Library Director’s Annual Report

 

Looking to the Future

In August, the Town hired the Boston firm of Perry Dean Rogers|Partners to design the plans for the New Library, to be located at the former Heritage Museum building, 356 Commercial Street. As a result, the new Library will offer residents all of the following in a restored 1860 historic building and will utilize the historic front staircases and entrance:

 

►a 75-seat Meeting Room with art exhibit space and a separate entrance on the First

Floor

► a quiet Reading Room in the converted kitchen building

►New books and audiovisual materials easily accessible on the First Floor

►Major book stacks for  the Adult Fiction and Non-fiction Collections with a Reference

and Technology Center located in the Lower Level

►Children’s Library, offering spaces for every age group, that fully incorporates and

historically interpretes the Rose Dorothea model

►an Arts and Literature Mezzanine with quiet spaces, a Poet’s Corner, and fabulous

views of the harbor

►an elevator, making the building fully accessible to all

 

The project went out to bid in December and is expected to be complete by Fall 2004.

 

The New CLAMS

CLAMS, the computer network of Cape and Islands, received a $300,000 Library Services and Technology Grant to upgrade its software.  This network manages the computer software that coordinates the databases holding information about the Libraries’ books and materials This information includes their current status (available, checked out and due on a specific date, in transit to another location). Library Staff has spent the year, upgrading local hardware, attending training sessions, and implementing the new software.  Library Operations Director, Karen MacDonald, was instrumental in seeing that Library Staff received the training and effective follow-up communication so that the conversion was as seamless as possible from the patron’s point of view.  I want to thank each of the Library Staff and Volunteers for the exceptional effort they displayed as part of this strenuous operation. 

 

What the CLAMS upgrade means for Provincetown Library patrons is that material can be requested more easily from within the Library or from home and that Library Staff can now use more powerful search strategies to locate material.  The most exciting changes include syndetics, which are Web-based links to information about books patrons are researching. 

 

The Library Trustees

Provincetown is indeed fortunate to have such a dedicated and hard working volunteer board.    Chair Jim Cole contributes his calm and effective presence at meetings and on projects.  He offers sharp insights on issues faced daily by the Library.  Marcia Fair, Vice-Chair and Chair of the Capital Campaign Committee, continues to teach me about the intricacies, patience and commitment that grant writing requires.  Arthur Pike’s eagle eye and attention to detail helps in every aspect of Library operations, from fund-raising to policy writing.  Maghi Geary and Anita Berman continue to keep the community up-to-date with Library news and offer their insights on the community’s Library needs. 

 

The members of the Supporters of the Provincetown Public Library continue to fund the expenses of the Capital Campaign, which means that every dollar that is donated to the new Library goes toward the Library Project.  One of the challenges faced this year was finding a suitable temporary storage site for the Heritage Museum Collection.  Town Clerk, Stephan Nofield spent countless hours searching for space and working with members of the DPW Building & Grounds Department to convert these spaces to secure quarters for the collection. Their efforts mean that the Town has the needed time to make decisions about the long-term solutions for the valuable historical Museum collections.

 

The People

Technical Assistant Maryanne Desmarais resigned last winter but continues to work on evenings and weekends as an On-Call staff member.  As Technical Assistant, Maryanne helped keep the Library Collection organized and the Front Desk a friendly place.  In February, the Library hired Elaine Quinn as Technical Assistant.  Elaine has organized a full schedule of volunteers to help meet the many demands of our Library patrons.  Thanks to Elaine’s hard work and commitment,  the Library now offers the new many versatile features of the CLAMS Serials module so that individual issues of magazines can be searched and reserved in the same way as other Library materials.

 

I wish to thank the Library staff and volunteers for continuing to do everything they can to see that Library patrons' requests are fulfilled and that operations proceed smoothly. The Library’s Front Desk and On-Call  Staff and Volunteers – Lee Ciliberto, Maryanne Desmarais, Jean Jarrett, Carol MacDonald, Diana Maher, Arno Masters, C.J. Noyes, Mary Smith, and Linton Watts  - and the Library’s always deserve recognition and thanks from the community for their hard work, dedication and flexibility.  Gerry Brennan , Lacey Carter, and Wendy Willard, worked hard shelving all the material that was returned.  We are indebted to the Council on Aging’s Senior Tax Program for funding Lacey, Gerry and Wendy’s hours.   Volunteers Dean Coddens, Gene Meredith, Paula Post, Nancy Sirvent, and Pat White joined forces with Library Staff to help shelve the 52,603 items borrowed by Library patrons this year.  Volunteer Pebo Bohannon beautifully maintained the Library’s gardens, and Cecilia Hall helped to keep our indoor plants healthy and green.

 

Library Programs

Children’s Librarian Renee Gibbs-Brady again ran an extremely popular and successful Children’s Program this year.  Storyteller Linda Schlecter helped run the “Zero to Three” Program at the Community Center (in the off-season) and at St. Mary of the Harbor (in the Summer).  We are again extremely grateful for the trust that these organizations place in us when they allow us to use their space.  The Children’s Department again sponsored the Summer Reading Program.  Each day, a different activity was planned throughout the summer. The hard work and generosity of the Friends of the Library, the hard work of their Book Sale Volunteers, and the generosity of the members of the local business community makes these series possible.

 

The Library is beginning to see the effects of the State’s Budget Crisis.  The State cut the Library’s Operating Support Grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council by two-thirds; the Library Commissioner’s incentive grant was reduced; and the Net Lender program was eliminated.  These cuts make it even more difficult for the Library to offer the programs and services that patrons expect.  Of an even greater concern for traditional Library services is the almost total elimination of the support for telecommunications services to Library Networks, such as CLAMS. The budgets for the offices that provide inter-library loan services state-wide have also been reduced.  The result is slower service and limits placed on the requests Library patrons make. In addition, cuts have been made in the state-funded access to online databases such as Infotrac and Books in Print.  These cuts will eventually translate into fee increases at the local level.

 

Statistics

The Library staff continues to serve the increasing needs of the community.  This year, residents borrowed 52,603 items, a six-percent increase over last year.  The Library’s collection contains 30,882 volumes.  The excellent quality of the Library’s collection is again reflected, for a fourth year in a row, by the fact that the Library is a Net Lender of material for Inter-Library Loan.  This year, the Library borrowed 4,483 items to satisfy the needs of patrons for material our Library does not own and loaned 5,669 volumes of materials to other Libraries for use by patrons in other communities.  Each one of these statistics represents hard and challenging work, both of a professional and physical nature, done by Library staff and volunteers.  This work includes finding the material for the patrons (both within our walls and beyond), preparing the item for loan and delivery, checking the items out and back in, and re-shelving the materials when returned. 

 

More and more Library patrons are also helping Library staff by searching for and requesting material from home through the online catalog located at http://www.clamsnet.org. 

 

Gifts and Grants,

This year, the library received  $33,643 in grants and gifts.  These funds include the $19,603 grant from the Gates Foundation for new Computers, a server for historical databases and a wireless network; $3,450 as part of a three-year Operational Support grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council; $7,200 from the Massachusetts Family Network for the “Zero to Three” Program for Children and their Families; and $3,130 from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners through the Certification Programs.  The Library received the results of a years-long LSTA funded Climatic and Environmental Preservation Assessment this year.  The results will be incorporated in the storage of the Library’s Local History Collection.  Library patrons also contributed $2,585 to Library fines and $260 to the Gift Fund.

 

I am appreciative and thankful to have this opportunity to work with so many intelligent and dynamic individuals, and to serve this community that offers inspiration in so many ways.  I look forward to the challenges and progress that will come in the days ahead.

 

Respectfully Submitted,

 

Debra DeJonker-Berry,

Library Director