Trustees of the Boston Public Library Meeting

• Chair’s Call to Order and Report
  
                        Priscilla H. Douglas, Chair
• Welcome remarks.                                                                                                        
• Roll Call of Board.      
• Review and Approval of Minutes for the Trustees Meeting held on March 21, 2023
• President’s Report
  
                        David Leonard, President
• Management updates
• Guest Speaker
  • Roosevelt Weeks, Director of Libraries, Austin Public Library
• Introductions
  • Jose G. Masso, Chief of Human Services for City of Boston
  • Ashley Groffenberger, Chief Financial Officer for City of Boston
• Summary of Accomplishments and Goals FY2023-2024.
• In Process Update on Photography, Filming, and Digital Recording Policy
• Note on Board Document Management Platform-OnBoard
•       Trustees Finance and Audit Committee
  
         Evelyn Arana Ortiz, Committee Chair
• Mayor Michelle Wu’s FY24 Recommended Operating and Capital Budgets
  
  Executive Summary                                                                                                                                  Evelyn Arana-Ortiz and Ellen Donaghey, Chief Financial Officer

VOTED:  “that, the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston approve to accept Mayor Michelle Wu’s FY2 Recommended Operating and Capital Budget.”

• Award of Contracts (May be Taken as a Full Slate, if there are no objections: Items, 1,2,C,D)
• Contract or Contracts for Various Goods or Services relating to the Critical Repair Operating Budget for FY24

VOTED:    “that, the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston authorize the President, or designee, on behalf of the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston, to enter into a contract or contracts for various goods or services relating to the Boston Public Library Critical Repair Budget for the period July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2024 provided that each contract entered into pursuant to this authorization shall have been estimated to be less than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000.00).  In no event will the contracts cumulatively exceed three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000.00).”

• Contract for the Purchase of Books and Certain Other Library Bibliographical Acquisitions Materials

VOTED:    “that, the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston enter into a non-advertised contract, as authorized under G.L., c.30-B, Section 7(a), referred to as a “Procurement of Library Books,” between the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston (a Corporation under Chapter 114 of the Acts of 1878), and the vendors listed therein (including any subsidiaries or agents), for the acquisitions of books and for certain other library bibliographical acquisitions materials, in an amount not to exceed the amount appropriated in the Library Department budget for books and other related bibliographical acquisitions materials, during the period July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2024.”

• Trustees Fellowes Athenaeum Trust Advisory Committee/Trust Fund FY24 Expenditure

VOTED:   “that, the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston approve the expenditure from the Fellowes Athenaeum Trust Fund in an amount not to exceed                                          One hundred Ten Thousand Eight Hundred Eighty-Six Dollars ($110,886.00) to support the Fellowes Athenaeum Trust Fund Programmatic Plan for FY24 as recommended by the Fellowes Athenaeum Trust Advisory Committee and to be presented at an upcoming meeting.”

•      Review of delegation of certain contract approvals for the Board of Trustees

                        VOTED:   “that, the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston                                                  delegate approval of any contract deemed to be of a critical nature by the                                                            President of the Library during the period between May 2023 and                                                                         September 2023 to the Finance and Audit Committee.”

•      Proposed Schedule of Trustees Meetings for 2023-2024
  
        Priscilla H. Douglas, Chair

VOTED:   “that, the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston approve the proposed schedule of Trustees meetings for 2023-2024 as noted below, such meetings to be full meeting of the board or alternately of the executive committee, on occasion.”

• Tuesday, September 26 2023, location/time TBD
• Tuesday, November 7, 2023, location/time TBD
• Tuesday, January 30, 2024, location/time TBD
• Tuesday, March 26, 2024, location/time TBD
• Tuesday May 21, 2024, Annual Meeting, location/time TBD

*All Meetings dates/times/location are subject to change; see BPL website for details

•       New Business
• Barrier Breakers Exhibition, & BPL Partnership  Priscilla Douglas, Ben Bradlee Jr, and Jose C. Masso III
•      Public Comment

*Members of the public may sign-up for “Public Comment “in-person or via chat on Zoom by 9am.   Participants will be called in the order they were received. Each person will be allowed up to two minutes to speak.  Public comments can also be emailed to the Clerk of the Board up to 24 hours in advance of the meeting. All comments and/or questions given at this time will be documented and/or answered accordingly at a later time. (Comments left in the zoom chat will not be acknowledged)

•      Vote for Executive Session                                                                                                                                                                     Priscilla H. Douglas, Chair

*Purpose is to discuss Collective Bargaining Updates under Exemption 2. Any required vote will be held in a public meeting of an upcoming Board of Trustees or Executive Committee.                  

VOTED:   “that, the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston approve to enter into Executive Session for the purpose to discuss collective bargaining updates.”

*Executive Session will convene at the conclusion of the public meetings.  The Board of Trustees will not reconvene in a public session.

• Adjournment of First Meeting
  
  Priscilla H. Douglas, Chair

Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston

Priscilla H. Douglas, Chair; Evelyn Arana-Ortiz, Vice Chair

Jabari Asim, Navjeet Bal, Joe Berman, Ben Bradlee Jr,

Cheryl Cronin, Linda Dorcena Forry, John Hailer, Jeff Hawkins, Jose C. Masso III,

Senator Mike Rush, Representative Chynah Tyler, Christian Westra, and Lynn Perry Wooten

President, David Leonard

Clerk of the Board, Pamela R. Carver

For information check www.bpl.org

endorse on behalf of the Trustees checks so received, said amounts to be reported to the Board at the September Meeting.”

• Enabling Vote for Acceptance on Behalf of the Corporation of Gifts to be Added to Funds Already Established in the General Investment Account

Priscilla H. Douglas, Chair

VOTED: “that, until the next Annual Meeting, by delegation of the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston, the President, Director of Library Services, Chief of Operations, Chief Financial Officer, Chief of Staff, or the Clerk of the Corporation, hereby are, authorized to accept on behalf of the Trustees gifts to be added to funds already established in the General Investment Account, the acceptance of said amounts to be reported to the Board at the meeting following any such acceptance.”

• Enabling Vote for the Distribution of Income

Priscilla H. Douglas, Chair

VOTED: “that, the President, or Chief Financial Officer, or Chief of Staff,  be and hereby is, authorized and directed to distribute and pay to the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston the income of the General Investment Account for the period from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024; and further,

VOTED: that, the President, or Chief Financial Officer, or Chief of Staff, be and hereby is, authorized to cause to be paid to the Rector of Trinity Church for the period from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024 income on the Children's Fund now held in the custody of the Collector- Treasurer of the City of Boston pursuant to the provisions of the 11th Clause of the will of Josiah H. Benton, as required by the 19th Clause of said will; and further,

VOTED: that, the President, or Chief Financial Officer, or Chief of Staff, be and hereby is, authorize and directed to cause to be distributed and paid to the Rector of Trinity Church, to be held by said Rector pursuant to the provisions of the 12th Clause of the will of Josiah H. Benton, as defined by the Agreement of Compromise, dated January 15, 1935 and made in connection with the administration of the trust created by such Clause, four-tenths of the income of the Benton Book Fund for the period from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024, inclusive, now held in the custody of the Collector-Treasurer of the City of Boston, and to the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston the remaining six-tenths of said income for said period to be applied to the purchases provided in said Agreement of Compromise.”

• Enabling Vote on Trust Funds

Priscilla H. Douglas, Chair

VOTED: “that, the President, Director of Library Services, Director of Operations, Chief Financial Officer, Chief of Staff, or the Clerk of the Corporation, until the next annual meeting, is authorized to spend for the purpose of buying library materials any authorized and proper purpose income from those Trust Funds held by the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston, where no specific vote of the Trustees is required by the Trust instrument.”

• New Business

Priscilla H. Douglas, Chair

• Adjournment

Priscilla H. Douglas, Chair