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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPacket 2026-01-14AGENDA LIBRARY ADVISORY BOARD Wednesday, January 14, 2026 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. Library 706 Fourth Street, Lake Oswego, OR 97034 The Library closes at 7pm, please arrive prior to 7pm Staff Contact: Donna Harlan, 503-697-6583, dharlan@lakeoswego.city 503-697-6583 706 4TH STREET PO BOX 369 LAKE OSWEGO, OR 97034 WWW.LAKEOSWEGO.CITY Virtual Access This meeting will be held in person. To participate remotely, please email the staff contact at least 24 hours before the meeting. ADA Accommodation Requests lakeoswego.city/accommodation 503-635-0282; Relay 711 Please allow four business days to process your request. Translation Services Traducción o interpretación 翻译或传译 통역혹은번역 503-534-5738 Patrick Walsh, Chair ∙ Lilisa Hall, Vice Chair ∙ Mark Pontarelli ∙ Patricia Walls ∙ Joy Fabos ∙ Seth Pauley ∙ Liberty Planck Melissa Kelly, Staff Liaison ∙ Anna Lee, Youth Liaison ∙ Jessie Pan, Youth Liaison ∙ Rachel Verdick, Council Liaison ∙ Jim Wolper, Alternate 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES December 10, 2025 3. PUBLIC COMMENT The purpose of Public Comment is to allow community members to present information or raise an issue regarding items not on the agenda or regarding agenda items that do not include a public hearing. A time limit of three minutes per individual shall apply. Public Comment will not exceed thirty minutes in total. If you are unable to attend the meeting and prefer to provide public comment in writing, please email the comment to the staff contact listed above at least 24 hours before the meeting. 4. CITY COUNCIL UPDATE Councilor Rachel Verdick 5. OLD BUSINESS 5.1 Maker Day preparations 6. DIRECTOR’S REPORT 6.1 January 20, 2026, Council presentation 6.2 Voter history analysis 6.3 Fine free 6.4 Hold lockers 6.5 Bookmobile tour 6.6 Upcoming events Page 2 503-697-6583 706 4TH STREET PO BOX 369 LAKE OSWEGO, OR 97034 WWW.LAKEOSWEGO.CITY 7. CHAIR REMARKS 8. YOUTH LIAISON REMARKS 9. FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY REMARKS 10. ADJOURNMENT Next meeting February 11, 2026 CITY OF LAKE OSWEGO December 10, 2025 Library Advisory Board Library 1 503.697.6583 706 Fourth Street PO BOX 369 Lake Oswego, OR 97034 www.ci.oswego.or.us Present: Patrick Walsh, Lilisa Hall, Mark Pontarelli, Pat Walls, Seth Pauley, Liberty Planck, Jessie Pan, Jim Wolper, Councilor Rachel Verdick Staff Present: Melissa Kelly, Donna Harlan Absent: Joy Fabos, Anna Lee 1. Call to Order The Library Advisory Board (LAB) meeting was called to order at the Lake Oswego Public Library (LOPL) on Wednesday, December 10, 2025, at 7:03 pm. 2. Minutes Motion to approve was made by Hall and seconded by Pauley. The November 12, 2025, minutes were unanimously approved. 3. Public Comment – None 4. City Council Update – Councilor Verdick  Council had a good update from the Chamber of Commerce, and the city will continue to work with them on events to help small businesses.  The Diversity Equity and Inclusion Advisory Board provided an update to Council.  Council also received an update on gas powered landscape equipment. Council plans to continue educating the public on landscape equipment.  Councilor Verdick shared a few results related to the community survey. 5. Old Business Data collection brainstorming for Maker Day  Stations: o Robotics demonstration with the local high school robotics club o 3D printing demonstration from one of LOPL staff members with 2 3D printers o Podcasting station o Sewing station o Paper crafting station for all ages using carboard and die cutting machines and the library’s Cricket machine o Slide/negative scanning station  Kelly shared the working document with LAB related to the Maker Day event and the needs of LOPL staff. We do need LAB assistance regarding the event. All were encouraged to update the planning document with their ideas.  LAB then had a brainstorming session sharing outreach and data collection ideas. Kelly and Harlan will add the ideas from this discussion to the planning document. Teen takeover of library social media  The meeting planned will be happening in two weeks, on December 30. o The objective is to define goals and what the group hopes to achieve to help decide what to focus on for the campaign. o We will create a regular schedule and deadlines for takeover posts so staff can work around the schedule. CITY OF LAKE OSWEGO December 10, 2025 Library Advisory Board Library 2 503.697.6583 706 Fourth Street PO BOX 369 Lake Oswego, OR 97034 www.ci.oswego.or.us 6. Director’s Report – Melissa Kelly Bookmobile soft rollout  Kelly announced that the Rover bookmobile arrived December 10 and she drove it up the street!  The older Rover van will be parked at the ACC but will remain part of the fleet. Both library and Parks and Recreation will use it from time to time.  Training is scheduled for next week with a Farber representative. Right now, staff are focusing on learning the vehicle components and driving.  Kelly shared with LAB that staff have several stops scheduled with our current partners in January and will be adding more in February and the coming months.  Full schedule is 12 stops per week.  The library will host a bookmobile launch celebration in June 2026. Fundraising  Kelly relayed to LAB that this year our end of year campaign focused on spreading FOLOPL’s year end fundraising message to library supporters.  216 letters were mailed to previous library donors, that were not on the Friends mailing list.  Staff created a Giving Tuesday email blast that was sent to 8,100 email subscribers of the library’s bi-weekly enewsletter. Takeaways from the EveryLibrary book  The book report is about Before the Ballot: Building Political Support for Library Funding. o Kelly discussed the key points from the book that was based on two key studies. 2008 OCLC report: From Awareness to Funding: a study of library support in America and 2018 OCLC and ALA study: From Awareness to Funding: voter perceptions and support for public libraries in 2018. o Study findings indicated that many library supporters are actually non-users. Messaging needs to focus on building support for the library’s noble causes not on building usership. o The book talked about library staff and board members as candidates and the library as the cause. It’s valuable to talk about why library services and programs are important and the impact of library and staff on the community, framing the library as a transformational force and vital resource. o Political power is gained through identifying super supporters to cultivate their knowledge and passion for the library and engage them to act. o It is also important to keep informing these supporters of what the issues and successes of the library are, to create the passionate feeling about the library. o Emotional engagement drives voter behavior more than policies. CITY OF LAKE OSWEGO December 10, 2025 Library Advisory Board Library 3 503.697.6583 706 Fourth Street PO BOX 369 Lake Oswego, OR 97034 www.ci.oswego.or.us o The concept of surfacing the library is about creating a climate where voters feel a high degree of familiarity and identification for the library and staff. This creates important points of contact with the community. o The book also focused on real marketing, including the four Ps, product, placement, promotion and price. o Kelly shared that a big takeaway was to think about the library staff and board as candidates and how important it is that people know they are not just voting for the library, but also for the librarians and the transformational work that staff do. o Kelly will send LAB her notes related to the book. Walls is currently reading the book Winning Elections and Influencing Politicians For Library Funding , which was written for board members and library advocates. o Kelly is making plans to have our new communications specialist talk with the group as she has many good ideas that she is already putting into play. 7. New Business Chair and Vice-Chair vote  Patrick Walsh and Seth Pauley were unanimously elected as Chair and Vice-Chair, respectively, for 2026 LAB’s 2025 accomplishments and top goals for 2026  Kelly screenshared with the group the draft she created to start a discussion for the 2025 accomplishments for LAB and top goals for 2026.  The group then had a lengthy discussion around these ideas, their order of importance and suggested changes both for the accomplishments and the 2026 goals.  Kelly was grateful for their feedback and will update the draft to send out to LAB for further review.  Information about the Boards and Commissions Summit, to be held January 15, 2026, was also shared with the group. More information will be sent in addition to a formal invitation in the coming week. 8. Chair Remarks  Walsh expressed to the group what a great year he had because of the people on the board and gave kind and supportive remarks to everyone in the room. He thanked all for their service. 9. Youth Liaison Remarks  Pan told the group that she appreciates being part of LAB 10. Friends of the Library Report  Walls announced that the Friends are finalizing the renewed lease at the Monroe BOOKtique location.  Currently, the Friends are focusing their efforts on gaining memberships and donors. CITY OF LAKE OSWEGO December 10, 2025 Library Advisory Board Library 4 503.697.6583 706 Fourth Street PO BOX 369 Lake Oswego, OR 97034 www.ci.oswego.or.us 11. Adjournment Motion to adjourn was made by Planck, seconded by Walls. The meeting was adjourned at 9:04 pm. The next LAB meeting will be held on January 14, 2026. Respectfully submitted, Donna Harlan Lake Oswego Fiscal Year to date ending June 2026 General Information Number of new borrowers/patrons added 215 1,723 Number of registered borrowers 25,527 25,527 Books and other print items Number of physical units owned 120,614 120,614 Number of physical units added 1,255 5,210 Audio Materials Number of physical units owned 16,054 16,054 Number of physical units added 65 328 Video Materials Number of physical units owned 18,012 18,012 Number of physical units added 88 446 Other library materials Number of physical units owned 959 959 Number of physical units added 0 11 Total items owned 155,639 155,639 Total items added 1,408 5,995 Magazine Issues Number of physical units owned 1,850 1,850 Number of physical units added 111 731 Holds Placed 12,533 81,984 Holds Filled 10,405 66,847 Holds Expired 26 160 Holds Expired on shelf 1,511 9,444 Circulation of library materials at all facilities for the fiscal year Library2Go & Advantage Circulation Combined 15,534 92,349 E-book Reader Circulation with material type of CHILD 4 18 E-book Reader Circulation with material type of YA 0 4 Number of Circulation of Electronic Materials 15,538 92,371 Adult Checkouts 17,535 106,299 Adult Renewals (via WorkFlows and PAC) 10,660 63,604 No Longer Used -- December 2025 Lake Oswego Fiscal Year to date ending June 2026December 2025 Adult Renewals (via Shoutbomb) 436 2,598 Adult Renewals (via TeleCirc) 88 526 Adult Renewals (TOTAL) 11,184 66,728 YA Checkouts 714 5,847 YA Renewals (via WorkFlows and PAC) 695 5,011 No Longer Used -- YA Renewals (via Shoutbomb) 35 167 YA Renewals (via TeleCirc) 1 1 YA Renewals (TOTAL) 731 5,179 Child 1st-time circ excluding E-book Reader uses 9,772 70,112 YA 1st-time circ excluding E-book Reader uses 714 5,843 Child Checkouts 9,776 70,130 Child Renewals (via WorkFlows and PAC) 7,003 45,069 No Longer Used -- Child Renewals (via Shoutbomb) 519 3,348 Child Renewals (via TeleCirc) 22 47 Child Renewals (TOTAL) 7,544 48,464 Total 1st-time circulation 43,559 274,625 Total renewals 19,459 120,371 Total circ of Adult materials 28,719 173,027 Total circ of YA & Childrens materials 18,765 129,620 Total circ of YA materials 1,445 11,022 Total circ of Childrens materials 17,320 118,594 Total circ 63,022 395,014 Self-Check Circulation Self-check checkouts 23,621 154,376 % of physical item checkouts at self-checks 84.3%84.7% Check Ins items CHECKED IN via book drop or circ desk return 31,322 194,461 items CHECKED IN from "in transit" status 22,749 139,492 TOTAL items checked in 54,071 333,953 Lake Oswego Fiscal Year to date ending June 2026December 2025 Items loaned to other libraries Items loaned to other libraries within resource-sharing network (LINCC)15,939 96,175 Interlibrary Loans - Items Loaned to All Other Libraries (OCLC)221 1,161 Total loans to other libraries 16,160 97,336 Items borrowed from other libraries Items borrowed from libraries within resource-sharing network (LINCC)14,504 89,658 Interlibrary Loans - Items Borrowed from All Other Libraries (OCLC)90 553 Total loans from other libraries 14,594 90,211 NET ILL using a shared catalog of automation system (LINCC) 1,435 6,517 Adult Services December 2025 Monthly Report Our big news from December is the arrival of our bookmobile! AS Librarians helped staff from other library workgroups prepare for the bookmobile’s inaugural stop on January 8 at The Springs Senior Living, prepare for the Winter Reading Bingo, which kicked off January 2, and prepare for the City’s MLK Community Celebration on January 18. We also began training four new On-Call Librarians in Adult Services: Alex Acevedo, Laura Cook, Dine Mashlenko, and Gordon Paulsen. We’re so glad to have them on our team! Here’s a look back at our other accomplishments in December:  The stairwell gallery featured colorful oil paintings by local artist Sara Star.  We created a Tropical Armchair Travel book display and a Winter Blues non-fiction display featuring wintry titles with blue covers.  Together with Circulation staff, we brought Rover to Mary’s Woods senior living facility, in which we assisted 20 patrons in finding their next great read and learning how to use Libby.  Thanks to the generosity of the Friends of the Library, we hosted the following additional events: o A First Tuesday Music concert featuring Songs and Stories with 3 Hand Stephen (Stephen Cohen). The audience enjoyed hearing 3 Hand Stephen play folk, acoustic, and experimental sounds and seeing the instruments he built from found objects and guitar strings. o We hosted a Crafternoon at the Library in which people could bring their own crafts and craft together. Sadly, no one came to this event. Perhaps it would be more successful as an evening or weekend event. o Two Ancestry Answers sessions, in which volunteers and staff assisted patrons with their genealogy research. o The Genealogy Interest Group met in-person for a potluck at the ACC. o Our December Stairwell Gallery artist, Sara Star, delivered a talk about the New Light art movement and her process and inspirations. o A Bookish Affair met virtually to discuss Knockout by Sarah MacLean. o A Third Tuesday Author presentation at the Lake Theater and Cafe by Kimberly Moreland, President of Oregon Black Pioneers and author of Images of America: African Americans in Portland. Forty-one people attended! o Our monthly Poetry Group meeting. o Building Bridges Book Group met in-person and online to discuss Master Slave Husband Wife: An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom by Ilyon Woo. Stats Reference & Readers’ Advisory Interactions: 1,279 Programs for Adults: 10 Adult Program Attendance: 139* Programs for All Ages: 1 All-Ages Program Attendance: 20 *Does not include attendance for recorded events Librarian Shannon assisting a patron with Libby at the Mary’s Woods Rover Our new bookmobile! Youth Services December 2025 Monthly Report Reflecting back on a year in which one colleague retired and another colleague joined us presents an opportunity to acknowledge the value that every individual brings to our collective team. The diversity of our talents makes for a welcoming and inclusive vibe in the Children’s Library, where families find respite, warmth, cultural stimulation and opportunities to be curious. All of which contribute to our community’s well-being. We are so thankful for our regular partners who provide Spanish Storytime, Music and Movement in Mandarin, and Baby Sign Language, and for the volunteers who help us run our very popular LEGO club twice a month. We are thrilled to add another regular monthly program to the mix—Dance Lab: Little Movers, Big Feelers with Ms. Sunny! The emotion regulation, movement, and sensory lab was a huge hit with kids and caregivers alike. Littles eagerly danced, stretched, and explored, clearly having fun while practicing calming movements and mindfulness. Offering sensory-friendly programming helps the library create a welcoming, inclusive space where all children can learn and play comfortably. Debuting our new Sensory Kit at this program reinforced our commitment to accessibility, giving families tools they can use at any program to help kids feel supported, engaged, and successful. Special Programming We partnered with the International Leadership Academy for a special bilingual Storytime in French and English that delighted families and introduced children to two languages through songs, stories, and movement. This collaboration reflects our ongoing commitment to expanding multilingual programming and celebrating the diverse languages spoken in our community. Teens/Tweens We had a stellar and spirited turnout at our Well Wishes program, where teens made cards for hospitalized children and wrote letters to senior citizens (in both English and Spanish!) to spread joy and connection. Participants expressed interest in being able to attend similar programs in the future, so we may make this an ongoing series where we focus on gathering teen volunteers to create correspondence for isolated or marginalized communities. We also had our biggest group yet at the Before Hours Teen Book Club this month, where the teens had lively conversations about their recent reads, favorite series, and hot takes on choosing next reads (for example, “I never read YA books with images of real people on the cover, only illustrated people”). Outreach Allison visited Maayan Torah Day School to share stories and songs with three preschool classrooms on topics of light and color to align with their annual Hanukkah curriculum. Amy’s preschool crew at Maryam’s delighted in wintry stories as well. Andrea visited Lake Grove Elementary to encourage students to read through the Winter and to introduce their guest speaker Aaron Nels Steinke. It was a wonderful opportunity to remind kids about the public library and for those kids to see their librarian out and about in the community. The Art Literacy bulletin board featured artwork from Lake Grove Elementary highlighting the art of Alma Thomas. Throughout the month, library visitors worked together at the ArtBar on a festive and inclusive project creating holiday paper garlands from colorful paper circles and string. The simple, hands-on activity welcomed all ages and abilities, encouraging creativity and connection. As some garlands were put on display, they added warmth and cheer to the library while celebrating many traditions and the joy of making something together. Stats Reader’s Advisory/reference – 546 (includes 1000BBK and New Parent Gift bags) Program attendance – 34/1170 (includes storytime, special programs, school visits, outreach and LEGO club) HIGHLIGHTS  Equipped with an AirTag to track its voyage across the country, the new Rover Bookmobile was delivered to the Library mid-December, and staff were finally able to explore the vehicle in person. Below is the loading crew in action! CIRCULATION SERVICES  Top LOPL Circulating titles for 2025 were: o Big Nate by Lincoln Peirce o The Women by Kristin Hannah o The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt o Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins o The God of the Woods by Liz Moore NOTABLE STATISTICS The Library closed early at 1pm on December 24 for Christmas Eve and December 31 for New Year’s Eve. The Library was closed December 25 for Christmas. Items checked in Items sorted by AMH Items renewed Items borrowed from outside the County Items loaned outside the County Items borrowed from LINCC libraries Items loaned to LINCC libraries Holds filled Held items not checked out Library cards issued to new members eCards issued Home Deliveries Carts shelved Average daily carts shelved Cultural Pass reservations Seed Library Checkouts Indoor Visitors Curbside Visitors Self-checkout 54,071 42,352 19,459 90 221 14,504 15,939 10,405 1,511 215 26 53 854 28 126 76 13,716* 2 84.3% Technical Services Department December 2025 Monthly Report Tech Services Welcomes New Colleague Hillary Frederich This December, Tech Services was pleased to welcome Hillary Frederich to the Department. Hillary fills the part-time vacancy that was created with Rick Lyons’ move to Circulation in June 2025. Hillary comes to us from the Vollum Library at the Portland Japanese Garden, where she managed the collection, processed materials, supervised volunteers, and collaborated with garden staff across all departments. Hillary's experience with materials processing and technical services includes work at two large academic institutions as well. Hillary has a Bachelor's degree in Film and Digital Media from UC Santa Cruz, and an MLIS from San Jose State University. In her first month here at LOPL, Hillary has been kept busy receiving book shipments and learning to process different types of media, starting with audiobooks and DVDs. In just a few weeks, Hillary has made a big difference helping us get materials to our patrons more quickly. Volunteering and Events DECEMBER 2025 Report Total Volunteers Serving 127 Total Volunteer Hours 504 Created a month of programming in April 2026 for LO Reads. The month has more events than days and we are collaborating with many city departments and community groups. Coordinated Home Delivery volunteers for all assisted living communities and other patrons who can’t come to the library on a regular basis. This program continues to grow and evolve! We have more than doubled the number of patrons using the program and continue to bring on new volunteers to accommodate the increase. Provided Setup for December 2025 Library events. I have recruited and trained a new volunteer to attend all First Tuesday and Poetry Group events to offer continuity to lead event staff. We will also utilize volunteers for our City-wide events for MLK Day and Lunar New Year. Met with MLK Day Celebration committee to plan for our city-wide celebration on January 18, 2026. It should be our best event yet! We will feature music by the Brown Sisters and poetry by Emmett Wheatfall. There will be community tables offering crafts for children and a photography booth and exhibition by Lakewood Center for the Arts with the focus on Frederick Douglass. The event will be held at Lakeridge Middle School from 2-4pm. Coordinated a fun volunteer project to return damaged puzzles back into circulation. Four volunteers took home 9 different puzzles with missing or broken pieces, put them together (these puzzles are CHALLENGING!) and sent me photos of the completed puzzles. Our wonderful Tech Services crew order replacement pieces and the puzzle is returned to circulation! This is a great service to the community and savings to our Library budget. Yay for our library volunteers!