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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1995/04/12 - Minutes - Joint (Library Board of Trustees) April 12, 1995 CITY OF RANCHO CUCAMONGA CITY COUNCIL MINUTES Joint Meeting with the Library Board of Trustees A. CALLTO ORDER A joint meeting of the Rancho Cucamonga City Council and the Library Board of Trustees was held on Wednesday, April 12, 1995, in the Tri-Communities Conference Room of the Civic Center, located at 10500 Civic Center Drive, Rancho Cucamonga, California. The meeting was called to order at 5:07 p.m. by Mayor William J. Alexander, Present were Councilmembers: Paul Biane (arrived 5:10 p.m.), James Curatalo, Diane Williams, and Mayor William J. Alexander. Present were Boardmembers: Gina Gregory, Laura Muna-Landa, Edward Swistock, and President Robert Howdyshell. Also present were: Jack Lam, City Manager; Jerry Fulwood, Deputy City Manager; Robert Dominguez, Administrative Services Manager; Diane O'Neal, Management Analyst II; Susan Mickey, Management Analyst I; Deborah Clark, Library Manager; Robert Karatsu, Principal Librarian; Vivian Garcia, Administrative Secretary; and Jan Sutton, Deputy City Clerk. Absent was Councilmember: Rex Gutierrez. B. ITEMS OF DISCUSSION B1. DISCUSSION OF PARKING AVAILABILITY AT LIBRARY SITE President Howdyshell stated they have asked staff to gather information for the Board regarding use of the parking lot at the library, and though it is not an immediate problem, they felt it would be in another year or two. The Board thought they should be looking at this issue now and starting to make plans for the future. Mayor Alexander asked how are they currently being impacted. Deborah Clark, Library Manager, stated the peak periods are during the storytime programs and programs for youth, and between 3:00-5:00 p.m. in the afternoons after school lets out. Jack Lam, City Manager, stated historically before the project was accomplished it was recognized that parking could be a problem at that location, but the other benefits of the location outweighed that issue. They also knew there would be limited opportunities for parking expansion because of the surrounding developments. City Council/Library Board Minutes April 12, 1995 Page 2 Councilmember Biane arrived at 5:10 p.m. Jack Lam, City Manager, stated that even though the Redevelopment Agency owned the property to the west, that was designated to be a seniors affordable housing project, though there might be a possibility of utilizing some of their parking area for the library building. He stated it was fortunate that the demand for parking at the adjacent shopping center was not that great, so that when people park there during peak periods at the library it does not create a conflict with the stores in the center. Boardmember Swistock asked if it would be possible to put in parking for the senior project prior to it being built so possibly they could use that. Jack Lam, City Manager, stated the problem is that it is not eligible. The parking will depend on the design of the project, and it has to meet the needs of the seniors. They have a developer that is interested in the project, but they would have to wait unlJl a design is determined because the developer will need to maximize the space for affordable housing, but possibly there can be some flexibility built in for overlapping uses. Councilmember Williams asked if they knew what the price was on the 2.2 acres that was for sale to the south of the library. She stated at one time RDA looked at purchasing that property but as she recalled itwas more expensive than the site they purchased for the library. Jack Lam, City Manager, stated the property for the library was in distress and that was why they were able to purchase it. He stated there were also no more funds available in the RDA budget for the purchase of property and explained how the State has taken funds away over the last few years from redevelopment agencies. Councilmember Curatalo asked if there was a parking problem during the children's Storytime. Deborah Clark, Library Manager, stated yes. Councilmember Curatalo asked if it was crowded during the Saturday Storytime. Robert Karatsu, Principal Librarian, stated there was not as much of a problem on Saturday. Councilmember Curatalo asked if they were to hold two Storytimes on Saturday, would that help to alleviate the parking problem. Deborah Clark, Library Manager, stated the Saturday Storytime was less popular with the public so they do not have a problem on that day. Mayor Alexander suggested holding two Storytimes during the week. Deborah Clark, Library Manager, stated they hold two session already on Wednesday, and they just keep growing. Jack Lam, City Manager, stated the library is a success in the community, but it is still growing. As it becomes more popular, it will need more services. Mayor Alexander stated regardless of parking, the demand might create a need to expand certain programs, such as the Storytime. He asked what mode of transportation was used the most by patrons. Deborah Clark, Library Manager, stated there were all varieties, including carpools, but no schools because they were served in a different way during different times. City Council/Library Board Minutes April 12, 1995 Page 3 Jack Lam, City Manager, stated the prediction was that after the library was open a year they would have an increased demand for services. President Howdyshell stated they did not expect to be able to resolve this problem tonight, they just wanted to make it known. Councilmember Williams stated possibly they could get people to park in the Albertson's parking lot and walk around to the signal. Councilmember Biane asked if they have looked at private fundraising drives. President Howdyshell stated they have created a couple of programs for raising funds. Deborah Clark, Library Manager, stated they are planning to kick off two different types of fundraising. First would be entrepreneurial fees and fines, and the second would be traditional fundraising by approaching businesses to support certain programs. She stated they have the Friends of the Library, and they will also be creating a Foundation. Mayor Alexander stated possibly they could use an event at the Epicenter where the proceeds would be donated to the Library. Councilmember Williams stated maybe they can tie something in with the Founder's Day Celebration or some other event where proceeds would go to the Library. Mayor Alexander asked that this item be agendized for the second Council meeting in August for an update. Councilmember Curatalo asked if the City owned any property within walking distance that could be utilized as parking space. Jack Lam, City Manager, stated no. The Redevelopment Agency owns the property to the west but that was designated for seniors affordable housing as discussed earlier. Councilmember Williams suggested the Board contact the Community Services Department to see if they could calendar a fundraiser along with one of their events. She asked if they have spoken to the Baptist Church to the south to see if they would be willing to accommodate any overflow parking. Maybe the City could even look into offering to pave the gravel parking lot in exchange for use. Councilmember Biane asked if there was a possibility of allowing street parking. Jack Lam, City Manager, stated there was a safety factor involved that would prohibit street parking. He added that in regards to paving the lot for the Church, when he asked how much it would cost to repave the lot at Lions Center East, the cost was prohibitive. Councilmember Williams agreed the cost would be great but possibly the Church would be willing to match funds. She felt they needed to look at creative ways to do business. B2. DISCUSSION OF ITEMS OF MUTUAL INTEREST President Howdyshell stated they had a question regarding the budget, that it was their understanding if they raised funds through the Library, then those funds would stay within the Library system, and wanted to verify if that was correct. City Council/Library Board Minutes April 12, 1995 Page 4 Mayor Alexander stated that was true. President Howdyshell stated as they proceed through the years they wanted to provide more services, but in order to offer some of them they might have to look at providing services for a fee. They thought there should be a Task Force to look at what services should not be charged for and which ones should be. Mayor Alexander asked if they would like a Council representative on that Task Force. President Howdyshell stated yes. He stated Boardmember Muna-Landa has offered to be on the Task Force for the Library Board. He stated they have looked at possibly offering the Storytime on a registration and fee basis, the proceeds of which would allow them to add staff to expand services, but they did not want to do something that was against the Council's wishes. Mayor Alexander stated Councilmember Williams could be the primary contact, and he would also be willing to participate. Boardmember Swistock stated he and Boardmember Muna-Landa attended a conference recently and it seemed that no one really knew what were considered basic services. He stated it was pretty much left up to each library to decide. Jack Lam, City Manager, stated in the current economic environment, all libraries are talking about becoming entrepreneurial. He stated as an example he thought that people would be willing to pay for technological advances. If they could offer a service that expanded the use of the Library to 24 hours a day, people will pay for that and it will benefit the Library and allow them to provide other programs and support. He felt this was a very important issue. President Howdyshell stated they might also want a representative from the Friends of the Library on the Task Force. Councilmember Williams felt they also needed to start working with the schools so that they were not wasting money by duplicating services. President Howdyshell asked Deborah Clark to outline their goals for the next year. Deborah Clark, Library Manager, stated they have a very aggressive plan for fundraising. She stated there will be the crealJon of a Foundation, different ways to raise fines and fees, and working with the Friends to establish fundraisers. They are talking about planning two major events this year, one would be celebrating their birthday, and also doing something for National Library Week. They are also working on getting the donor wall up for next year. She stated another thing they are working on is a Literacy Program application, and they might be used as a model program. They are considering a joint effort with Upland for when grant money runs out, but they were confident that they would be receiving some type of state funding this year. They will continue to provide as many Storytimes as they can do with their staff and will be doing a Summer Reading Program. She stated there are a few more elements of technology that will be brought on-line in the next few months. She stated their goal was to be a model for other libraries. Councilmember Curatalo asked with the anticipated growth of the Storytime program, have they looked at expanding it to other City facilities. Deborah Clark, Library Manager, stated this relates back to the Task Force and determining what are basic library services. She stated their entire programming effort has been to bring people into the Library. She stated with the old Library they did not do storytime, they did not do adult programs, that was all done as outreach. She stated they did not really want to move the programs off-site because then they would become only a library services provider and that was not their mission. City Council/Library Board Minutes Apd112, 1995 Page 5 Jack Lam, City Manager, stated another factor to consider in regards to the children, when they think of it being free at the library, the Community Services Department offers services for children which the parents are always willing ~o ~)ay for, and the classes are always full. He is not saying that is better or worse, but it is an issue they might want to weigh when looking at. the two programs. Councilmember Williams thought that Storyfime was a child's first introduction to the Library so would not want to discourage participation by charging for it, but if they were to offer a special expanded program in conjunction with the regular Storytime, she could see charging for that. Mayor Alexander felt the Library staff and Board have done an excellent job, and they are obviously successful. He stated they are very proud of the job they have do.ne so far to make the Library so successful. Councilmembers Williams and Biane concurred. President Howdyshell felt the Council deserved credit for starting a library in these hard economic times, and Jack Lam also for selecting Deborah Clark to be the Library Manager. He hoped that the Council would contact the Board if they have any concerns, because he felt they were all committed to providing the best service to the community. Councilmember Curatalo asked if the City paid for the fingerprinting of volunteers. Jack Lam, City Manger, stated yes. Councilmember Curatalo asked if this requirement impacted the number of volunteers they get. Deborah Clark, Library Manager, stated it has not caused a problem. Jack Lam, City Manager, stated the problem is not people objecting to the requirement because they realize it is for the safety of the children, it is the cost of $35.00 per person. He stated the High Schools want to send students over to do volunteer work for their community service requirement, but they have to refuse some kids that can only volunteer 3-5 hours because the cost is too much for so little time. So they need to find people that can volunteer on a long-term basis, but that can also discourage some volunteers. Mayor Alexander referred to a question in the memorandum on if the City would be contributing monetarily to the Library's budget or if reductions were to be made, and stated the current feeling of the City is not to help with the Library's budget.. If something severe were to happen to their funding, then that policy would be revisited. Councilmember Williams stated that was an absolute that was set by the previous Council because at that time the City did not have any extra funds for supporting the Library. She stated the Library can keep all of the money it raises, but it needs to live within its budget. President Howdyshell stated they will do so by working on establishing a priority of services, not only by establishing fees, but by determining what can be cut if they have to. Councilmember Williams stated that was only good business sense and felt the citizens will understand. C. COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE PUBLIC No communications were made from the public. City Council/Library Board Minutes Apd112, 1995 Page 6 D. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Moved by Williams, seconded by Curatalo to adjourn the Council meeting. Motion carried unanimously, 4-0-1 (Gutierrez absent). The Council meeting adjourned at 6:00 p.m. The Library Board recessed at 6:00 p.m. to a special meeting to be held following the joint meeting. Respectfully submitted, Sutton Deputy City Clerk Approved by the Library Board: July 6, 1995 Approved bythe City Council: July 19, 1995