Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout06/10/2026 Minutes _ Tigard Public LibraryMember of ark g Washington County Serving the public since 1963 Cooperative Library Services Tigard Public Library Board Minutes —June 10, 2026 1. BOARD MEETING A. At 6:31 p.m. Board Chair Ristau called the Tigard Public Library Board Meeting to order. B. Chair Ristau called the roll. Present Absent Lili Diaz ✓ Jessica Lin Abe Manion Pam Michael ✓ Kate Ristau (Chair) ✓ Brandy Shockley Jenny Stoffel (Vice-Chair) ✓ Vacant (Alternate) Vacant (Alternate) Jake Schlack (Alternate Council Liaison) C. Call to Board and Staff for Non-Agenda Items i. Vice-Chair Stoffel proposed the non-agenda item Library Board advocacy. 2. PUBLIC COMMENT A. Follow-up to Previous Public Comment: None B. Public Comment—Written: None C. Public Comment— In Person: i. Jessica Fredrickson provided public comment. She thanked the Board for their support and advocacy of the library and library workers during this challenging budget cycle. She said it was difficult to see the cuts that were made to the library budget and the support the Board provided helped her to be able to come into work today. D. Public Comment— Phone-in or Video: None 3. APPROVE MINUTES TIGARD PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES —Wednesday, June 10, 2026— Page 1 of 11 13500 SW Hall Boulevard, Tigard, Oregon 97223 • 503.684.6537•TPLcomments©tigard-or.gov•www.tigard-or.gov/library A. Vice-Chair Stoffel moved to approve the Library Board minutes for the April 08, 2026, meeting. The motion was seconded by Board Member Michael, and the motion passed unanimously. B. Board Chair Ristau asked about the transcript of the director's report being attached to the minutes instead of the slides from the PowerPoint presentation. Library Director Bernard explained that going forward we will be attaching a transcript of the report instead of slides because as part of a citywide effort, we are working to ensure that documents and webpages are accessible to all users and comply with federal law. 4. ICEBREAKER A. Director Bernard welcomed new Board Member Shockley and invited her to introduce herself. Board Member Shockley said that she has been a member of the Tigard community for 40 years, and that her kids and grandkids also live here. She recently retired as an IT director, and she has always loved the Tigard Public Library and wanted to volunteer. She is very happy to be here. B. Library Director Bernard asked everyone in attendance the icebreaker question: What is your favorite salty snack? 5. MEET THE TEAM Our "Meet the Team" guest was Elena Gleason, Adult Services Supervisor in Readers Services. Supervisor Gleason gave a PowerPoint presentation on the second-floor redesign project. A transcript of the presentation is attached at the end of these minutes. Some additional information Supervisor Gleason related to the Board during her presentation included: • The redesign team conducted research to ensure their recommendations aligned with best practices in libraries and as well as our patrons' needs. She said that 165 patron intercept surveys were conducted. • Upcoming changes to shelving to improve accessibility will include rearranging shelves so there are no books on the very bottom or very top shelves. • The second floor will be divided into different sound zones to accommodate different patron needs. The zones will be formerly introduced to the public later this year. In the meantime, furniture is being rearranged and purchased to encourage the intended use of each zone. For example, the chairs in the Houghton Room, which is a quiet room, have been moved out of conversation configurations. The zones being implemented are based on the sound zone model used by PCC libraries. • As part of creating sound zones, the team is currently exploring different acoustic solutions that mask sounds of human speech. A sound masking demo is in place; the machine emits a noise similar to a white noise machine. So far, there have been no patron comments about it. TIGARD PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES —Wednesday, June 10, 2026— Page 2 of 11 13500 SW Hall Boulevard,Tigard, Oregon 97223 • 503.684.6537•TPLcomments©tigard-or.gov•www.tigard-or.gov/library Questions: Vice-Chair Stoffel asked if the Seed Library will remain in its current location on the counter in the A/V lounge. Supervisor Gleason said that it will be relocated nearby and that scanners will be moved to that counter space. Board Chair Ristau asked for more details on what furniture changes will be made. Supervisor Gleason described several of the changes including that the big glass display cases in the Houghton and Local History Rooms were removed to add more seating and study spaces. Vice-Chair Stoffel asked what is happening with the displays in the display cases that are being removed. Supervisor Gleason said that the display cases in the library's inner lobby will remain. These house rotating displays that are submitted by community members. The display cases that were removed held static displays. Some of the artifacts that were in the cases are now displayed in the glass bookshelves along the wall in the Houghton Room. Board Member Lin asked if there are any recommendations that aren't going to be implemented because of budget constraints. Supervisor Gleason answered that the recommendations were already scaled down based on our limited budget. One change we wanted that was not viable was to remove the big wooden shelving in middle of the second floor because it impedes line of sight and it would have opened up space for more seating. We learned from our Facilities team that underneath most of these shelves is duct work for the HVAC. Moving that shelving is currently cost-prohibitive. Board Chair Ristau asked if there are any other solutions or plans for this area where the shelving cannot be moved. Supervisor Gleason said that the computers currently on the east side of this shelving will be relocated to the AV Lounge/Graphic Novel area and that armchairs in conversation configurations will be placed there. She said the team is currently brainstorming ideas for this shelving. Board Member Lin asked if there is anything the Board can do to help support some of the recommendations that the team wasn't able to implement. Supervisor Gleason said that she has a wish list and that that's a great question. Director Bernard commented that our Friends of the Library organization might be able to support some of our smaller needs with funding. She suggested the idea of a joint Friends of the Library and Library Board meeting to discuss potential funding opportunities. 6. POLICY REVIEW A. LIBRARY POLICY: Fee-Based Services (Last Approved: July 09, 2025) I. Director Bernard shared that as part of the annual budget process Council recently approved the City's fees and charges schedule. There are no changes to the library's policy. TIGARD PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES —Wednesday, June 10, 2026— Page 3 of 11 13500 SW Hall Boulevard,Tigard, Oregon 97223 • 503.684.6537•TPLcomments©tigard-or.gov•www.tigard-or.gov/library II. Board Member Manion moved to readopt the policy. Board Member Lin seconded the motion. The motion was approved unanimously. B. ALA POLICY: Access to Library Resources and Services for Minors (Last Reviewed: December 11, 2024) I. Director Bernard discussed the changes to the policy as an effort by the ALA to clarify the language of their policies and make them more succinct. Library team brought it to the Board this month because affirming young people's access to resources and services is an important and timely topic. II. Board Member Shockley was surprised to learn and thought it was great that minors have rights in a library; this was not something she had previously considered. Director Bernard referenced our Unattended /Vulnerable Child Policy, which states that children over the age of 10 are permitted to be in the library without a responsible adult guardian. III. Board Member Shockley moved to endorse and reaffirm the policy. Vice-Chair Stoffel seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. 7. DIRECTOR'S REPORT A transcript of the director's report is attached at the end of these minutes. Questions: Board Member Lin asked what will become of the programs the Social Services Coordinator Ryn Starr put in place since the position will no longer be funded. Director Bernard replied that programs like Drop-In Hours and the Basic Needs Bookshelf will be discontinued, and donated goods for the Bookshelf will be redistributed to our community partners. Director Bernard added that she is working with Megan Cohen (City/County Houselessness Liaison) to see if our community partners have capacity to assume parts of this work, like drop-in hours, at the library. Finally, Director Bernard said that the library is still planning this transition, and she will update the Board with that information at the next meeting. Vice-Chair Stoffel asked if there are limitations on using grant funding to fund positions. Director Bernard answered that we avoid using grant funding for personnel because of its one- time limited nature, which would put us in the same position as we are in now. She said that Council has suggested that we explore IGAs and partnering with other organizations to fund or help with the work Starr did at the library. Board Chair Ristau asked a hypothetical question about the Friends of the Library receiving more funding, and if that increase in funds could be used to fund positions. In addition to previously- stated reasons why we do not use one-time funds for personnel costs, Director Bernard replied that the Library only requests funding from the Friends for programming or capital projects. The Friends currently underwrite 70% of the Library's programs. If the Library did not receive these TIGARD PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES —Wednesday, June 10, 2026— Page 4 of 11 13500 SW Hall Boulevard,Tigard, Oregon 97223 • 503.684.6537•TPLcomments©tigard-or.gov•www.tigard-or.gov/library funds from the Friends, we would not be able to provide programming for our community at the same level. Director Bernard noted that the Library depends on our Friends and our volunteers for providing core and base level services. Councilor Schlack said that because of the level of community concern about library services demonstrated at the recent budget committee and Council meetings, he submitted a request for an agenda item at an upcoming Council meeting to discuss library service levels. He thinks that Council needs to outline guidelines about library service levels. Director Bernard agreed that this is a much needed and overdue conversation, and she said that she is grateful to have this discussion with Council, especially when we are discussing the impacts of reduced FTE to service levels. Director Bernard noted that because of an amendment proposed by Councilor Schlack and adopted by the budget committee and Council to the Fiscal Year 2026-2027 (FY27) budget, the Library did not have to cut 0.4 FTE from our Young Adult Librarian and one of our Adult Services Librarians. Board Chair Ristau asked if it was appropriate and permitted for the Board to make a statement in support of and to honor Starr's service. Director Bernard said yes, it would be a statement like the one the Board made in support of inclusive programming, and would be shared with the whole library team. Starr's last day is June 30, 2026. Director Bernard said she would be happy to invite Starr to the next board meeting per Board Member Michael's suggestion. Board Chair Ristau asked if there are ways the Board can support the library team during this challenging and transitional time. Director Bernard said she would like to discuss this question at the next meeting and what the budget impacts mean going forward. She explained that we will be in another challenging budget cycle next year because we are expecting cuts to the library budget due to the cost savings from WCCLS centralized collections. The WCCLS Executive Board voted to realize cost savings across the entire cooperative so that we have sustainable library services in Washington County. Because of the more equitable funding model, some libraries will receive a higher percentage of county funding. No libraries will receive less than they did before, but Tigard is one of the libraries with the smallest increase to allocations (5%). Director Bernard noted that a brilliant silver lining to the current budget cycle is that we heard how many community members care about and are invested in our library, including Council. NON-AGENDA ITEMS Library Board advocacy: Vice-Chair Stoffel discussed her experience of advocating for the Library in the current budget cycle, through attending and providing public comment at all the budget committee meetings. She said she learned a lot about how city budgets, Council, and budget committees work. One of her takeaways was that she wished she knew at the beginning of the process what she knows now. She encouraged her fellow board members to become more involved in the process and with library advocacy. TIGARD PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES —Wednesday, June 10, 2026— Page 5 of 11 13500 SW Hall Boulevard,Tigard, Oregon 97223 • 503.684.6537•TPLcomments©tigard-or.gov•www.tigard-or.gov/library Vice-Chair Stoffel feels that it was a good experience and that moving forward it would be a benefit if the Board forged more relationships and dialogues with council members. She said the Board needs to have reasonable expectations of what Council can and cannot do, and that the Board has an active role to play as a liaison in communicating library needs to Council and how the library fits into other city interests. She feels that by establishing these relationships and keeping abreast of library trends, the Board can better support library workers and better represent the community by providing Council with the information (data, research, stories) that Council needs. Board Chair Ristau added that the board can present public comment to Council throughout the year. Councilor Schlack agreed with Vice-Chair Stoffel that the Library Board bringing more of the library's concerns and needs to Council is appropriate and would be helpful moving forward. Director Bernard asked the board to let the library know if there is any general information we can provide about how library boards advocate for libraries. Director Bernard proposed starting with re-sharing the American Library Association's United for Libraries trainings and information for boards and trustees. 8. ADJOURNMENT At 8:04 p.m. Chair Ristau adjourned the meeting. Prepared by: Ledja Johansson Approved on: July 8, 2026 TIGARD PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES —Wednesday, June 10, 2026— Page 6 of 11 13500 SW Hall Boulevard, Tigard, Oregon 97223 • 503.684.6537•TPLcomments@tgard-or.gov•www.tigard-or.gov/library [Transcript of PowerPoint Presentation] Second Floor Redesign 2026 Tigard Public Library Adult Services Team Slide 2: Goal: To implement a budget-conscious selection of changes to furniture, technology layout, and collection organization in order to create more accessible, vibrant spaces and enhance the patron experience on the Library's second floor. Slide 3: Research and Engagement: Research: Webinars, accessibility course, CORE Forum conference, books and articles; Seating study, May—June 2025; Patron intercept surveys, August 2025 Slide 4: Findings: • The most common use of space on the second floor is individual work or studying using a personal device. • Second floor patrons overwhelmingly prefer a quiet, cozy atmosphere. • Visits to the second floor tend to be long-70% of intercept survey respondents said their typical stay is over an hour. Slide 5: Generating Recommendations: • Staff subcommittees: Accessibility, Collection Space Needs, Zones/Layout, Public Technology • Adult Services Team Review and Discussion>Set Priorities>Final Recommendations Slide 6: Recommendation #1: Establish and reinforce sound zones Slide 7: Recommendation #2: Add single-user study options Slide 8: Recommendation #3: Improve second floor accessibility Slide 9: Recommendation #4: Improve patron experience of collections Slide 10: Implementation: • Complete: rearrange existing furniture and remove glass display cases • In Progress: Add new furniture, accessibility tech, and acoustic products and adjust collections to meet new standards • Up Next: Move public PCs to new locations and introduce zones TIGARD PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES —Wednesday, June 10, 2026— Page 7 of 11 13500 SW Hall Boulevard, Tigard, Oregon 97223 • 503.684.6537•TPLcomments#tigard-or.gov•www.tigard-or.gov/library [Transcript of Director's Report] Tigard Public Library Board Director's Report June 2026 Slide 1: [A photo is shown of library teammates at the Tigard Pride Parade and Festival.] • Library teammates and volunteers connected with over 300 community members during the Tigard Pride Parade and Festival. They shared jokes, applause, compliments, and fortunes from the wheel of joy, helped attendees make Pride-themed buttons, gave away friendship bracelet kits, and distributed 118 books for babies, kids, and teens. Slide 2: Notes for the Board • Welcome, Brandy, our newest board member! • Changes to board bylaws starting in January o The Council adopted standard bylaws for our boards and committees with an effective date of Jan 1, 2027. We will continue to reference our existing bylaws until Jan 1, 2027. More detailed information will be provided in the coming months on the transition to the standard bylaws. o Some changes include: ■ We will now have 9 voting members instead of 7 voting members and 2 alternates. One member may reside outside of Tigard city limits but within Washington County. ■ All member terms will be 3 years instead of 4 years. ■ If your current term continues past Dec 31, 2026, then your term length and limit will reset Jan 1, 2027. ■ As part of this effort, board member term lengths will be staggered to support smooth transition and stability. To establish the staggered schedule, board members with the longest service will receive the shortest initial term (1 year), while those with the least amount of service will receive the longest initial term (3 years). • Staffing Changes o Laurie Calvert, Senior Library Assistant in Circulation, retired last week after nearly 16 years. We are currently hiring for this position. o Kathy Miyashiro, On-Call Library Aide in Circulation, retired last month after 16 years of service. o Our Library Social Services Coordinator Ryn Starr's last day will be Tuesday, June 30th. This position was not funded in the FY2027 budget, and so it will end. Ryn has been a part of our team since December 2024. Slide 3: Strategic Priority One, Objective A: The library building and grounds are an accessible, vibrant space. [A photo is shown of the shelves with art displayed.] TIGARD PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES —Wednesday, June 10, 2026— Page 8 of 11 13500 SW Hall Boulevard,Tigard, Oregon 97223 • 503.684.6537•TPLcomments©tigard-or.gov•www.tigard-or.gov/library • The Teen Scene Alcove got an upgrade! Facilities installed new shelves, and Teen Library Council helped decorate while we await submissions from youth artists. • Interested teens in grades 6 through 12 can visit the "Exhibits & Displays" page on our website to apply. Slide 4: Strategic Priority One, Objective B: Excellent customer service defines the patron experience. • Tigard Public Library has earned ten new five-star Google reviews from community members in the four weeks since the building reopened. Some of the comments with those reviews included: o "The Tigard Library is one of my favorites. It's clean, quiet, and internet accessible." o "Loved going to Book Babies and look forward to trying out Fun for Ones storytime." o "Our favorite library! The staff is so nice and helpful, great children's section with an array of books, toys, and sensory items. There's ample space for adults, teens, children and I love that everyone kind of has their own space. It's quiet and there's a really nice trail & creek in the back." Slide 5: Strategic Priority Three, Objective G: The library is a link to education and career success. [A photo is shown of two youth services librarians performing Summer Reading outreach at a local elementary school.] • Tigard Public Library's children's librarians bring active storytelling, activities, and a love of literacy to classrooms across TTSD during school visits leading up to the Summer Reading Program. • Research has shown that participating in Summer Reading reduces knowledge loss during the summer break and keeps kids ready to learn in the new school year. • The Youth Services team connected with 2,276 students and educators with summer reading information and resources. The team is out and about visiting local schools almost every day from mid-May through early June! • In the past year, Tigard Youth Services teammates have connected with 7,367 TTSD students through classroom visits. Slide 6: Strategic Priority Three, Objective H: A diverse selection of library events engages community members of all ages. [A graphic is shown of the retro WCCLS logo. It reads: "50th Birthday. Stayin' curious since 1976".] • Celebrate the start of Summer Reading and WCCLS's 50th birthday! Join us for snacks, crafts and games. Pick out your prize book when you sign up for summer reading, then explore the fun activities for all ages! • The first 50 guests will receive a Wallace mug as a party favor (limit 2 per household). You can also get a Wallace sticker available only at a WCCLS birthday party. • Other special events going on right now: TIGARD PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES —Wednesday, June 10, 2026— Page 9 of 11 13500 SW Hall Boulevard,Tigard, Oregon 97223 • 503.684.6537•TPLcomments©tigard-or.gov•www.tigard-or.gov/library o You can get a special edition library card while supplies last. o You can pick up a passport and collect stamps from the 16 WCCLS libraries. Starting July 1, show your completed passport to library staff and take home a Wallace puzzle while supplies last (1 per household). Slide 7: Strategic Priority Two, Objective F: Qualified professionals serve the needs of the Tigard community. Some of the important work that happens behind the scenes. In the month of May: • Circulation processed half of the stored items from the building closure. Over a 5-day period, they checked in 254 taskets. • Technical Services finished "un-newing" the backlog of new books returned and processed during the building closure. • Administration held two drop-in hours with Eric Kang, the City's Finance Director, to hear staff concerns and answer questions about the Library's budget. Slide 8: Strategic Priority Three, Objective I: Library services expand access into the community. [A photo is shown of Maizie, our crocheted cornpig Summer Reading mascot.] In volunteering news: • Eleven new volunteers were onboarded, plus eight new volunteers attended a one-time event. • At least twenty-seven volunteers participated in a volunteer role new-to-them for the first time. • A volunteer who joined the library in November and has since contributed more than 35 hours as a Shelver decided to do a speech about what it takes to be a library Shelver in his freshman college class. Circulation staff members Beth and Lee met with this volunteer and answered his questions about shelving before his speech. • Twenty-four teens and tweens applied for the Summer Sign-Up Squad. Fifteen attended orientation in May. More will attend next month. • 86 volunteers contributed an enormous 619.86 hours to the library—the highest monthly total since at least 2021 — largely thanks to Jessica B.'s whopping 120 hours volunteered to create cornpig. Slide 9: Strategic Plan Engagement Commences [A graphic is shown of the library strategic plan engagement logo. It reads, "Help Tigard Public Library thrive! Ayuda a la Biblioteca Publica de Tigard a prosperar."] Speaking of our strategic priorities, we're thrilled to announce that the engagement activities for our new strategic plan have launched! • Between now and June 18, the strategic plan steering committee will be asking library users a few questions as part of an intercept survey project. You may see the steering committee or other library board members with clipboards interacting with patrons. TIGARD PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES—Wednesday, June 10, 2026— Page 10 of 11 13500 SW Hall Boulevard,Tigard, Oregon 97223 • 503.684.6537•TPLcomments©tigard-or.gov•www.tigard-or.gov/library • Also this week, our online community survey began! It will be available through the end of June for community members to fill out. Please visit our website and click on the tree to fill out the survey. Slide 10: FY2027 Budget Update Last night, City Council adopted the FY2027 budget. In the adopted budget, the following reductions will be made to the Library's budget: • Decreasing our materials budget by 29.2% and decreasing our processing budget to match. • Eliminating the two vacant positions in our Technical Services division (Acquisitions Supervisor and Senior Librarian). • Reducing all divisions' travel and training budgets. • Ryn's [Social Services Coordinator] limited-duration position will not be funded and will end on June 30, 2026. • There was an amendment to the proposed budget that provided funding for the 0.4 FTE in Readers Services, so Lisa's [Young Adult Librarian] and Micah's [Adult Services Librarian] hours will not be reduced. • I want to reiterate that the decrease in the materials and processing budgets, plus the elimination of the vacant positions in Technical Services, were part of our "glide path" proposal as the cooperative approaches centralized collections in FY2028. These specific cuts were not unexpected. Slide 11: Across the Cooperative • Delta Project (Centralized Collections): o Moving from APS to two new consultants with deep expertise in library management & policy development • WCCLS Funding & Governance: o New intergovernmental agreements to be signed in June, effective July 2026 — June 2031 o Agreements include the new funding model • https://www.wccls.org/writing-our-future TIGARD PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD MINUTES—Wednesday, June 10, 2026— Page 11 of 11 13500 SW Hall Boulevard,Tigard, Oregon 97223 • 503.684.6537•TPLcomments©tigard-or.gov•www.tigard-or.gov/library