREDIBLE TEXTING PERSON IN THE UNIVERSE, AND IT'S POSSIBLE THAT SHE HAS TEXTED HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE THIS WEEK, AND I'M NOT KIDDING.
UM, AND THEN I WAS GONNA TALK ABOUT
SEAN'S GONNA TEE THAT UP IF WE CAN, IF YOU DON'T MIND MOVING TO THE FACILITIES REPORT.
IF WE CAN, UM, THANK YOU, DENISE.
IF WE CAN MOVE ON TO THE, UH, STAFF REPORTS AND ALSO YEAH.
FACILITIES AND ONE I'LL GO AHEAD FOR TIME.
I'LL JUMP STRAIGHT TO THE CREEPERS.
UM, YOU KNOW, OF COURSE A LOT'S HAPPENED THERE.
ULTIMATELY WE HAD TO MOVE EVERYTHING OUT OF THE BRANCH, OF COURSE, TO GET ALL THE WATER OUT.
THAT MEANT WE DID END UP LOSING THE COLLECTION.
UM, THERE WAS WATER RESTORATION, WATER EXTRACTION, AND DRYING EFFORTS THAT STARTED RIGHT AWAY ON THE, THE 28TH AND 29TH.
UH, THERE'S TESTING THAT'S NEEDING TO BE DONE TO ENSURE THAT WE HAVE AN UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT MOLD CONDITIONS ARE OR ANY OTHER, UH, RELATED ISSUES THAT'S GOING ON RIGHT NOW.
UM, FROM THERE, THEY ALSO HAVE HAD TO PULL OUT THE FLOORING, AND WE'RE GOING TO END UP GETTING A FULL SCOPE OF REPAIR.
A CONTRACTOR IS GOING THROUGH EVERYTHING TO GIVE US A SENSE OF WHAT THE PRICING IS GOING TO BE, AS WELL AS THE OVERALL SCOPE OF WHAT IT WILL TAKE TO BRING IT BACK TO A CONDITION THAT WILL ALLOW US TO REOPEN.
THE CITY DOES HAVE A, UH, WE'RE SELF-INSURED.
WE HAVE A PROCESS THAT WE HAVE TO MEET A $750,000 DEDUCTIBLE IN ORDER TO ACCOMPLISH, UH, GETTING REIMBURSEMENT FOR ALL OF THESE EXPENSES.
WE FEEL PRETTY CONFIDENT THAT WE'RE EASILY GOING TO BE ABLE TO,
[01:15:01]
TO REACH THAT.UH, WE WILL KNOW IN THE COMING WEEKS WHAT A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT OUR TIMELINE IS GOING TO BE TO BE ALLOWED TO REOPEN.
UH, LET ME FILL IN A LITTLE, AND THEN I'M GONNA THROW IT TO DENISE.
I AM VERY EXCITED, AND I KNOW THERE'S SOME KLEBERG PEOPLE.
I HOPE THEY'RE STILL LISTENING.
UM, WE HAVE BEEN WOR WELL, I'M GONNA GIVE FULL CREDIT TO MELISSA D SHE HAS BEEN WORKING WITH THE PARKS DEPARTMENT.
KLEBERG RILEY HAS A REC CENTER RIGHT NEXT DOOR.
IT'S CALLED THE KLEBERG RILEY REC CENTER.
AND WE, WE ARE, MELISSA HAS BEEN WORKING WITH THEM, AND THEY HAVE GIVEN US A ROOM TO STAND UP INTERIM LIBRARY SERVICE.
AND SINCE COMPUTERS ARE SOMETHING THAT PEOPLE AT, UH, BERG RILEY LIBRARY USE QUITE A BIT, WE'RE GONNA TAKE OVER, UH, MANAGEMENT OF THE COMPUTERS, AND THEN WE'LL HAVE A SMALL BROWSING COLLECTION, SOME SEATING, AND THAT'S ABOUT, IT HOLDS PICKUP AND RETURNS.
AND THEN THEY HAVE A PROGRAM ROOM THAT WE CAN USE TO OFFER, UH, PROGRAMMING.
AND, UH, YOU KNOW, HERE IN THIS BUILDING, WE HAVE SOME FURNITURE WE CAN TAKE OUT THERE.
WE'RE FINE TO SET UP THE LIBRARY, BUT, UH, I, I'M REALLY, YOU YOU WANNA SAY IT OR DO YOU WANT ME TO SAY, I JUST REALIZED I DIDN'T ACTUALLY TEE YOU UP.
I WAS JUST GONNA SAY I JUST TOOK OVER BEFORE I SEND IT TO YOU.
UM, LET ME, LET ME LET YOU KNOW THE HOURS.
THIS IS GOING TO OPEN MONDAY, MONDAY, MARCH 2ND.
SO WE'RE, WE'RE REALLY PUSHING THIS, UH, BECAUSE WE'RE AWARE THAT THE COMMUNITY HAS BEEN WITHOUT LIBRARY SERVICE FOR, HAS IT BEEN A MONTH NOW? IT'S BEEN ALMOST A MONTH.
UM, SO THE HOURS, UH, THE, THE, MY UNDERSTANDING IS THE LIBRARY AND THE REC CENTER ARE BUSIEST IN THE AFTERNOONS.
UH, SO WE ARE GOING TO BE OPEN MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY, 11:00 AM TO 8:00 PM AND FRIDAY, TWO TO SEVEN.
THAT MATCHES THE CLOSING TIMES OF THE REC CENTER, I BELIEVE.
SO WE'LL CLOSE WITH THE REC CENTER, NOT OPEN ON THE WEEKENDS.
THE REC CENTERS REALLY AREN'T OPEN VERY MUCH ON THE WEEKENDS, SO WE'RE NOT, WE'RE NOT EVEN GONNA TRY THAT.
SO AGAIN, THAT'S MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY, 11:00 AM TO 8:00 PM FRIDAY, TWO TO SEVEN.
AND THEN, UM, I, I, I, I WANNA THROW IT TO DENISE TO, TO SHARE THE, IT'S EXTREMELY GOOD NEWS AND GENEROSITY THAT THE FRIENDS ARE SHOWING TOWARDS KLEBERG.
UM, WE ARE OBVIOUSLY HERE TO HELP SUPPORT THE LIBRARIES, ESPECIALLY IN TIMES OF NEED.
AND, UM, WE WILL BE PROVIDING $5,000 TO THE, UM, TO THAT BRANCH TO HELP SET UP THOSE ROOMS TO PROVIDE A LOT OF THE THINGS THAT ARE JUST OUT KIND OF OUTSIDE OF WHAT WOULD BE PART OF IT.
SO WHEN, UM, WE TALKED ABOUT IT, A LOT OF THE CHILDREN'S PIECES OF, OF, YOU KNOW, WHAT DO THEY CALL MANIPULABLES AND CARPET SQUARES AND STANDING UP THINGS IN ORDER TO ACTUALLY BE ABLE TO DO IT, BECAUSE YOU CAN PUT A COMPUTER IN A ROOM AND A TABLE AND A CHAIR, AND IT'S NOT THE SAME THING AS BEING ABLE TO MAKE IT FEEL LIKE A WELCOMING PLACE.
AND THAT'S REALLY THE POINT OF LIBRARIES IN GENERAL, IS FOR US TO BE ABLE TO CREATE REALLY WARM AND WONDERFUL COMMUNITY SPACES.
SO WHEN, UM, IN THIS SHORT PERIOD OF TIME, WE HOPE THAT THEY CAN TAKE THIS FUNDING AND USE IT TO BE ABLE TO BUILD THAT OUT TO SOMETHING THAT IS MORE COMFORTABLE AND, UM, HAS A LITTLE BIT MORE FUN FOR THE, FOR THE COMMUNITY THAT'S THERE IN THE TIME THAT THEY'RE, THAT THEY'RE THERE.
SO AGAIN, THE FRIENDS OF THE DALLAS PUBLIC LIBRARY ARE GIVING $5,000 TO HELP SUPPORT THE INTERIM KLEBERG RILEY BRANCH LIBRARY.
WE DO NOT HAVE A TIMELINE YET FOR WHEN KLEBERG RILEY WILL REOPEN.
IT WILL REOPEN, IT WILL REOPEN.
WE JUST ARE WAITING ON THE FACILITIES DEPARTMENT TO DO THEIR TESTS AND DO THEIR ASSESSMENTS AND, AND GIVE US A TIMELINE.
WE SIMPLY DO NOT HAVE THAT NOW.
BUT I AM SO PLEASED THAT WE WILL BE ABLE TO OFFER SOME SEMBLANCE OF LIBRARY SERVICE DURING THE CLOSURE.
AND SEAN, YOU SAID THE, AT KLEBERG RILEY, THERE WAS A LOSS OF THE COLLECTION.
LIKE AS IN ALL THE PRINT MATERIALS, WE, WE WORKED, OUR TEAM DID A PHENOMENAL JOB TO GET EVERY SINGLE ITEM OUT OF THERE WITHIN A DAY OF DISCOVERING WHAT WAS GOING ON.
AND DESPITE OUR BEST EFFORTS, BECAUSE OF THE HUMIDITY THAT HAD HAPPENED, WE HAD THE ENVIRON, THE OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY COME THROUGH, AND THEY MADE A DETERMINATION THAT THERE WAS A MOLD RISK, AND THAT ULTIMATELY WE STARTED TO SEE SOME SIGNS TO WHERE WE HAD TO HAVE A VENDOR COME OUT AND IT NEEDED TO BE DISPOSED OF.
WE ULTIMATELY HAD TO ELIMINATE ALL OF THE PHYSICAL BOOKS.
WE WERE ABLE TO SAVE THE, THE MEDIA, THE DVDS AND CDS, THOSE ITEMS, WHICH WERE IN A PLASTIC CASING MM-HMM
BUT THE ACTUAL PHYSICAL BOOKS WERE ULTIMATELY, UH, THROWN AWAY.
YOU WANNA TALK ABOUT RENNER SINCE WE'VE BEEN DOWN THIS ROAD BEFORE? YEAH.
IT WAS SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT BECAUSE THE, UH, THE PIPES BURST, I BELIEVE IN THE CEILING AND, AND WATER CAME DOWN.
[01:20:01]
WAS NOT THIS, THAT, THIS WAS WATER FLOODING THE FLOORING, BUT IT WAS A SIMILAR HUMIDITY ISSUE AND, AND MOLD ISSUE.AND THAT ENTIRE COLLECTION WAS LOST AS WELL.
MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT, UM, A REPLACEMENT COLLECTION WAS PAID FOR THROUGH THE, IN THE INSURANCE.
SO WE'RE HOPING IT WILL BE THE SAME HERE.
I DON'T THINK IT'S, IT'S LIKE A YEAR OR SOMETHING, BUT THE RESTORE, I DON'T THINK THE COLLECTION WAS 2 MILLION.
WELL, NO, I MEAN, THE WHOLE, YEAH.
THE SCOPE WAS, OH, I'M HAPPY TO SAY THE SCOPE OF THIS IS NOT NEARLY AS SUBSTANTIAL AS WHAT WAS THERE, BUT OF COURSE IT IS DEVASTATING REGARDLESS.
ONCE WE KNOW THE TIMELINE, I'M, I WILL SHARE IT WITH THE BOARD.
HOW DID IT END UP FLOODING AGAIN? WHAT HAPPENED? OH, THE PIPE BURST.
IN THE MECHANICAL SPACE, DURING THAT HEART FREEZE, THINK RIGHT AROUND THE TIME THAT IT STARTED TO THAW OUT THAT FIRST DAY MM-HMM
IT, IT, IT NOT ONLY IT BURST, BUT IT BURST IN SUCH A WAY THAT THE PRESSURE WAS JUST CONSTANT.
AND SO IT, IT, IT WAS ABLE TO COVER A LOT OF SPACE VERY QUICKLY.
AND, UM, AND, AND, AND THE POWER AND THE FORCE.
I CAN ALSO TELL YOU THE PIPE, IT DIDN'T JUST SPLIT, IT COMPLETELY BURST IN HALF, LIKE STRAIGHT, SLICED IN HALF.
THERE WAS A LOT OF PRESSURE BEHIND IT.
THERE WAS UPWARDS OF TWO INCHES THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE, THROUGHOUT FOUR AT THE BRANCH.
AND BECAUSE WE WERE CLOSED FOR THREE DAYS, WE DON'T KNOW HOW LONG IT SAT THERE, BUT IT SAT THERE LONG ENOUGH TO CREATE THOSE HUMID CONDITIONS THAT THEN DAMAGED THE, THE COLLECTION.
THERE WASN'T ICE IN THE SURROUNDING, BUT, SO WE KNOW THAT IT WAS JUST RIGHT WITHIN A DAY OF US.
CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THE STAFF? WHAT, UM, THE STAFF FOR THAT BRANCH? OH, SURE.
THE STAFF HAS BEEN ASSIGNED TO OTHER LOCATIONS.
AS YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING IS HOLDING VACANCIES OPEN AS WE CAN IN THE HOPES OF NOT HAVING, IN THE REGIONAL MODEL THAT I PRESENTED, UH, AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, IT HAS ELIMINATION OF APPROXIMATELY 32 FTE.
UM, OUR HOPE IS THAT WE CAN SAVE THE PEOPLE BY MOVING THEM INTO VACANCIES.
THIS IS SOMETHING WE DID WITH SKILLMAN.
SO NONE OF THE SKILLMAN STAFF ACTUALLY LOST THEIR JOBS.
WE MOVED THEM INTO VACANCIES, AND THEN THE POSITION, THE POSITIONS LEFT BEHIND WERE, WERE, UH, ELIMINATED.
SO WE'VE BEEN HOLDING POSITIONS AND USING TEMPS AS WE CAN.
AND SO IT WAS PRETTY EASY JUST TO SLIDE THE KLEBERG RILEY STAFF INTO VACANT POSITIONS FOR THE TIME BEING.
AS UNTIL, UH, MELISSA'S GONNA TAKE ONE OR TWO PEOPLE TO RUN THE TEMPORARY LOCATION, WE'RE PLANNING ON JUST ONE PERSON RUNNING THE LOCATION AT A TIME WITH MAYBE A SECOND PERSON TO DO A PROGRAM.
SO THEY'LL, WE HAVE A SCHEDULE THAT WE'RE GONNA TRY OUT WHERE THEY'LL ROTATE, THEY'LL TAKE TURNS WORKING THE WORKING IN THE TEMPORARY LOCATION AS WELL AS, AND THEN GO BACK TO THEIR, THEIR GUEST SPOT.
GUESS WHAT YOU WOULD CALL IT?
PEOPLE HAVE TO GO TO THE RESTROOM.
EMPLOYEES HAVE TO HAVE A RESTROOM AND A BREAK AND A LUNCH BREAK.
OH, WELL, THEY'RE IN A REC CENTER, SO IT HAS ALL THAT.
THEY JUST CLOSED THE LOT AND SAY, WELL, WE'RE CLOSED NOW FOR YEAH.
WE'RE JUST GONNA ASK PEOPLE TO BE FLEXIBLE.
IT'S A LITTLE, IT'S A LITTLE TEMPORARY LIBRARY.
SO THEY'LL JUST PUT UP A SIGN BACK IN AN HOUR OR SOMETHING.
WAS THERE, WAS THERE ANY BOND UPDATE? UM, NO.
OR, UM, WELL, THE ONLY, THE ONLY BOND UPDATE, I SUPPOSE, WOULD BE THAT WE HAVE A COMMUNITY MEETING COMING UP IN MARCH, MARCH 24TH AT 6:00 PM FOR THE PRESTON ROYAL RENOVATION.
THAT WILL BE THE SECOND AND FINAL COMMUNITY MEETING, I BELIEVE.
WE HAVE TWO
UM, WE WILL BE SHOWING DRAFT FLOOR PLANS AT THAT MEETING, SO THAT'LL BE EXCITING.
AND, UH, DEPUTY MAYOR PRO TEM WILLIS IS ATTENDING.
IN ADDITION, I AM GOING THURSDAY NIGHT TO THE PRESTON ROYAL FRIENDS MEETING TO TALK TO THEM ABOUT POSSIBLY RAISING FUNDING FOR THE PUBLIC ART PIECE OF, UH, THE BOND PROJECT.
SO PRESTON ROYAL IS, IS MARCHING ALONG, UH, PARK FOREST AND NORTH OAK CLIFF ARE, ARE STILL BEING EXAMINED FOR THE POSSIBILITY OF MIXED USE.
UM, CBRE, WHICH IS THE COMPANY THAT THE CITY HAS HIRED TO LOOK INTO THAT DEVELOPMENT OPTION, WILL ALSO BE PRESENTING AT THE MARCH 23RD, UH, QUALITY OF LIFE.
SO IT WILL BE THAT, THAT IS NOT OURS TO PRESENT.
THAT'S REALLY A FACILITIES DEPARTMENT.
BUT, UM, I THINK, UH, THE QUACK MARCH MEETING IS GONNA BE ALL LIBRARY ALL THE TIME.
[01:25:01]
CAN JOIN US OR TUNE IN.I, I THINK IT IS BEFORE THE NEXT BOARD MEETING, IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN.
ONE DAY BEFORE ACTUALLY, YES, BECAUSE IT'S ON A MONDAY.
CAN ANY OTHER QUESTIONS BASED ON STAFF REPORTS? OKAY.
THE MEETING IS ADJOURNED AT 6:25 PM THANK YOU ALL.