Glen Ridge Library Board Approves First Building Assessment in a Decade, Funds Menstrual Product Dispensers
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The Glen Ridge Public Library Board of Trustees voted unanimously on June 12, 2024, to spend up to $10,000 on a facilities assessment report, the library's first such review of its building's condition in ten years. The work will be done by Daniel Kopec Architecture Design, which has proposed a $9,720 contract covering architectural, structural, mechanical, and electrical evaluations, plus cost estimation and a final report, with $5,000 due at the start of the project.
The board also approved spending up to $3,200 in state library grant funding for two menstrual product dispensers, two disposal units, a counter-top display, and related products from vendor Aunt Flow. The vote was 7 in favor with one abstention from board member Geoffrey Darby.
On the maintenance front, the library's security camera system is back to full working order after staff traced a blurry image at the staff backdoor entrance to a faulty wire, which has since been replaced. Separately, the library received $123,000 in reimbursement from the State of New Jersey under the Library Construction Bond Act, a grant program supporting library construction projects, with the payment arriving within about two weeks of being requested; $4,700 was spent in May and roughly $76,300 in grant funds remain unallocated. The board also unanimously accepted a draft 2023 audit report that turned up no findings, and noted this will be the final year working with the library's current audit firm.
Trustees reviewed, but did not act on, two other proposals: a $22,000 electronic lock system from current security vendor SMS, which the Director will hold off on while seeking competing bids, and a $4,000 acoustic engineering assessment from a second vendor, AKRF, which the Director plans to move forward with using funding approved earlier in the spring. The board also unanimously passed a resolution allowing the Director to pay routine bills in July and August without board approval, resuming normal approval procedures in September.
On the programming side, the Friends of the Library's May 16th "Selected Shorts" event at the train station was well received by those who attended but drew disappointing ticket sales and revenue, prompting an assessment before scheduling similar events again. On a brighter note, the library's Summer Reading Kickoff on June 3rd drew about 350 attendees and handed out 177 ice creams, and digital magazine usage climbed 153% year-over-year, driven largely by interest in The New Yorker through the Libby app. The library's "Ike the Book Bike" outreach program will continue at the train station on summer Thursdays from 4-7 p.m. through August 1st, alongside monthly story time sessions in Freeman Gardens.
What to watch
- The Buildings & Grounds committee is expected to discuss the acoustic engineering and electronic lock proposals at a future meeting.
- Design plans for a renovated Children's Office and back seating area, based on measurements taken by designer Shannon of Creative Library Concepts, are still being prepared.
- An inflatable "Whalemobile" ocean conservation exhibit is scheduled for August and will be housed in a Ridgewood Avenue School gymnasium due to its size.