Library Usage Highlights
- Library patrons visited the library this year 221,937 times, averaging 18,495 visits per month, 4,268 per week, and 625 per day.
- Total circulation (502,609) down 11.7%, relative to the previous year's total (569,426), due in part to inaccessible areas of the library during the renovation, as well as to availability of videos and ebooks through other high-speed Internet access at home, fee-based online resources such as Netflix and Amazon, and possibly because of the high price of gasoline.
- Total number of borrowers (41,008) up 41%, relative to the previous year's total (30,636)
- There are now a total of 124,493 items in the library's collection. The library weeded about 20,000 items that had not circulated in at least the last two years.
- Circulation of ebooks using MyMediaMall and 3M Cloud Library increased by 7.3% this year, reaching an all time high of 20,001 e-books and e-zines
Administration, Budget and Finance
- Successfully implemented a $5.3 million annual budget that included a $2,063,000 renovation project.
- Worked with financial consultant to acquire a $1.2 million 10-year loan at very low interest.
- Received $125,000 Live and Learn Construction Grant and complied with all grant requirements, submitting all progress reports as required.
- The average FY2014/2015 salary or wage increase for each employee was been 2 percent, as budgeted, and implemented wage adjustments for clerical and page staff.
- Secured more than $15,000 in developer fees from the Village of Volo.
- Awarded 50% erate discount ($3,085) in FY2014/15 – lower than the previous year because telephone service was bundled with other Comcast services, resulting in much lower costs for telephone and Internet service.
- Administered the budgeting and levy ordinance processes resulting in a 1.13 percent increase in tax revenue for FY2015/16, enabling necessary improvements and the beginning of the restoration of the special reserve fund.
- Annual audit passed with no listed recommendations for procedural changes.
- Requested and will receive about $15,000 in funding from the Friends of the Library for a new TouchIT LED screen for the new teen area and some other items.
- Applied for and was awarded $34,057 for FY2014/2015 Per Capita Grant.
Public Relations
- Kept the public in the loop – via website, social media, newsletters, new articles, e-newsletters, and signage – with respect to the renovation project from conception to completion with emphasis on the fact that this project was being financed using financing that will have no impact on their tax bills and that in fact taxes would go down because of the 2016 expiration in of the building bond that paid for the construction of the facility back in 1997.
- Worked with the Friends to facilitate their many activities, including their very successful “Complaint Free Community” project, their annual Bunny Hop, and their new space for ongoing book sales.
- Promoted the library’s 75th Anniversary in numerous ways, including the Digital History project
- Made additions to the Digital History web page, including 300 more photographs from Neville Carr, 100 photographs from the Paddock and Dickson families. The Digital History photographs have attracted many thousands of visitors to the web pages I set up at no cost, thanks to the donations of all the photographs in digital format.
- Library director attended various meetings of the United Partnership, working on special projects such as a new UP website, the Good Neighbor Film Series, and the Temporary Driver’s License Education Program.
- As a member of the Joint Review Board with respect to the Village of Lakemoor’s TIF proposals, the Wauconda Area Public Library District stood with District 118 and Wauconda Township in voting against their proposal for the South TIF District, supporting the library board’s assertion that this location does not qualify for TIF status and that TIF financing would be unfair to library district taxpayers.
- Provided letters of support to help Lake County Discovery Museum apply successfully for the traveling exhibition from the Folger Shakespeare Library, titled First Folio! the Book that Gave Us Shakespeare
Library Facility and Grounds
Library director worked closely with the architects, construction manager, and financial consultant in managing all aspects of the renovation project. Library managers, staff and board were included in the development phase of the project. Renovation included the following:
Adult Services
- Improved customer experience
- Easy-access display of new books, DVDs, and CDs
- More comfortable seating throughout
- Brighter lighting and use of color
- Improved community meeting room with new AV system
- Large multi-purpose high-tech classroom
- Three new small meeting rooms
- Improved self-serve Internet café
- Quiet reading room with fireplace
- Updated printing/copying center
- New public computer spaces
- New digital media production lab
Kid City (Children's Services)
- Large inspiring, interactive displays
- Giant airplane-themed preschooler play space
- Kid-friendly supermarket for super fun
- New maker space - always open for creativity
- New gaming space
- More kid-friendly computers and technology
- New improved service desk
Teen Services
- Large, open teen-friendly space
- New spaced designed for teens to connect, create, collaborate
- Designed for social networking – online or off
- Gaming/collaboration space
- Large tables accommodate crafting, group projects
- New digital media production lab downstairs
Library Automation and Technical Services
- Hired IT Specialist (now IT Supervisor) to work with library management in developing all new technology as an important feature of the renovation project.
- All old public and service desk PCs were replaced with all-in-one computers
- New state-of-the-art AV setups for the Lincoln Room and the classroom
- Added a new classroom equipped with 20 iMacs for both training and for general public use, networked using an Apple server separate from the library’s Windows-based LAN (in process)
- Two 84-inch TouchIT LED touchscreen displays – one for kids and the other for the teen area (in process).
- New gaming setups for kids and teens