Columbia Public Library Board of Trustees Minutes

Columbia Public Library Board of Trustees

Minutes, Meeting of August 23, 1999

Board members present were Bertrice Bartlett, Christine Cotton, Martha Dragich, Marie Glaze, Winifred Horner, Mary-Angela Johnson, Jo Sapp, Donald Sievert, and Virginia Young.

Others in attendance were Ian Parr and Ken Hutson, Owner Services Group, Inc. (OSG); Nestor Bottino, Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer Associates; Pat Powell, Joyce Porter, Boone County Board members; Melissa Carr and Elinor Barrett, library staff; Mike Underwood, neighbor; Cory de Vera, Columbia Tribune; and two Columbia Missourian reporters.

Call to Order

At 6:42 p.m., Bartlett called the meeting to order.

Public Comment

No public comment.

Report of Building Project Selection Committee

Contract for Project Management Advisor Services: Johnson reported that changes to the Standard Form of Agreement Between Owner and Project Management Advisor are indicated in bold.

Barrett stated that punctuation had been corrected throughout the document and pointed out the following corrections: a. Articles 7.2, 7.3, and 7.3.1 (page 15), were deleted and replaced by Article 7.1.
b. In Article 9.2.2 (page 24), the word "construction" was deleted in two places within the paragraph where references were made to "construction site staff."
c. In Article 11.7.1 (page 27), the owner's facsimile number was changed to the administrative office facsimile number. The telephone number was changed to the Director's direct line. Wording was added to direct correspondence to the attention of the President of the Columbia Public Library Board of Trustees.
d. In Article 7.3.2.2 (page 16), the interest rate of prime plus 1% simple interest per month was confirmed by the attorney to be acceptable.
e. In Article 9.1.3.1 (page 23), the word "or" at the end of the sentence was deleted and a period added.

Bartlett asked Barrett to explain "waiver of subrogation" (page 14). Barrett stated that the library attorney, Glen Ehrhardt, had explained it to her in the following way: Each party is waiving the right to file claims against the other's insurance company as referenced on pages 21 and 28.

Bartlett asked Parr if he had any further comment. Parr commented on OSG's general responsibilities as advisor on "process management."

Parr said, "OSG comes to the table as a team player." He noted that the library has selected a capable architect and the role of the project advisor will not come between the owner and the architect on matters of design.

There were no further questions for OSG from the board. (Both Parr and Hutson left the room before the vote to approve the agreement was taken.)

Johnson moved to adopt the Standard Form of Agreement Between Owner and Project Management Advisor with OSG with the foregoing changes; Young seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously with a roll call vote.

Miscellaneous

Johnson reminded the board that the Head of Financial Services, Todd Kielkopf, would be leaving his position with the library at the end of the month. Johnson expressed her desire that the new person hired for that position would be a highly qualified and competent individual.

The board discussed the special nature of the position and its relationship to the board.

Carr stated that the previous interview process for this position included participation from a member of the board for the final interview, which included a presentation of a financial report. Carr was considering a similar process for this hire.

Young stated, and Sapp concurred, that the hiring process should be left to the Director without board micromanagement.

Other board discussion considered the history of the position, created in response to expressed board concerns, and recent additional concerns, as well as special needs and challenges in connection with the ongoing Columbia expansion and results of elections in the county library districts.

Johnson moved, "It is the sense of this board that, for the Head of Financial Services position, the successful applicant preferably have a Masters of Public Administration (MPA) or Masters of Business Administration (MBA) and strong communication skills, and that there will be some involvement of trustees in the hiring process."

Motion passed, 7 for and 1 against (presiding officer not voting).

Barrett referred to a passage in the August 12, 1999 issue of the New Yorker magazine regarding Hugh Hardy of Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer Associates, LLP, and let the board members know that copies of the article were available for their perusal.

Sapp announced that the board will miss Kielkopf and congratulated him on his new endeavors.