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Record of Proceedings

Benicia Board of Library Trustees Meeting Summary – May 4, 2026

City Council & Boards — Monday, May 4, 2026
BodyBenicia, California
SessionCity Council & Boards
DateMonday, May 4, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 40:12

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Speaker 1

3:30

Like a call to order the May Four, May Fourth, Twenty Twenty Six meeting of the Benicia Board of Library Trustees.

3:39

Lois, may I have the roll call,

Unassigned speaker

3:41

please?

Speaker 2

3:44

Vice President Carolyn Catlone, present.

3:48

Secretary Lois Kazakhov, present.

3:51

Trustee Linda Ordonio Dixon.

Speaker 3

3:54

Present.

Speaker 2

3:55

Trustee Ruth Workman.

3:57

Present.

Speaker 1

4:00

Presenting.

4:35

The fundamental rights of each member of the public can be found in the municipal code posted on the city's website and on a plaque that is posted at the entrance to this meeting per section four.

Speaker 2

5:03

I move to adopt the agenda as written.

5:08

All second.

Speaker 1

5:11

May I have a Lois, could

Unassigned speaker

5:16

you

Speaker 1

5:17

call the vote, please?

Speaker 2

5:20

Vice President Carolyn Cadlone.

5:23

Aye.

5:24

Secretary Lois Kazakh.

5:26

Aye.

5:27

Trustee Linda Ordonio Dixon.

Unassigned speaker

5:29

Aye.

Speaker 2

5:30

Trustee Ruth Workman.

5:32

Aye.

5:32

President Todd Hickey.

Speaker 1

5:34

Aye.

Speaker 4

5:53

No, none.

Speaker 1

5:54

Anyone online with a comment?

5:59

Okay, thank

Unassigned speaker

6:00

you.

Speaker 1

6:02

Moving on then to information and presentations.

6:06

Uh are you going to present Julia's presentation, Jennifer?

Speaker 4

6:11

Yeah, or I just answer any questions that the board may

Unassigned speaker

6:14

have.

Speaker 2

6:25

For whatever reason, I couldn't make the link work.

6:28

Like it wouldn't open on my email.

6:33

No.

Unassigned speaker

6:34

I

Speaker 2

6:34

mean, there was a link, but I couldn't, I couldn't make it open.

Speaker 4

6:38

That the same issue.

Speaker 5

6:45

I usually just get it from the city website rather than through uh Helene's link.

6:52

It never works for me.

6:53

I haven't really even tried it lately, but I um usually just go to the city.

6:58

Uh you know, government agendas and

Speaker 4

7:03

I'm I'm not even aware of um what her process is for sending stuff to you guys.

7:10

So I I'll see if I can't figure out what's going on, if there was a problem with

Unassigned speaker

7:14

that.

Speaker 2

7:29

This may be a problem on my end because it wasn't my choice, but my email was migrated to another email service.

7:38

So that that may be the problem.

Speaker 4

7:41

I know that they all get uploaded to Granicus, which is the program that runs like the city council agendas and stuff there as well.

7:48

So if you're ever not able to get to it from an email that you receive, you could always go to the city's website and get to it through there.

7:59

Just by clicking on the agendas in minutes um link from there from that page.

Speaker 1

8:06

Yeah, I was under I simply receive a PDF that has everything in it on Helene's message.

8:13

At the end, there's a PDF with the entire packet.

8:16

So

Unassigned speaker

8:24

there

Speaker 1

8:24

are no comments about the report.

8:27

It's an excellent report.

8:28

I mean, obviously, the library, you know, was it 30%, I believe, of the volunteers are volunteering at the library and making a significant contribution.

8:53

Report from the president.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Libraries And Community Services█████████████████████████████████████████████63%
Arts And Culture████████████17%
Technology and Innovation█████████12%
Procedural███4%
Environmental Protection███4%
Summary of Proceedings

Benicia Board of Library Trustees Meeting Summary – May 4, 2026

The Benicia Board of Library Trustees met on May 4, 2026, at 6:00 PM in City Hall Council Chambers, adjourning at 6:36 PM. All five trustees were present: Vice President Carolyn Catlone, Secretary Lois Kazakhov, Trustee Linda Ordonio Dixon, Trustee Ruth Workman, and President Todd Hickey. The agenda was adopted unanimously, and no public comments were made.

Consent Calendar

  • Minutes Approval: The board reviewed and unanimously approved the minutes from the April 6, 2026 meeting, with a minor correction: changing "game switches" to "Nintendo Switches" as noted by Trustee Workman.

Reports and Presentations

  • Volunteer and Outreach Report (7.A): City Librarian Jennifer presented Julia Butler's report, noting that approximately 30% of library volunteers contribute their time at the library, making a significant impact.
  • City Librarian Report (7.C): Jennifer provided a comprehensive update:
    • Financial: On track for the fiscal year; awaiting final third-quarter projections from finance due to staffing adjustments and literacy grant fund reallocation.
    • Grants: Requested a one-week extension for the adult literacy grant application and an ESL grant extension through August to use salary savings; both submitted to the state. Negotiations with Solano County to take over part of the literacy program are progressing.
    • Courier Service: Exploring replacing the current NorthNet/Ride On contract with Solano County’s in-house courier, which would save money.
    • Hotspots: Expanding from 9 units (costing ~$500/month) to 25 units under a new T-Mobile library plan at $50/unit one-time fee and $9.99/month per unit, saving approximately half the current cost. New hotspots can be remotely turned off to enforce returns.
    • Book Bike Pods: Awaiting official award for a grant-funded pod; the board committed local funds to order a second pod, aiming for two total.
    • Public Computers: Reducing to five Chromebooks using the MyPC platform (replacing Userful, which is sunsetting). Transition to new fiber internet (Scenic) is nearly complete; temporary reconnection to Solano was needed when Userful went down.
    • Events: Lucha Libro event on April 26 drew 267 attendees; cleanup included using a leaf blower to remove popcorn. Summer reading kickoff is set for June 6.
  • Board Liaison Reports (7.D):
    • Art Gallery Advisory: Soliciting applications for next year’s exhibits (deadline June, selection by August). The library gallery will participate in Benicia Arts Festival on June 6, featuring a pink rose display and trolley stops.
    • Friends of the Library: Discussed jointly applying for an air district grant with the Library Foundation but ultimately decided not to apply; the city manager will connect them with a grant writer.
    • Library Foundation: Highlighted a successful planned giving event (video available) and emphasized the newfound collaboration between Friends and Foundation as a major win.
    • Poet Laureate Committee: Expects to present a recommendation to the board at the next meeting.
    • Historical Museum/Historical Society: Launched a joint "History Corner" table at the farmers market (every fourth Thursday). Upcoming events: Alan Gandhi talk on the Benicia-Martinez railroad bridge (May 17), home history research workshop (June), and a Mother’s Day craft activity at the museum (May 9).

Key Outcomes

  • The board unanimously approved the consent calendar minutes with the noted correction.
  • Significant progress reported on hotspot expansion (9 → 25 units), public computer modernization, and book bike pod acquisition.
  • Collaboration between the Friends and Foundation, and between the Historical Society and Museum, was celebrated as a positive development.
  • Trustee Workman shared two community testimonials: a library staff praised for excellent service, and a fourth-grader who requested her birthday party be held at the library’s game night—demonstrating broad community engagement.
  • The next regular meeting is scheduled for June 1, 2026.

Meeting Transcript

Like a call to order the May Four, May Fourth, Twenty Twenty Six meeting of the Benicia Board of Library Trustees. Lois, may I have the roll call, please? Vice President Carolyn Catlone, present. Secretary Lois Kazakhov, present. Trustee Linda Ordonio Dixon. Present. Trustee Ruth Workman. Present. Presenting. The fundamental rights of each member of the public can be found in the municipal code posted on the city's website and on a plaque that is posted at the entrance to this meeting per section four. I move to adopt the agenda as written. All second. May I have a Lois, could you call the vote, please? Vice President Carolyn Cadlone. Aye. Secretary Lois Kazakh. Aye. Trustee Linda Ordonio Dixon. Aye. Trustee Ruth Workman. Aye. President Todd Hickey. Aye. No, none. Anyone online with a comment? Okay, thank you. Moving on then to information and presentations. Uh are you going to present Julia's presentation, Jennifer? Yeah, or I just answer any questions that the board may have. For whatever reason, I couldn't make the link work. Like it wouldn't open on my email. No. I mean, there was a link, but I couldn't, I couldn't make it open. That the same issue. I usually just get it from the city website rather than through uh Helene's link. It never works for me. I haven't really even tried it lately, but I um usually just go to the city. Uh you know, government agendas and I'm I'm not even aware of um what her process is for sending stuff to you guys. So I I'll see if I can't figure out what's going on, if there was a problem with that. This may be a problem on my end because it wasn't my choice, but my email was migrated to another email service. So that that may be the problem. I know that they all get uploaded to Granicus, which is the program that runs like the city council agendas and stuff there as well.

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